Our Puppies Are Doing Amazing Things: Savannah's Story
At Michigan Labradoodles, we love bragging about our puppies. Every dog who leaves our program takes a little piece of our hearts with them, and we love hearing about all the amazing things they go on to do. Some become beloved family companions, some become proud parents, and in Savannah’s case, a service dog and an irreplaceable part of the Smith family.
Will and Aliana Smith knew they needed a very special dog, one who could become not only a loving companion but also a steady source of support for Aliana. When Savannah joined their family, they had no idea just how perfectly she would fit into their lives or how much she would be able to do.
Savannah started out as most of our puppies do: a sweet bundle of fur headed home to her forever family. Fast-forward, and that same little puppy has grown into a certified service dog who helps Aliana navigate daily life with her health conditions and has become an irreplaceable member of their family.
Finding the Right Fit
Aliana lives with several rare conditions, including mast cell activation syndrome, which causes serious allergies. When she began researching what kind of dog might be a good fit for her family, she was looking for two things in particular: an allergy-friendly coat and a naturally caring, attentive temperament.
That search led her to Labradoodles. The combination of a Lab’s loving, people-oriented nature and a Poodle’s allergy-friendly coat seemed to offer the qualities she was looking for. As she researched further, Aliana discovered Australian Labradoodles, a line originally developed with allergy sufferers and service work in mind.
From there, her search turned to finding the right breeder, which led her to Michigan Labradoodles.
What stood out to Aliana was our approach from the very beginning. Our questionnaire asks families to share who they are, what their lifestyle looks like, and what they’re hoping for in a puppy. Aliana and Andrea talked extensively about what her family needed, and that conversation made the decision easy.
Rather than families choosing a puppy based on looks or simply picking their favorite from a litter, our process works a little differently. We get to know each family and then match them with a puppy based on temperament, personality, and the qualities that make the best fit. Our team begins evaluating those traits as soon as the puppies are old enough for temperament testing.
For Aliana and the Smith family, that careful matching process would lead them to Savannah.
A Puppy with a Purpose
Aliana’s husband, Will, works in healthcare, administering nursing homes, and the original thought was that Savannah might visit those facilities someday. But what they needed most was a dog for Aliana.
Aliana lives with adrenaline dumps, hyperadrenergic POTS, Chiari malformation, Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, and mast cell activation syndrome. In one year alone, she went through more than 20 brain and back surgeries. She hoped for a dog who could sense when her heart rate spiked and help bring her back down, and a dog who could travel with the family wherever life took them.
So when Andrea ran the puppy temperament testing and matched the results with everything Aliana had described, one puppy checked every box, medically and temperamentally. That puppy was Savannah, and from the moment the family brought her home, she was, in Aliana’s words, “the dog we asked for.”
Because of their size, Australian Labradoodles travel well, and Savannah has made the most of it. On her very first trip through the airport, she stayed glued to Aliana’s leg the entire time. People wanted to pet her (of course they did—look at her!), but Savannah never lost focus on the job she was there to do.
She’s a Natural
Savannah showed signs of heightened intelligence from day one. On her very first night home, the family put her in a crate (a zippable one), but Savannah had other plans. She escaped four times that night, earning the nickname Houdini.
This was just one of many early signs of exactly how smart Savannah was. She was not an average puppy. Where many puppies spend their first three years as barely contained chaos, Savannah was calm almost from the start. She was quiet, easy to settle, and sharp enough to problem-solve her way out of a “puppy-proof” crate before her family had even unpacked her food bowls.
Within a month or two of bringing her home, Savannah started showing her service dog instincts. Service dogs need to be able to go quiet, settle under tables and chairs, and stay calm and focused in public, and Savannah had all of those signs early.
The family also worked through online training with Baxter and Bella, a program Andrea recommended. With support from Aliana’s doctor, Savannah went on to become certified to fly with Delta Airlines.
A Repeat Customer Family
Aliana has nothing but good things to say about both the breed and Michigan Labradoodles, from the genetic health testing we perform on our breeding dogs to our temperament-first matching process and Andrea’s deep knowledge of each puppy.
And her family’s experience speaks for itself. After Aliana’s mother lost her dog, she also turned to Michigan Labradoodles and brought home a puppy of her own. We’re incredibly grateful for the trust both families have placed in us.
A Part of the Family
For all of Savannah’s accomplishments, what matters most to the Smiths is that she has become a beloved part of their family. She’s proof of what we hope for with every litter: that when you combine thoughtful breeding, careful temperament matching, dedicated training, and the right family, a puppy can grow into something extraordinary.
We couldn’t be prouder of Savannah, and we couldn’t be more grateful to her family for trusting us to help bring them together.
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