Poodles v other toy dogs.

[Claraoswald36]

I'm back on my second pet mission. After v helpful thread on mn I realise a non dog pet won't work for us (frequent caravan holidays we take dog with us).
I'm really coveting apricot toy poodles now.
I have a show cocker who is a bit silly but v harmless and would be overjoyed if I got him a companion.

What's the consensus on poodles? If not then what about other toy breeds? I only want smaller than the cocker. We mind a chihuahua and then get on fabulously but I'm not sure I could buy one - bit too handbag for me!

(I frequently scour rescue sites. I would give it a try but unlikely to be given an adoption as have 3 year old. Lots of lovely advice on here recommending whippets which I love but decided they are too big.)

I'm very biased but have you looked at a papillon? I've got 2 and they've got a similar temperament to the show cockers I grew up with, love to be with the family and can happily cope with the long walks a cocker can do.

They're not a coat intensive as a cocker, most pet owners trim the fringing on the belly so it's not as long and the only regular trimming they need is on their feet and hocks. I trim the pants on my older boy as he can get a bit grubby otherwise.

My youngest is 9in to the shoulder and weighs in at about 3kgs so not tiny, but is very robust and a complete lunatic! He plays regularly with a kelpie/border collie and our pit bull cross and runs them ragged.

We had medium poodle growing up and my mum and sis have cavalier x poodles - nice dogs, smart, not nippy or too hyper other than on initial greeting (mum's dog only, very little training/reinforcement). Sis trims dog herself with ordinary human kit, dog is very well trained and great with her 2 year old. But if your cocker is mad you may not be bothered about these qualities I guess??

I have a 8 month old miniature poodle and she is fantastic. I don't know how tall but she weighs 5.4 kgs.

She is a friendly, happy and calm (for a puppy!) dog, who loves people and other dogs. She doesn't care what we are doing as long as she is with us. She is a really easy dog to live with and is on her way to becoming the perfect dog.

Poodles require a lot of grooming, I do it myself and don't find it that hard.

I only know one toy poodle and he seems the same, tempermant wise, as all the miniatures I know. Thats to say, he is a lovely, friendly, people orientated dog.

We look after a poodle - very gentle and well trained - we have a poodle cross and she's lovely but then I'm biased

Lots of poodle crosses about.

Thanks all you sound very positive about the breed. I should add my cocker is mad in the very playful and bouncy sense - he's actually quite well behaved when o need him to be

Eric is a shih tzu poodle cross (I wanted a poodle but was out voted) I'd say temperament wise he is pretty much pure poodle.
He is clever he's a bit of a diva,he loves attention and doesn't care whether it's positive or negative tbh so have to keep him busy or else he is naughty. He picks up commands in no time at all and will perform to an audience.
He's great with other dogs big or small and will play for as long as you let him.
He is very protective of his house and garden so no one steps on the path without him giving a warning bark.
He likes people and is happy to be fussed by anyone we meet which is a good job because he gets a lot of people wanting a fuss. I wouldn't say he's a lap dog though he's a bit too busy and a bit too independent to want to spend a lot of time on your lap.

The downsides I would say are he's picky with food,he only eats what he needs and no more and he is groomed every six weeks at £30 a time.

Two mini poodles and a pug here. I prefer the poodles over any other breed I have had. They are bright, very trainable, lovely temperaments and good with children, other dogs and other animals, plus they don't moult. Really easy dogs.

We all love the pug who is a good natured, greedy lump, but he is a law unto himself and a real bugger to train as he simply doesn't care. I'm good at training dogs, but he is a year old and still not fully reliable on recall or not peeing in the house. He knows the rules but sometimes just CBA to comply. I couldn't honestly recommend a pug!

Should say that mine don't get fancy cuts, they go to the groomers about every three months for a short all over clip which lasts them until their next visit. I know a few other poodle owners who do the same.

I'm sold! I did say I would wait until my spanner is a year but that's a month away now. He needs the groomers too do they will go together. It took 4 days to housetrain him so doesn't sound like a poodle would be any worse.

I love poodles but if you liked whippets originally what about an Italian greyhound , we have neighbours with one and he's fabulous .

I have a mini poodle
She is the easiest dog I have ever had. Lovely personality
All she really wants is to be with us
She can easily get an upset stomach but us fine if she sticks to her food with no extras
She just has an all over clip which I do myself

We have a mini poodle - she's just over 3 years. She's very easy to train (housetraining in days not weeks) but does still bark at outdoor noises (bin van ect). She is cut every 6-8 weeks (£25) in a simple to take care of cut (doesn't really need a bath unless she's found poo to roll in when with the dog walker! She is lively at times but loves to sleep to and is very lovely (read - has to touch you for a cuddle most of the time!) she's a bit of a pain with food (has allergies and it was recommended we try a fish diet) she loves it but it does stink (though we've found ways to reduce the cost).
She also had an issue as a puppy with knee joints being a bit loose - which is apparently a breed condition - bloody 50p frisbee cost a lot more in the long run! But the seems to have reduced with age and she hasn't had any problems in a few years.