Mission and Education

  Our Mission Statement

To breed with integrity; healthy, sound temperament Australian Terriers, which are well socialized and meet the conformation standard for our breed. Improving upon the breed, producing quality not quantity Australian Terriers, in the Midwest. Producing show puppies, but focusing on raising Aussies as loving family companions. To be a helpful resource for others interested in the Australian Terrier Breed. 

Read about Dunham Lake Aussies in a featured article by the AKC Gazette!

Our litters will be occassional, focusing on healthy Aussies with sound temperment. We breed to the breed standard.  We have loved show dogs that we enjoy showing. This being said, our breeding goal is to raise sound, healthy puppies for families as companions. We have bred show quality pups, and we are concerned about improving the breed, but simply put, placing our puppies in loving homes is our first priority.  

We health test our dogs prior to breeding, Eyes (ACVO/CERF), Thyroid (T4/TSH/VTSH) and Patella's, all have been examined by a qualified veternarian, all results were normal and healthy.  

Because we have so few dogs and plan to stay a small  hands-on breeder, our puppies receive constant individualized attention from us. We have a special whelping room in our home, built special for our mother dog and her puppies. The room is private, away from the other dogs and activities, with in-floor heating and with plenty of windows.    

By the time our puppies will be ready to go to their forever loving homes at 12 weeks, we will have started them on outside potty training and over-night crate potty training. Our puppies have been taught sit, down, come and know their given names before they join their adoptive families! See video's on puppy page. At 6 weeks of age, they are already weened and eating solid food.  The following few weeks, before they leave to their forever homes, they are taught proper behavior by their mother and our other dogs, which is important. 

Along with good health, appropriate health testing for this breed and good nutrition, the enviromment in which a puppy is raised is key.  Our puppies receive constant socialization with not only adults and children, but our 4 cats, Molly our very loving Australian Shepherd and of course our three Australian Terriers!  These factors contribute greatly to a puppy's life experiences and will translate into the way they will perceive people and animals they will meet through-out their lifetime!

It is our desire to introduce our puppies to a variety of experiences which will make them more comfortable in many situations. It has been said, that every puppy by the time he is 4 months old should have met 100 different people.  The puppy should be introduced to people with hats, glasses, backbacks, children and adults. This goes for all breeds, not just the Aussie. Ultimately, this will result in a happier dog and a very well adjusted companion for you.

Adopting an Australian Terrier from Dunham Lake