the_mikor

Hello there! My name is Marika... tho I'm mostly known online as Mikor. And I am 29 years old. Just bought my first house (closing date dec. 31st!!) And I'm very excited because this means I can finally get a dog! I've wanted one ever since our last dog died when I was 9 years old... and she was a Spoo! I have always wanted 2 dogs my entire life.... one of those 'when I grow up...' things. And it's always been a Spoo and a …. the second one is a flavour of the day/month/year thing. But the Spoo has been consistent forever. So while I've decided that one dog is enough, I am definitely going with a Spoo!

I decided to break down my information to make it easier for people!

My Name: Marika
Location: London, Ontario (house with fenced in backyard 5 min walk from a giant field and playground!)

Job: I'm currently working as a nanny full time, but I will be moving to part time (before and after school for a couple of hours) Come September. And I think this would be a perfect time to get a puppy because I would be home to give it the time and training it needs! So anytime between September 2013 and January 2014 would be my preferred time to adopt my girlie! And when I have kids of my own I plan to stay at home with them and do a (very small) home day care. Probably 3 kids including my own.

Spoo Preference: Female, Dark in colour, Good with kids! (and cats)
Other Pets: Currently 2 cats. But I've had a lot. Including mice, rats, bunny, fish and I grew up with 2 dogs. The only pet I ever had to give up was the bunny because I didn't have room for him in my apartment when I first moved to London. But he went to a home with kids and lived out the rest of his happy life

Favourite dog training book so far: Sirius Puppy Training by Ian Dunbar
I've read 4 so far as well as random sites and what have you, plus long talks with my mother who is amazing with dogs and used to help people train their dogs (as a hobby mind you...) And I do plan on taking my pup to training classes!

The poodle would be a member of our family, we have no plans on entering her in any shows and would be spaying her. (no unwanted puppies or kittens coming from my house thank-you!)

I definitely want a breeder in Ontario or Northern US – London is pretty close to the US border. As I plan on coming to pick up my poodle. Also! I have the last week and a half off of January so if you would like to set up a meeting my Mother and I are more than willing to drive up/down to meet you and your dogs! We'd like to see what kind of home our future girlie will be coming from!

Thank-you very much for your time reading this! I hope to find a good breeder soon!

MaryLynn

Hey there, I am from London too

Good luck with your search. I think you will find lots of breeders in this area. I have a 6mo right now on, we're on the north east end of the city in case in the future you're looking for poodle play dates.

the_mikor

Ooo! That would be cool! Our house that we just bought is on the West-side of London but the only dog park I know of is east side... which I guess would be closer to you.

I never used directions nearly this much until I moved to London... people are very direction-oriented here, and me with no sense of direction I find I have to rely on my gps

MaryLynn

Here are some doggy links for you for our city!

There is lots to do with dogs in London. I think the best dog park is the one on the east end.

London Dogs Owners Association

Off-leash Dog Parks

It's best to avoid the park on the east end at peak hours (weekends before/after dinner and lunch), and weekdays after dinner as there will be no where for you to park, and lots of people use it as an exercise area so there can be some very strung out over excited dogs there when it's too busy. I have not visited the other dog parks as what I hear from other city residents is that they're far, far worse for dog-dog aggression etc.

Paragon

Hello the_mikor,

London is a good dog friendly place... Hard to get from one end to the other but nice for a City. We have a few of our Airedales out there. I would suggest you do alot of research into your breeders, and make sure you see at least some testing of the parents.

Go to see the dogs in the breeders home long before there are pups. You can actually look at how they react to you, without the AWWW.... PUPS.... factor clouding your mind. A decent breeder is always willing to talk to you, or meet in person, with you and your family, at their home or yours, with a call to say you are coming by. We want our babies to have good homes and for a match to work for all.

Remember to tell the breeder what your expectations are, and please do be honest. If you expect pup to be sendentary but tell them you want pup to be able to participate in Flyball.... It won't be fun for either of you. You would want pups socialized with other animals and children.

There are plenty of good breeders out there. Make sure if someone says pup is purebred, you will get the CKC papers with the pup. It is the law... I am aware of some in your area that "Breed" but do not register, or test any of their parents.... Just a heads up...

Good luck in finding a great family member. You are smart to start well in advance, as many good breeders have waiting lists for pups.

Paragon

liljaker

Hi and welcome and good luck with your search. I do know one of our members, cavon, has a wonderful spoo (lots of titles at a very young age) and she lives in Ontario, too. I believe her Finnegan is from Bijou. She may have already answered your post -- I just logged on and saw this and figured I'd suggest you check them out.

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julietcr1

I would look for a puppy with parents tested for genetic diseases and for a puppy with a COI (Coefficient of Inbreeding) under 6% if possible. You can check this databases Query database to calculate the COI of your puppy or ask the breeder to give it to you.

Sushi is from Cantope Standard Poodles in Pefferlaw, Ontario. He is everything I was looking for and lot more, he is so affectionate and easy going! They have a cat (Gizmo) so he was already use to cats when he came home.

Cantope have many dark colored puppies, you can have a look at

http://cantope-standard-poodles.com/...le-Puppies.pdf

Other forum members and breeders will tell you not to buy from breeders who breed many litters per year. I agree with this advice but I just don't know what is "to many litters" specially in Cantope's case since breeding is a full time job for them... Anyway, I was really satisfied so I highly recommend them.

Good luck in your search!

Julie

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Lea

Hi Marika

Another London gal here! We travelled a few hours closer to Owen sound to find our baby at Rayah standard poodles. His mom is from Rayah and dad from Arreau standard poodles.

I'm in the west end of London. There is an off leash dog park close to greenway. Although I'm not a total fan of the off leash parks. And the other one is in the east end.

Good luck with your research. I've been in contact with many spoo breeders in southwestern ont until we decided on the perfect breeder/dog combination.

Have fun in your adventure to find a wonderful spoo!

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Oodles of Poodle curls!!!!

the_mikor

Thank-you everyone for all the help!
the posts here and the PM's suggesting breeders. I looked over the sites of a lot of them and sent my Mother the links. She's been in contact with a few of them and we're setting up a meeting with a breeder for the end of January!
My Mother is amazing at figuring out dogs and choosing ones with amazing personalities. She'll know right off the bat if a dog is of good stock or not. I'm glad I have her on board to help me find a good breeder!

You all have gorgeous doggies! I'm getting really excited about finally getting a spoo of my own! (well in a year but I'm still excited!)

Thanks again!

cavon

good luck with your search!!

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CA,CAX,URO1,URO2,URO3 (HIT),Multi Altered Total Dog,Multi RBIS,Multi BIS,BISS,ALCH Bijou's Finnegan Avon CGN,CGC,CRNCL,AKC CA,AKC CAA,AKC CD,AKC RN,AKC RA,CKC CD,CKC RN,CKC RA,Herding Instinct Certified


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