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!

Next door have a cockerpoo. It's a barking twat of a thing. Stands in the garden barking its head off at nothing. I can't stand it. They will literally have it out there barking for 2 hours at a time with no attempt to shut it up or take it indoors.

They are nice people with zero apparent awareness of how their dog annoys the neighbours. We have spoke to them about it and they were really apologetic and said they hadn't realised. They still do nothing.

Middle class status symbols. Usually owned by people that like the idea of a dog (teddy type look, doesn’t shed) but doesn’t actually like dogs. The type of people that take it to park and let it run riot because they “want to make friends” and are “so friendly”. Barely trained but have an Instagram page made by their ‘fur mom’. I avoid them and their owners like the literal plague.

Such a shame, because you seem so lovely.

Our loss, I guess.

At the risk of sounding horrid, a lot of them are probably No Longer With Us. They have a ridiculously short life expectancy, poor animals, about six years.

My parents have a labradoodle, he is a fantastic dog. Great recall, obedient, happy, friendly with other dogs & joy to be with. I always joke I'd swap my dog to have him 😅

Imagine if we were describing different people in the way different types of dogs are being described here (I'm going to avoid the word breed as it's clearly a trigger) Some dogs bark. Some dogs misbehave. Some look like teddy bears some don't. They're all our much-loved pets.

I don't think the negative comments about doodles and poos are fair really.

There are rubbish owners of all breeds.

Doodles/poos are popular at the moment so there are lots of them around, and a small percentage of a big number will lead to a misconception that 'all doodle owners are awful.'

Surely not dafter than bulldogs, dachshunds, sharpeis?

I think we just need to agree that people prioritise different things, value different characteristics and have different opinions on what makes an attractive dog.

I don't have a doodle/poo but know several gorgeous ones and think it's absolutely batshit to question why someone chose their dog. Like choosing anything else, it's subjective.

@lemonmeringueno3 and some people just follow the herd (of alpacas) and buy dogs as a fashion item.

When my golden doodle was a pup, a woman had a go at me saying how heartbreaking it is that people like me fund this industry for designer dogs. This was all said while she stood there with two purebreds that looked like something out of the fucking magic roundabout, WHICH she would have paid for and which do not exist in the wild so are designer breeds, and yes I know some were bred to be working dogs, but the majority are just kept as pets as the landed gentry and their hunting parties have diminished now.

My doodle is old now, and slowing down, but he’s been loving and gentle and the best boy, he came with certificates concerning his parents eye and hip health and was born on a working farm in Staffordshire. The husband was a farmer and his wife a vet. The kennel club and it’s members are a bit like the royal academy of art, it’s only themselves that want to hold all the cards and be able to charge extortionate prices for their original creations, which often have plenty of problems if you scratch the surface. Before my doodle I only ever had unknown crossbreeds, I don’t regret paying for him 10 years ago even if he is a mongrel, I’d do anything for him, including defending him from some off you stuck up bellends!

Most of the time, a well-bred pedigree puppy, from well-bred, extensively health-tested parents, with proven show success, proven temperaments and with a contract that spans for the life of the dog, is quite a bit cheaper than a mutt from Freeads.

Wake up.

I wanted one but smaller, and so got a cross between a 'doodle' and a 'pug' - a Doodlepug.

Unfortunately it exploded over London causing rather a lot of damage...

I won't do that again.

I doubt anyone buys a dog because they're just following the herd.

But they probably know several people with those dogs, think they're cute, like what they hear about them and so on.

I got mine 2 years ago. 2 years before lockdown, I came out of the most horrendous relationship imaginable. I went through battling with suicidal thoughts for a long time. Had PTSD from both the relationship and a separate harrowing event. Spent two years battling with near agoraphobia, depression and being almost completely alone. Then lockdown happened, and so my complete solitude was cemented. Cue another couple of horrendous years.

My doodle has brought me on so much. Agoraphobia is a distant memory, and I've even got some semblance of happiness again, even a social life. I chose him because i researched the best breeds to fit my situation. And in return I'm a pretty good doodle owner too. He's attended training classes once a week since 16 weeks old. I trained him not to jump up or yap in the garden. We walk for miles and play every day. He sleeps well and has a cosy bed to sleep in.

What's it to you, OP if I own a doodle? There are of course cruel, heinous acts in the world - but 'owning a doodle' isn't up there.

I guess my AIBU would be - AIBU to wonder what the obsession is with coming online just to be a bitch?

I have 2 labradoodles. Both are healthy, sociable normal dogs. They are older dogs now but still enjoy a decent walk.
And neither of them shed

I would 100% get another doodle

@FiddleSticks00 It's not a breed.

Nothing against them at all.. it is just the insane pricing (and names) for what is basically a mongrel, and crossbreed at best.
Any mix of a working dog and a sighthound is a lurcher. No stupid names. Why is it different for all the doodle/poos? And why are the brown ones always called Teddy?

Or Luna 😂

This is why, when asked, I state lab mixed with a poodle - I refuse to doodle my dog.

Almost all the breeds you can name have only existed for about 400 years and are a result of crossbreeding to create something new, usually for a specific purpose. I personally hate the backlash against doodles. Why do you care what ‘mongrel’ someone else has?
I work with dogs and behavioural issues are just as common in many other established breeds. Take the working cocker - resource guarding and separation anxiety is rife. I would save your dislike for breeds terrible health issues and/or aggression (frenchies and XL bullies, for example).

You’ve just described every single one of these dogs I have met. I have a few relatives with these kind of dogs and I’ve looked after them when they’ve gone on holiday. Their lack of understanding commands and general manic behaviour is a sight to behold. My dog while having a fabulous personality is a wee bit simple, but he looks like Einstein next to his cousins.

I have a rescue sheepadoodle

Not a dog I would ever have considered but she found us kind of

I absolutely adore her, the kindest, craziest, sweetest, most loving giant of a dog

Without me using the word 'cross', i still strongly suspect you knew exactly what I meant though..

I’m not even bothered about dogs or know the different names. However, I’m fascinated by the batshit levels of passion the purest warriors have.

No animal on Earth today looks and acts like it earliest ancestor. It’s called evolution. In more recent times, this evolution is the result of human interference. Nevertheless, none of the pure breeds today were around thousands of years ago, and none of them will exist in the same way in another thousand years.

I have a non-typical 'doodle' breed specifically chosen in the hope of me and DH not being allergic to it, and we are not.
He was bought from a reputable breeder. I have his family history and indepth health testing that breeder had checked out.
Not every doodle is bred by an unethical backstreet/puppy mill breeder.