Would a cockapoo make a good first dog?

[Dancergirl]

Never had a dog before but am starting to think about it. I'm not rushing into anything, I fully understand a dog is a big commitment but I'm starting to give some thought into what type of dog would suit us.

My friend has a cockapoo, he's gorgeous.

What do I need to know? We live in a house with a good sized garden and plenty of nice places to walk. Dds are 12, 10 and 6.

How much walking does he need mrswolitz?

The best thing to do is probably to look up the traits and characteristics (and looks) of both poodles and cockers and makes sure you'd be happy to own either breed as your pup could take after either parent.

Most I have seen have been like curly cockers but I have met a couple recently that I just thought were poodles. There are also 2 near me who are gorgeous but way bigger than I'd expect a cockerpoo to be in my head. They are like chunky labsized.

Not that it is a problem such, as long as you are aware that they can vary quite alot.

We have a springer poodle cross - I'd recommend a spaniel poodle cross every time. Ours was a first dog for DH and DS (6) and a first puppy for me. She has blessed our lives. She needs off lead runs daily but once exercised is not too springy
She's a year old tomorrow and now I'm broody for another!
Both poodles and spaniels are intelligent dogs, ours was very easy to train (plenty of tasty rewards!) and has already bonded incredibly well with DS. They spend their time playing football together. Even our doggy daycare lady commented on her excellent footie skills!
Good luck in your search for a good. My only advice would be to find a decent breeder who can prove all necessary health checks have been done on both parents. Check out the Cockapoo Club of GB for breeders' details and tons of info. x

Absolutely.

They are all different because they are a crossbreed! I've met many. Some are lovely, others have been a bit snappy.

Yes, ours is nearly a year old and I understand temptation to get another... She is lovely, good fun and means we talk to loads of other dog owners. Also found several clubs and meet ups for the breed so that's a bonus.

Not Canons Park by any chance??

I have seen a lot as thy are very popular in my practice and they vary a lot the smallest is about 10kg in weight and largest (still a lean dog) 18kg. They vary from totally cocker to totally poodle and a huge range between. They all look the same as puppies and change to their type at about 6 months.
Both cockers and poodles are very people focused dogs and quite 'needy'.
They are excellent dogs for things such as Agility and Flyball as they are a combination of two very intelligent breeds and could go all day.
I have a cockapoo myself he is a excellent well behaved dog. However, he has reached this stage at the age of three as I have attended training class for an hour week for three years, a year of obedience and then two years of agility. I do some form of training every single day as well.
I do see unruly, ill mannered cockapoos and lack of training is always the issue.
I was incredibly fussy and ensured I bought a pup whose parents had both had genotype testing for PRA ( a genetic condition that both poodles and cockers can get which cause progressive blindness). Ideally both parents should be homozygous non carriers, if not the case then one should homozygous non-carrier and one heterozygote - make sure you see the certificates.

Thanks all, that's really helpful.

What else should I consider for a small-ish affectionate dog?

If you do decide on a Cockapoo - there's a Cockapoo club and they run an approved breeder scheme, the list's not huge, but the breeders on it all do things like health tests.

Other small breeds...Bichon Frises and similar ones are very nice little dogs - though I'm not a small dog person and they've got too much hair for me, lol

Cavalier king charles spaniels are again nice, but, you have to be very very careful picking a breeder because of the health problems.

Shih tzus are supposed to be nice, though they are tiny.

Pugs have great wee personalities, though I'm not keen on anything that's as extreme as that for breathing issues.

Whippets are pretty cuddly I think.

I know a couple of show cockers and they are nice and not quite as high energy as working ones.

Staffies are fab, but possibly a bit big?

My friends have a Caboodle. Cavalier King Spaniel crossed with a Poodle, he's gorgeous :)

We have a working cocker - fantastic nature, very gentle and child friendly. She does need miles of walking every day, though. She is completely non-destructive so can be left at home. Fine with the cats, and with our chickens, though she will try to catch other chickens if she sees them (and does catch ducks, pheasants etc on walks at times. She is highly obedient, but I think this is because she was trained to the gun before we got her. Crap on the lead though - you see a lot of working cockers who are. I would highly recommend this breed to an active family who live rurally - fine as a first time dog. I would be careful of show cockers though - not sure if the rage syndrome strain is still around?

I would look at poodles it's what I will have next time. Not the pouncy dogs people think they are.

Poodles are awesome! I don't get why poodle crosses have jumped in popularity when poodles are just as good, if not better :)

Great dogs but fairly high maintenance as they have endless energy,like to chase and be chase and are very excitable. Ours needs two walks a,day and like another poster said is,hard to tire out, she always wants to play.

Their hair is also high maintenance as it's so dense. It needs brushing on pretty much a daily basis and grooming every few Weeks.

On the other hand she's a wicked dog. Lovely temperament,lovely with ds, fun and affectionate. I found her very easy to train as she's intelligent and eager to please. But,needs,an asbo when off the lead.

Our cockapoo is the queen in our house and we love and spoil her to bits. She has quite a few cockapoo friends locally and they are all bouncy, mischievous and easy to train due to their intelligence. We found the first 5 months quite challenging as she was chewing everything in sight and bouncing off every wall and flying through the air and crash landing on top of us. All that excitement does settle down and our cockapoo brings us great joy.

I have a F1b cockapoo, his dam was a show cocker/miniature poodle cross, and his sire was a miniature poodle. He is 6 months old and just over 5kg. He looks exactly like a miniature poodle, and walks about on his back legs like one, too. He loves his walks, but is quite happy with a trot around the block and some games in the garden. However, he can and will walk for miles if you want him to. He is quite easy to train, although 'lay down' took about a month. He bowed instead He is without doubt the most laid back, happy little dog I have ever known. I also have a cocker/springer cross, and the difference in energy levels is startling. Let's just say, I would get a miniature poodle in a heartbeat. I would run screaming from a cocker or a springer...