One of the very first things I remember about the week that I met my husband John was that he LOVED his dog and that he had the most well-behaved dog I had ever met. At the time, his first love was a Rottweiler named Kacie. John has had a connection with animals since he was a young boy, hired to train his neighbor’s dog at just twelve years old. 40-something years of experience later, he still has that same confidence that can’t be taught and a passion and connection that you can only be born with. His talents have spanned from dog training to horse training, and believe it or not…even duck training. He’s the kind of guy who reminds you not to take life too seriously, to have a little fun, to go a little further, and to do a little better than you thought you could the day before. 

So where do I come in?  My Master’s Degee in curriculum and instruction has allowed me to put words and validation to the methods that John uses. Hours and hours of watching his connection with dogs and seeing their success has allowed me a front-row seat to apply the principles of shaping behavior and to interpret how he breaks down instruction into measurable and achievable steps that work. My role is to narrate his training, empower and educate our buyers, and help them find their Best of the Best Friends Match. Additionally, I love to communicate, research, plan, think ahead, perfect things, and check off boxes… critical tools for good breeding practices and healthy dog care. 

Together we share good business sense and an entrepreneurial spirit with a passion to help others live their Best Lives. We own two pediatric therapy clinics in the Chicago area, and have been honored to serve families whose children have delays or special needs through that business for more than 23 years. Our connection to that business has taught us a great deal about customer service, the importance of helping people and families, and the benefits of clear and honest communication.

All of these experiences led us to launch Best Life Labradoodles in 2018. Originally founded in the Chicago area, we are now located in Arrington, TN, and delivering dogs from New York City, NY to Naples, FL to San Diego, CA, Houston, TX, Traverse City, MI, and just about every major city and state in between! We currently hold the highest available rankings awarded by both the American Australian Labradoodles Association and the World Australian Labradoodle Association.

Over the past 27+ years, we have also raised four incredible adult children, all of which play a critical part in our businesses. We LOVE our family and we LOVE what we do. Two businesses and four children…so how do we do it? Well, we don’t sleep much. We’re just having too much fun to find time for that. Also, somehow we talked our son Mitchell into using his gifts and talent with animals into joining us full time in this amazing dream. We couldn’t do it without him and we lean on his intuition daily! We are also able to do it by the grace of God and with the support of our amazing family, great mentors, and teammates who love, love, love what they do. We truly believe that if you do something you love with someone you love, you’ll never work a day in your life… and that becomes more true for us every day. Whether we are working with the dogs at our home in Arrington, TN, communicating with buyers by phone, text, email, or zoom, or personally escorting a puppy by car or plane to cities all over the United States, it all feels like a blessing and we are extremely grateful for the opportunity to do what we do.

There is nothing we enjoy more than spending our days and nights doing exactly what we do now…caring for amazing dogs and helping really great families because…

Quite honestly, this is our dream. 

Thanks for getting to know us and for taking the time to learn about our breeding and training program. We can’t wait to get to know you better and learn how we can help! Please complete an application and we’ll get right back to you to find a time to connect. 

Best Life Vibes,

Janis Bautz