Puppy Page

Cricket Hollow Farm

309-932-3102

Cricket Hollow Farms Labrador Retrievers

So, you've decided you want to add a Labrador Retriever to your family! Congratulations, it is a momentous decision to commit yourself to care for and love a dog for its lifetime. For love it you will, there is just nothing like the love of a lab! That said, before you go any further, perhaps you could take a look at this wonderful "So you think you want a labrador retriever" page and see if a lab really is the right breed of dog for you and your situation. This page will discuss the pros and cons and costs involved with a lifetime commitment to your new puppy.

So - you're still with us? A lab must be the puppy for you if those cons and costs didn't outweigh the pros! Of course, if you have ever been owned by a lab, you already know all this and you know it is all well worth the cost and the fur on the couch.

Conditions of Puppy Sale

We only raise a few litters per year, so each and every baby is precious to us. We do everything in our power to ensure the babies are healthy, happy, well socialized little darlings. We offer an extensive guarantee, which includes everything from a three day return regardless of reason, to a 2 year guarantee of the puppy's hips, and lots of other guarantees in between. You won't find many equivalent health guarantees out there. We sell all our puppies on a limited registration. We occasionally will place a show quality puppy, but only under a co-ownership agreement. We offer two types of contract, limited registration contract and co-ownership contract. You can view the contracts and have the difference between the two explained here.

If you'd like to view some photos and notes from our
previous puppy families, you can visit them on our Love Page. Recently added pages 7-14 can be accessed HERE.

We are careful about where our precious little ones are going. We do our utmost to ensure the babies will be all they can be, we start them off right by using the BioSensor method of neurological stimulation. We also socialize our puppies extensively to ensure they will be happy, healthy additions to their new families. We take special care in deciding which puppy goes where by use of extensive puppy aptitude testing.

In order to help us decide which puppy is the best match for you,
please complete and submit our puppy questionnaire

Placement

Puppies go to their new homes at about 8 weeks of age. They will have their dew claws removed, have their first shots, have been wormed, and our vet will certify their health prior to them leaving. All puppies are $950 plus 6.25% Illinois State Sales Tax, to approved pet homes on a spay/neuter contract. Contact us if you are interested in a show/breeding prospect, pricing varies on show/breeding puppies. Puppies come microchipped for their safety and your peace of mind!

On unborn litters, we will accept deposits ($200) on 8 puppies (4 males and 4 females). Eight puppies is the average litter size for labradors, (although we have had 11 or 12!) The gestation period for a Labrador is about 60 days. On unborn litters, we can not be sure that there will be a litter, sometimes the breeding doesn't take, or something goes awry and the litter is re-absorbed. In the event that there is no litter, or when the puppies are born, if we do not have your selection, your deposit is returned, or can be used toward a future litter. Deposits are ONLY refunded if we don't have the gender/color you reserved.

To read about how we decide which puppy goes to which family, click here.

Current (or expected) litters:

--------------Cheddar----------------------------------------------Thistle--------------------

We are currently waiting for Cheddar to cycle, we plan to breed her to Thistle. Cheddar is in season now. These will be gorgeous yellow babies who will be sweet, calm and wonderful family companions or service dog candidates. Cheddar is extremely sweet and smart as can be. Thistle has the most wonderful labrador temperament I've ever been around, and his babies tend to emulate that, he is a wonderful blessing in our lives :-) If you'd like to be on the waiting list for these babies (who should go home in approximately May), please just email me.

Future litters:

Litters we are planning (waiting for the moms to cycle):

-------------------Fern-----------------------------------------Thistle--------------------

Fern (granddaughter of our lovely Cricket & Maize, daughter of Boone) should cycle in the spring and will be bred to Thistle. We anticipate yellow and black puppies arriving in early September, going home in November. Fern is a very sweet girl, very playful and loves to swim and retrieve, she is a total love sponge, I adore this girl. She is her grandmother all over again with even more humor thrown in. With her sweetness and Thistle's deep desire to please, these should be some wonderful, and gorgeous babies! They'll make good hunting companions, stellar family members and dedicated service dogs. Please just email me if you would like to be on the waiting list for a black or yellow baby from these two.

-------------Popcorn------------------------------------Thistle--------------------

Our sweet baboo Popcorn (daughter of Maize and Tory) has come of age - hard to believe she isn't still a baby puppy, but she is fast approaching her 2nd birthday, once she gets all her clearances and comes into season we plan to breed her. Tentatively planning a yellow litter with Thistle, but may change our minds and breed her for a black and yellow litter with Boone, will decide when she actually comes into season :-) Either pairing will produce some beautiful babies. Popcorn is the sweetest girl, full of fun and always happy to play any game we devise :-) She was an easy puppy to live with and easy to train and has been a joy to live with. If you'd like to be on our list for one of her babies in the coming months, please just email me!

You are always welcome to email us to see what is in the works, things can change and often do :-)

Puppy families are welcome to prepare for their new family member with the purchase of a Puppy Layette from our petstore.

We also offer training packages of one or two week duration to help house and obedience train your new family member.

Looking for a photographer for your family photos or dog portraits?
Michael H Photography does a terrific job.
Mike has a very artistic eye and his photographs are a cut above
your standard portraits or staged shots.
Check out his website linked above to see more of his work!

See more Puppy Pictures

Cricket Hollow Farm cannot warrant or assume any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process herein disclosed.