To not understand the obsession with ‘doodle’ breeds

[CherryValley5]

Eg: labradoodles, cockapoos etc.

They are absolutely everywhere! Why are people actively seeking out and paying pedigree prices for dogs that are effectively mongrels? Behavioural problems are all too common, not to mention hereditary health issues due to poor and unethical breeding - I am a dog owner and the vast majority of doodles, ‘poo’ breeds etc that I meet are incredibly hyperactive, with owners who have no clue how to deal with them. Obviously there are exceptions, some are lovely but as a rule of thumb they’re dogs that I tend to cross the street to get mine away from.

The breeder who created the labradoodle calls it his ‘life’s regret’ - that speaks volumes in my opinion!

They were called mongrels years ago,now they're given fancy names and charge a fortune 🙄

@Twodogsonthecouch , I think we agree. The problems that you get with say a poodle and a labrador might be neutralised by the cross, but you're likely to get the bad bits of both.

There are dogs that I'd not buy despite them being adorable because of the risk of health or temperament issues. Given a choice of a doodle/poo or a poodle, I'd get the poodle. Having said that, the doodles I know seem well-behaved and happy.

A schoolfriend had a doodle back in the 1980s when doodles weren't a thing. Obviously the family were way ahead of their time.

Reading this thread, I was reminded that we used to have lurchers. These could be classed as mongrels, I suppose, but they are specifically bred crossbreed dogs.
The usual format is a running or long dog, usually greyhound or whippet, crossed with something with a touch more brains, such as border collie.

We have had deerhound/greyhound, whippet bedlington, borzoi/greyhound and collie/greyhound lurchers.
We bred a litter of collie/greyhound lurchers from our border collie bitch with a locally well known stud greyhound. All health checks were in place on both dogs and the pups were lovely, with no runts and we even got a blue one!

Border collies were only recognised by the KC recently, in 1976, btw, although the breed was well known for years before that, and bred true.
Sadly, along with most working and utility breeds, they are starting to be bred for show, with different standards and characteristics imposed by the KC.

I'm not a fan of poos or doodles, just because I don't like teddy bear dogs much but in years to come, they might even emerge as a breed.

I think you just like correcting people to show your superior knowledge - are you okay? - seriously the amount of anger you are showing about a cute type of dog is actually a bit weird - anyway just off to take my cockerpoo (best dog ever) out for a jaunt where I’m sure we will meet several “pure breeds” who will not be anything like as well behaved as my mutt!

@Waystation , just tell people it's a cockatoo. Far less snobbery.

My poor dog has been attacked 3 times by cockapoos and 3 times by French Bulldogs. He's a pure bred Rough collie, fully health tested by dna, eyes tests as a puppy and hip score tested from health tested parents, I've met both his parents and still occasionally see his Dad, siblings, nephew and niece.

He still only bears a grude for the actual dogs that attacked him thankfully. Most cockapoos I've met are a menace. They are pita according to groomers.

Every proper poodle I've come across has been lovely, same as with working cocker spaniels and show type cocker spaniels. Why on earth you would mix the two is beyond me, if you want a non shedding breed get a poodle or another breed that doesn't shed.

I'm fine, thanks for asking. As I've previously stated, there is a lot of anger surrounding the intentional breeding of designer crosses, yes. Have you ever worked with dogs? Rescue dogs? It can really open your eyes to why people get angry.

I've got 35+ years of experience in two breeds, as well as working, showing, obedience, agility, flyball and breed rescue. Also in dog nutrition. So yes, I do have a good range of knowledge surrounding dogs. And yes, not supporting puppy farming and BYBs is superior.

That's nice for you. I don't think I've ever come across a well behaved poodle cross. My groomer friends also loathe them, but their owners more 😂

Minature and toy poodles look like teddy bears. They would be fine in a flat too. However a cockerpoo would be far too energetic as they are crossed with working cockers. It's generally not a good idea to get a dog based on its looks, you need to research what they are like to live with.

I'm not sure where I stand on this.
I absolutely hate the popular dog of the moment thing..BYB making a fortune from dogs misery and people paying huge sums for it. And I think pugs and frenchys are absolutely hideous things.
On the other hand we have a pure breed Maltese who is an absolute dick and my sister has a cockapoo who is the most wonderful relaxed family dog I've even met, so I think it's also down to the dog's temperament and luck a bit.

I have a cavapoo...Shes not remotely crazy.

This!

Why would i care if my beautiful, part of our family dog is a mongrel/cross or whatever. It sounds like the OP is the one being snobby etc.

My Cavapoo (Mongrel/crossbreed) is beautiful and we love her.

@goneaway2 , no reputable breeder would breed a cockerpoo from a working cocker spaniel. RTFT. Working Cocker Spaniels and Cocker Spaniels are not the same.

@Waitingfordoggo CoCoJaBi? You may have stumbled on the next big thing!

I love a mongrel myself.... growing up we had lab/collie crosses, I've currently got 1 Jack who seems to have a bit of staff in him somewhere (though both his parents were Jack Russell's), 1 Jack that seems to have been crossed with a ferret (again both parents Jacks and her sisters look like normal Jacks, but she is just odd) and a daschund puppy (who in fact is a pure breed with papers etc-though can't be registered because his dad was somehow Russian and there is an embargo on all Russian goods currently-not that we give a fig). He is proving to be by far the hardest to train.

I don't get why people get so ANGRY about this. (Except where dogs have been overbred so much that they have serious health issues). Each to their own surely?

Yes to all that.

I'd like to say how glad I am that the fad for huskies and malamutes seems to have died off. Not because I dislike the breeds, I think they're wonderful dogs, but because they are totally inappropriate as urban pets. I have a friend who rescued 5 huskies - she bought a meadow next to her house and built a shower block and all sorts for them. She runs miles and miles a day with them. Those dogs are lucky. So many must have been put down.

Senior Naval Officers cost a fortune to keep! 😂

Not going to read the full thread because I'm really not interested in hearing from people who don't know what they are talking about. My son is severely allergic to dogs, but is fine with poodle breeds. When our previous dogs passed away, we tried for almost a year to rescue a poodle, but failed because they are so popular. We got a Cavoodle and she is absolutely the best dog we've ever had, by far, no question. She doesn't shed, is incredibly easy to train, super chill, very loving and mega hypoallergenic. My son's reaction to dogs has reduced enormously since getting our girl. People are obsessed with these dogs because they are amazing family dogs. End of story.

What's the saying? Correlation does not equal causation or something like that?

Vets, groomers etc may well say they see loads of badly behaved doodles. But isn't that because there are loads of doodles on their books because... they're are loads of doodles.

If there was a huge fashion for.... I don't know... Norweigan Lundehunds then they'd see lots of badly behaved ones of those. Because that's what they see a lot of in terms of volume.

It's almost as if the problem is....drum roll........

....owners.

All breeds were a cross at some point 🤦‍♂️ dogs have always been selectively bred for desired characteristics.

That's nice for you. I don't think I've ever come across a well behaved poodle cross. My groomer friends also loathe them, but their owners more

@WalkingonWheels

Well that’s charming. It may also illustrate a problem with generalisation across people and dogs alike

As I say my dog is a trained assistance dog and trained by a gun dog trainer and competitor who likes her (and me!) enough to invite us to do this training after our initial puppy training with her

Loads of them round here, all nice well-behaved dogs. Wouldn’t have one myself because of the health problems. I’ve always had rescue mongrels, they have few health problems and go on to 16-17 years.

Why are people actively seeking out and paying pedigree prices for dogs that are effectively mongrels?

Because people are thick and basic.

I read a newspaper article once about how the original breeder of labradoodles regrets it because they can be a handful.

I would rather people adopted a dog rather than bought one anyway.

Don’t Cavaliers have serious heart conditions?

@WalkingonWheels my groomer closed her books and had to tell some people she couldn't keep their dogs on anymore, yet chose to keep grooming my poodle mix.

So, yeah. Your groomer friend may hate them, mine - who is a poodle enthusiast - doesn't. We all have anecdotes.

I have a glorious cavapoo from a reputable breeder - or as as much as you can get a reputable breeder. She does indeed look like a teddy bear, she's great with kids, hugely tolerant and easy to train. After years of stubborn terriers she's an absolute dream. Pain in the arse with sock theft though - must be the spaniel bit in her.