To think there’s nothing wrong with cross breeds?

[sophialagiraffe]

There is nothing wrong whatsoever with cross breeds, whether that’s lurchers or cockerpoos. People are allowed to like what they like.

What DOES matter is where the dog comes from. But all this sneering about “mongrels” is fucking nasty and says more about the poster than the dog.

Most people don’t want a Crufts champion, they want a pet.

The amount of crossbreeds that come into groomers fully matted

Well, my accidental crossbreed gets matted too. I don’t even take her to a groomer. I just shear it off. She doesn’t seem bothered at all, so where is the welfare issue?

The welfare issue is that many doodle owners point blank refuse to have their living teddy bears clipped short because they "like them fluffy" even when the dog is matted solid and clearly suffering. They are more concerned with looks than how the dog feels but would never dream of picking up a comb to stop the dog getting matted in between grooms in the first place.

I don’t understand the fashion for groomers either. They just didn’t exist when I was younger. You just brushed your dog occasionally and rarely washed it. I’m very similar now. No I don’t clip my fluffy dog because I bought a dog with a fluffy coat so I deal with it. It does get matted regularly but I get through it easily enough.

There are irresponsible breeders breeding both pedigrees and crossbreeds. But it’s easier to find a responsible breeder of pedigrees than it is of crossbreeds. Plus in the main, the responsible breeders of pedigrees are trying to avoid and/or reverse the pitfalls caused by the breeders of previous generations. Too many of today’s crossbreed breeders are hellbent on repeating them.

To me it looks like a lot of people want their puppies and want them now. They don’t seem prepared to go on a waitlist and potentially wait a year until the next litter comes along and travel the length of the country. When they can get a poodle mix from Steve in the next town.

This is a huge part of it. We live in an Amazon Prime next day delivery world. The idea of waiting for months for a responsible breeder to have a litter of pups available is anathema to many. They’ve decided they want a puppy, so they want a puppy now.

A good breeder will grill a prospective owner about their lifestyle and dog knowledge to the point the latter feels privileged to be entrusted with one of their pups. And so they should - it is a privilege to have a dog in your life, not a right. They’ll have a contract which will include an offer to take the dog back at any stage of its life if you hit insurmountable problems. Nowadays they’re likely to have a website or Facebook page setting out their ethos, highlighting their dogs as individual personalities and with their health test scores displayed. This should make it easy to see how rarely and selectively they breed a litter, so you can be reassured they’re not in it for profit.

If the person you’re buying your puppy from isn’t doing any of this and is mostly focussed on whether you have the cash, you’re not buying from a responsible breeder - whether pedigree or crossbreed.

@NuniaBeeswax

The welfare issue is that many doodle owners point blank refuse to have their living teddy bears clipped short because they "like them fluffy" even when the dog is matted solid and clearly suffering. They are more concerned with looks than how the dog feels but would never dream of picking up a comb to stop the dog getting matted in between grooms in the first place.

I'm finding your post very hard to believe. I own a doodle and look after her coat really well. Doodles of all sorts are extremely popular where I live and I see them frequently in the parks around here. I've never seen one that is matted solid and clearly suffering.

Where are you getting your information from please?

Bilgepumper this is an American groomer’s blog, but she mentions being part of a global grooming community who are seeing the same issues:

www.baxterboo.com/fun/a.cfm/groomer-writes-an-open-letter-to-doodle-owners-about-their-care/

There are some great cross breed names though.

I saw a wonderful rescued Jack Shit when I was on a walk the other day.

And then there is the Bull Shit!

@lifeturnsonadime

There are some great cross breed names though.

I saw a wonderful rescued Jack Shit when I was on a walk the other day.

And then there is the Bull Shit!

"Where are you getting your information from please?"

I am a dog groomer and it is a daily occurance in my line of work. I have had owners call me every name under the sun for refusing to dematt their dog, been told that they shouldn't have to brush their dogs between grooms because that's what they're paying me for, that I'm just lazy for shaving off a matted dog rather than putting it through the pain and discomfort of dematting, I've had colleagues physically threatened over shaving off matted dogs and most of these incidents involve doodle owners who just want a cuddly toy rather than a pet.

Honestly I'm shocked that you've never encountered a matted doodle tbh.

But why be so sneery and arsey about it? And pull the other one with ‘just concerned about welfare’ - world of difference between being upset about puppy farms and sneering and insulting others’ choices!

Because people are being conned out of hundreds, sometimes thousands of pounds for something they can't know about.

Labradoodles bread to be guide dogs for people with allergies are one thing, the lines have been bread, at least on the lab side for a particular temperament, owners receive a well trained, well bread dog and the cost is minimal (it used to be £0.50) to the owner.

I know someone who has a 'cockapoo', he is a lovely dog but she paid a fortune and was told that in 50 years they will be a recognised breed.

More recently she has found out the mum is a cockapoo but the dad is a poodle.

I don’t understand the fashion for groomers either. They just didn’t exist when I was younger.

Obviously I don't know how old you are but the golden retriever we had in the 1980s went to be groomed when she needed it.

I think the coat wearing is a consumerism issue more than anything. People see other's dogs wearing them and so assume it's something they need. If you visit hot countries with enough middle class people, they will often put their dogs in coats in what they consider to be "winter" even though it is similar to summer in a place like the UK.

My guess as to why people aren't so keen on poodles is that they perceive them as a high strung dog, and labradors as more family type, mellow dogs. That's not entirely true but there are differences in temperament. And while the crosses do require grooming it's a different kind than the constant shedding ad occasional blowouts of the labs

Basically all the reasons that prompted the cross in order to produce a good guide dog that would not shed in the same way a lab does. Why do people think standard poodles are not a common guide dog choice while labs are?

I don’t understand the fashion for groomers either. They just didn’t exist when I was younger

No, and back then it was fashion to dock tails and clip ears too.

My mum would take a pair of scissors to our dog when needed.

I use a groomer for the same reason I outsource many things. They are better at it than I am to start, so it’s a better experience for the dog and less chance of being caught with scissors.

Many people pay for convenience now, as well as having more knowledge about welfare. Mine is more comfortable clipped. He has a tail which my childhood yorkies didn’t, so he’s trimmed instead to keep the hair out the way.

The first groomer I worked under was in her sixties and told me she trained in a "poodle parlour" in her teens so they definitely existed somewhere in the past...

Do people not remember other dog fads on this website? For purebred dogs?

Popular breeds are always oversubscribed with poor results.

Hyper sensitive bad tempered Dalmatians being brought into homes with young kids? JRTs that the owner is totally unable to manage? Cocker spaniels with poorly cared for coats and eyes and bad temperaments?

Do people not see the travesty that is the pug, a completely deformed dog walking around in the thousands? German shepherds which are no longer capable of being used for police work?

Popular dogs have always been picked up by many people who choose inappropriately for their circumstances and aren't up to the care they need.

As far as names, give names to popular crosses for the same reason popular crosses received names 100 years ago. We just now consider those dogs to be "breeds".

@Honeyroar

I don’t understand the fashion for groomers either. They just didn’t exist when I was younger. You just brushed your dog occasionally and rarely washed it. I’m very similar now. No I don’t clip my fluffy dog because I bought a dog with a fluffy coat so I deal with it. It does get matted regularly but I get through it easily enough.

petgroomer.com/history-of-grooming/

According to this page, dog grooming has been around since the 1700's in France, as the official "court dog" was a poodle.

Groomers aren't a "fashion" thing either. Yes, some people take their dogs to make them look cute or pretty, but many dogs do need regular coat care and it's often much less stressful to outsource to someone with qualifications and expert knowledge.

My own dog goes occasionally for a bath and a nail trim. Yes, I could do it at home but I like to support local businesses, and our groomer can do his nails in five minutes - it would take me at least five times as long and it would be far more stressful for the dog.

People on MN are always sneering about cross breeds. I’ve had. KC registered breed with issues. I have a cross breed with none,

Also - pugs, french bull dogs, English bulldogs, they can all have issues and are “pure breeds”.

Not really the point of the thread but something I've always wondered - a cockerpoodle is a crossbreed between a cocker spaniel and a poodle, but if a cockerpoodle breeds with another cockerpoodle what does that make their offspring? How far down the chain do you go before a crossbreed starts being a breed? 🤔

It’s the wanton breeding of cross breeds that’s offensive, not the actual dogs.

One of my three dogs is a concoction—pug, Lhasa Apso, Jack Russell, Yorkie—and I picked him up at 9 weeks from a rescue group.

I’ve had. KC registered breed with issues. I have a cross breed with none

And my experience has been the opposite.

It isn’t a pedigree vs x breed issue.

It’s the fact that people don’t research, find the best breed or cross for them, then find a reputable breeder. Like you say a dalmation isn’t suited for every home, neither are some x breeds, people get them because they’re fashionable, not the best dog for them.

They just see cute pup in the park and go get one of steve because decent breeders have wait lists.

It’s the demand for x breeds is driving up bad breeding, as does any dog fashion. Pugs, dachunds etc went the same way when they became trendy and breeders were breeding as many as they could do meet demand, without regard for health.

It’s dog fashion, and people buying breeds because of that I have the issue with. I was offered a chi poodle x (owner paid thousands, child was allergic , breeder wouldn’t take it back) but turned it down because it isn’t the right dog for me.

I haven't RTFT because the OP has pissed me off. What the hell is wrong with a mongrel? One of DDogs is a mongrel and he's a belter. You can fuck off with your dissing of mongrels quite frankly OP.

And it's cockapoo, not cockerpoo.

I think a lot more people with dogs like terriers that need a groomer used to do it themselves.

"And it's cockapoo, not cockerpoo."

Its not a cocka spaniel...

We rescued a cross breed from the local shelter. We have a “labsky” because how young they were when we got her we are often judged by the husky groups etc because it’s assumed we bought them from a breeder.

Also how is OP in the wrong when the title of the thread is about how there's nothing wrong with crossbreeds??