Mini Bernedoodles are affectionate, intelligent, and full of personality—and they thrive with the right care and attention. Here are a few key tips to keep your pup happy and healthy:
Nutrition: Feed your Mini Bernedoodle a high-quality, well-balanced dog food that matches their age, size, and energy level. Fresh water should always be available. We feed our puppies the best food we could find to ensure they have a good start at a long healthy life. We recommend NutriSource Small & Medium Breed Puppy food. It is a chicken meal and rice recipe in a purple bag. You can follow the feeding guide on the bag for your puppy.
Exercise & Play: These pups love to play! Daily walks, playtime, and mental stimulation are important to keep them fit and happy. They enjoy being with their people and do best when included in family activities.
Chewing toys: These are important to supply for your puppy to give them something to chew besides your shoes and furniture! If they start chewing something they are not supposed to, simply remove the puppy from the item and replace with a chew toy. We recommend a Kong chew toy that you can put a small smear of peanut butter inside and they will chew and chew trying to get it. We also like chewing toys/bones made of natural ingredients. Rawhide is not recommended, as they can chew off a large piece and it swells in their digestive tract, and can cause a blockage. Your vet can recommend chew toys that are safe. They need to chew, so be alert to what they are chewing on and be sure to keep all electrical cords away from puppy’s reach. There can be deadly consequences from charging cords.
Grooming: Do start brushing your puppy daily with a soft brush for now. As their fur gets a tighter curl, they will need detangling with a slicker brush. They should be brushed to get tangles out every other day. They can be groomed at 6 months. Ask for a puppy cut or a teddy bear cut to get the classic Doodle cut. If you would like a photo that describes this in detail, please email or text us and we will provide that for you. When they are fully grown, they will need groomed every 6-8 weeks. Nails and paw trims may need to happen more frequently to keep less of a mess coming inside with them!
Training & Socialization: Early socialization and positive reinforcement training help your pup grow into a well-mannered adult. Mini Bernedoodles are smart and eager to please, making them quick learners.
Vet Care: Routine check-ups, vaccinations, and preventative care (like flea, tick, and heartworm protection) are essential for your puppy’s long-term health.
Handling: 8 week old puppies seem sturdy, but they are still fragile. Please don’t allow them to jump off a couch until older, as this can damage their back and legs. DO handle puppy’s feet, ears, tail, face and mouth often. This conditions them for grooming throughout its life.
Traveling: Do take them on car rides often even for a few minutes so they will get used to car rides. Bring paper towels, wipes and bath towel for accidents. Sometimes they get carsick. Bring a water bottle and bowl, too. There are seat belts for dogs that we recommend for when they are larger. It is safer for you, too.
Potty Training: To start, take puppy out upon waking from naps and every 2 hours while awake. When you are taking them out to potty, say the same word each time. Such as “potty” or “outside” so that they learn what that means quickly. Then give them a treat and lots of praise when they go do their business outside. If they start to have an “accident” inside the house, pick them up immediately and say the word Potty or Outside and put them in the same location that they have eliminated before. When you get puppy home, you may have a few nights of taking puppy outside often, but it will get better!
