How Puppy Selection Works at O’Hearon’s Amazing Puppies
Thoughtful matching. Realistic expectations. The right puppy for the right family.
Choosing your Bernedoodle should be exciting, but we believe it should also be thoughtful.
At O’Hearon’s Amazing Puppies, families are welcome to have preferences for sex, size, coat, color, markings, and even eye color. But we don’t believe the best puppy-family match can always be made from a photo alone.
As our puppies grow, we evaluate temperament, development, structure, coat traits, expected size, and the qualities each puppy may bring to a family—or potentially to the future of our breeding program.
Our goal is to help every family make an informed choice while protecting the long-term health and quality of OAP.
Step 1: Tell Us What You’re Looking For
Choosing your Bernedoodle should be exciting, but we believe it should also be thoughtful.
At O’Hearon’s Amazing Puppies, families are welcome to have preferences for sex, size, coat, color, markings, and even eye color. But we don’t believe the best puppy-family match can always be made from a photo alone.
As our puppies grow, we evaluate temperament, development, structure, coat traits, expected size, and the qualities each puppy may bring to a family—or potentially to the future of our breeding program.
Our goal is to help every family make an informed choice while protecting the long-term health and quality of OAP.
Step 2: Choose an Available Puppy or Future Litter
Some families come to OAP because they have fallen in love with a specific available puppy.
Others are looking ahead to a future pairing because they want a particular size, generation, coat, color, or genetic combination.
We’ll help you understand what is currently available and what our upcoming pairings may reasonably be expected to produce.
Because breeding and genetics involve living animals, future litter size, sex ratio, colors, markings, eye color, coat, and exact adult size can never be guaranteed.
Step 3: Reservation
Once we determine that OAP is a good fit for your family, a $500 non-refundable reservation deposit can secure an available puppy or an approved selection position in an upcoming litter.
The reservation deposit is applied toward the puppy’s purchase price.
For future litters, preferences help guide the process, but they are not guarantees of a particular puppy or trait.
Your reservation agreement explains the details of your position and selection process.
Why OAP Evaluates Puppies Before Final Family Selections
This is an important part of our program.
For each litter, OAP may hold up to two females and one male for breeder evaluation before family selections are finalized.
That does not automatically mean all three puppies will be retained.
It means we allow ourselves time to evaluate which puppies, if any, should remain in consideration for the future of the OAP breeding program.
We may look at:
- health and development
- temperament
- structure and movement
- coat and furnishings
- adult-size potential
- genetic results when available
- markings and pigment
- how the puppy complements our future breeding goals
Once breeder evaluations are complete, puppies not retained by OAP are released into the appropriate family selection order.
This allows us to make thoughtful long-term breeding decisions without rushing a keepback decision when puppies are still very young.
Temperament Matters More Than a Photograph
Color and markings are fun.
We understand why families fall in love with a beautiful traditional tricolor puppy, a striking merle, rich rust points, or blue eyes.
But those traits don’t tell you what living with that puppy will feel like.
As puppies develop, we pay attention to qualities such as confidence, sociability, energy level, sensitivity, recovery from new experiences, engagement with people, and overall temperament.
Then we consider the family.
A busy household with young children may be looking for something different from a quieter retired couple. A family hoping for a hiking companion may have different priorities than someone wanting a relaxed home companion.
The prettiest puppy isn’t automatically the best puppy for every family.
What About Male vs. Female?
Families are welcome to have a sex preference.
But we encourage you to keep an open mind when possible.
The individual puppy’s temperament often matters more than assumptions about males or females.
If you strongly prefer one sex, we’ll respect that preference while helping you understand the puppies actually available within your selection position.
How Accurate Are Adult Size Estimates?
We provide an expected adult-size range based on the parents, ancestry, genetics, previous offspring when available, and puppy growth.
But adult size is always an estimate.
Bernedoodles combine genetics from Bernese Mountain Dogs—which can be very large—with Poodles that may be dramatically smaller.
Even littermates can mature at different sizes.
We would rather give you an honest range than promise an exact adult weight we cannot guarantee.
Can I Choose by Coat or Shedding?
Yes, coat preference can absolutely be part of your selection.
Depending on the pairing, we may be able to discuss expected straight, wavy, or curlier coats as well as furnishing and shedding-related genetics.
But no responsible breeder can promise that a dog will never lose a single hair.
If coat texture or low shedding is especially important to your household, tell us early so we can include that in the matching conversation.
Can You Guarantee Blue Eyes or Exact Markings?
No.
We can identify what a puppy looks like today and discuss the genetics behind a pairing, but markings, pigment, coat appearance, and eye color may change as a puppy matures.
We will never guarantee permanent blue eyes or exact adult markings.
For families specifically interested in blue-eye genetics, you can learn more about our educational work around ALX4 Bernedoodles and non-merle blue eyes.
How Final Selection Works
Once breeder evaluations are completed and family selection opens, we contact families according to their established reservation or selection position.
Families review the puppies available to them and the information we’ve gathered about each puppy.
We’re happy to discuss strengths, temperament observations, expected size, coat, and how individual puppies may fit your family.
The ultimate goal isn’t to pressure you into choosing quickly.
It’s to help you feel confident about the puppy you’re welcoming into your home.
What If There Isn’t a Puppy That Fits Me?
You do not have to choose a puppy simply because your turn arrives.
Sometimes the best decision is to wait.
If the litter does not produce an appropriate puppy for your needs—or circumstances change—we can discuss the options available under your reservation agreement.
We would rather help you wait for a better match than encourage you to take home the wrong puppy.
Our Philosophy
We believe responsible puppy placement involves balancing three things:
The puppy’s individual qualities.
The family’s lifestyle and preferences.
The long-term health and future of the breeding program.
When those pieces align, everyone benefits—especially the puppy.