Why are poodle mixes so popular? (shih tzu, retriever, breeder, shedding)

[BCC_1]

Originally Posted by oregonwoodsmoke

Purebreds have their gene pool narrowed down to traits that are desirable for that breed. But any time you deliberately breed a mutt, then the genes will be all jumbled up and you might get anything.

Which is really less of a big deal than a lot of the pedigree breeders make out. If you take a lab and a poodle and they have puppies it's pretty unlikely you end up with a dog that makes a poor family pet. And let's face it, that is what 99% of dogs are for.

Originally Posted by oregonwoodsmoke

The really odd thing about doodles is that they often cost more than a registered, well bred, purebred poodle. If you want no shedding and super brains and you are willing to pay that sort of money, why not just buy a poodle from a good reputable who breeds for quality, temperament, and health??

Agree with you on this. As I said up thread, I think most buyers of these poodle mixes don't really realise that a poodle is probably a perfect dog for them. My friend works as a vet nurse, you would be amazed at the number of people who think these crosses are actually pedigree breeds.

[oregonwoodsmoke]

Originally Posted by BCC_1

Which is really less of a big deal than a lot of the pedigree breeders make out. If you take a lab and a poodle and they have puppies it's pretty unlikely you end up with a dog that makes a poor family pet. And let's face it, that is what 99% of dogs are for...........

Maybe, maybe not. Both poodles and labradors can carry the genes for a couple of different eye diseases that cause blindness. Both breeds can carry the assorted genes that result in hip dysplasia. Some Labradors have really bad temperaments. Of all the people I know who have had small dogs killed by other dogs, all of them except for two were killed by a Labrador. Labrador temperaments are not necessarily as good as conventional wisdom insists they are.

Pet store poodles can be really neurotic and difficult to house train, the smaller they are the more likely they are to be a head case.

The people who breed doodles do not have access to quality well bred dogs, so they use whatever they can get and profit is the motive. They might steal a Labrador wandering around who is dog aggressive and breed it to a pet store poodle and if the genes fall in an unlucky way, you get a dumb, dog aggressive, neurotic dog who refuses to house train and will be blind and crippled by the age of three. Or maybe you''ll get a decent dog. Luck of the draw and totally up to chance.

If you buy a purebred poodle from a hobby fancier, both parents will be DNA screened for eye disease, so you won't get any of that. Both will be tested and pedigree screened for many generations so you are very unlucky if you end up with hip or elbow problems. Both parents will be screened, and pedigree screened, for temperament and trainability. And a little side benefit, the dogs will have been bred for good coats. They are animals not machines so you might get a bad one, but the odds are very much stacked in your favor that you will get exactly the dog you hoped to get.

And if these doodles are such great pets, why are they landing at the pound? Some of my tenants took one in to babysit and that dog had all the personality of a wet dishrag. It was dumb and the coat was a nightmare. The owner was trying to give it away and my tenant had had enough of it and wouldn't keep it any longer. Maybe that one ended up in the pound. On the flip side, my realtor has a labradoodle who is an absolute darling. Random breeding, you pay your money and take your chances. You could end up with anything.

[SnazzyB]

Originally Posted by miu

Poodles and poodle mixes don't shred and are very smart. Of the dogs that languish in the shelters, they are pitties and pittie mixes... and no one wants them because of their reputation for aggression.

And if not pitties, they're hounds and hound mixes. I didn't want a dog that I had to worry would jump the fence following its nose or seeing a squirrel 2 yards over and jumping the fence.

[BCC_1]

Originally Posted by oregonwoodsmoke

Maybe, maybe not. Both poodles and labradors can carry the genes for a couple of different eye diseases that cause blindness. Both breeds can carry the assorted genes that result in hip dysplasia. Some Labradors have really bad temperaments. Of all the people I know who have had small dogs killed by other dogs, all of them except for two were killed by a Labrador. Labrador temperaments are not necessarily as good as conventional wisdom insists they are.

Pet store poodles can be really neurotic and difficult to house train, the smaller they are the more likely they are to be a head case.

I'm not arguing there aren't bad dogs of any breed. But, as I said, if you mix a lab and poodle it's pretty unlikely you'll end up with a dog that makes a poor family pet.

Originally Posted by oregonwoodsmoke

The people who breed doodles do not have access to quality well bred dogs, so they use whatever they can get and profit is the motive.

If that's the baseline then why are boxers, French bulldogs, pugs, as an example, still being bred? They generally have horrible health and no one says boo because they meet some conformation standard. The notion that pedigree breeders are doing God's work and everyone else is just in it for a quick buck is unfair, imo.

Originally Posted by oregonwoodsmoke

If you buy a purebred poodle from a hobby fancier, both parents will be DNA screened for eye disease, so you won't get any of that. Both will be tested and pedigree screened for many generations so you are very unlucky if you end up with hip or elbow problems. Both parents will be screened, and pedigree screened, for temperament and trainability.

Sure, I've bought my share of purebreeds, but the reality is that many popular dog breeds are significantly overbred from a narrow gene pool and it causes health problems. On top of that, there are simply not enough hobby fanciers out there to satisfy the demand for dogs. And I'd argue there is no way that what a hobbyist does – motivated by a sense of altruism and wanting to develop a breed – in terms of health and temperament screening can be done at scale to satisfy that demand without a profit motive and without dogs being incredibly expensive.

Originally Posted by oregonwoodsmoke

And if these doodles are such great pets, why are they landing at the pound?

The most popular dog in Australia is apparently the cavoodle. A few of the other poodle crosses are in the top 10. I have never seen an oodle at a pound here. Ever. I'm sure they turn up, but they don't last long if they do. The pounds are full of kelpies, bull arabs, terriers etc.

[Frostnip]

The original idea of the goldendoodle/labradoodle wasn't a bad one when done from good stock. A smarter, healthier, less allergenic golden or lab (or a more stolid, mild-mannered, sturdier standard poodle) would make for a solid service animal, pet, or sport dog. All three breeds are trainable, handler-oriented retrievers so it's not a weird mishmash.

Most of the other deliberate doodle crosses are just silly and the person should just get a poodle (that's not tiny and/or milled) if they want a reliably non-shedding, smart, trainable, active dog. (Of course, with a rescue you take whatever comes along that's appealing to you and compatible with your lifestyle, breed doesn't really matter.)

[JONOV]

Originally Posted by oregonwoodsmoke

And if these doodles are such great pets, why are they landing at the pound?

Because there are kabillions of them. Rare breeds end up in pounds too, once in awhile. I doubt most of them stay in the pound for long.

[LynnKrause1]

I don't think that many of us humans are "pure breds".....therefore if I choose a mixed breed puppy to take care of for 14-15 years, what difference does it make in the scheme of things. And I bred Champion Labrador Retrievers for many years. I now have 2 English Shepherds. They are recognized by the UKC and came with more documentation than any AKC registered Labrador I have ever had. Who cares. They are great dogs.

[charmed hour]

We brought home a mini Bernedoodle 6 weeks ago. After 3 English Bull Terriers the last 13 years, this little guy has been a breath of fresh air. LOL EBTs are notoriously hard to train due to their stubborn nature. My 18 month old did intense onene with an in home trainer for 6 months and we’re still not quite there yet with her. We are seriously considering a board and train program.

This guy- day 1 (6 weeks old), he learned both the sit and stay hand signals we use. 6 weeks later, he’s fully house broken, can walk off leash with excellent recall, among many other mastered commands. We did not use a professional, just the techniques they used with our EBTs.
Whip smart and a big old ouch potato, for the most part.

[AnywhereElse]

It is just another fad. I am seeing them show up at animal control facilities in a 100 mile radius around us, and there isn't that much population.

Like all other breeds that become a fad, people do not do their research, and find the dog really isn't a "fit" for their family. One should decide prior to adopting or purchase, based on research, whether a dog will be a fit.

I know someone that paid $1,000 for a labradoodle. When it was 3 years old, it ended up at the parents place in a pen behind a large utility building. After nearly a year, they were talked into allowing a young man to have the dog. He had been caring for it, and teaching it "manners". It was a beautiful ending to a horror story of ignorance. The dog did NONE of the behaviors once he was out every morning running with the young man.

People MUST do their research. This "designer" breed tihng is a joke, as all the dog is in reality is a "mutt"! Mutts are great, but being priced like a purebred from exceptional lineage, just no!

[oregonwoodsmoke]

never mind, the picture didn't come through.