AIBU about "designer" dogs

[mommymooo]

Now I know I'm gonna cause chaos get torn into hopefully agreed with but it's getting silly now with all these new silly new "breeds" of dogs. Cockerpoos sprocks. Jugs. Yorkipoos. Labradoodles. To name but only a few. After reading an article from the man who breed the first labradoodles and fully admitted it was the worst mistake he ever made. It made me think that yes I'm not the only one plus the people at the dog care home. Vets. And rescue I know that also Agree all these dogs that people are paying silly money for hundreds of pounds are nothing but mongrels.
When they breed again the new pups will be even further down the line as mongrels.
Now I know all you Mumsnet people are gonna start going loopy at me but if you think the dogs are so perfect and I do think they are all beautiful I love dogs more than most people there's not much I don't know about them I work with them everyday I have my own.
But try entering one for best in show for the kennel club. Try for any show for the kennel club.
They are not pedigree dogs.
Sorry. Xxx

[Dollyparton3]

My "mongrel" has an amazing temperament, is easy to train, well behaved and a brilliant addition to our family. He was also neutered early under guidance from the breeder as she's working to protect the breed from any genetic issues further down the line of rogues decide to try and make a fast buck from his insane cuteness

I'm not sure what else there is to complain about with my designer doodle, he's not impacting on anybody else at all

[HowlsMovingBungalow]

Ah the irony.

We have one of those disgusting crossbreed poodle mixes - She is a fabulous dog, highly intelligent, easy to train and a wonderful companion. Her mother came from a long line of KC champions and her father also was KC registered. She wasn't expensive and came with all standard vet checks - hip check etc.

Our other dog - KC registered with paperwork. Parson Terrier. Rescued. Locked in a windowless shed for 2 years and only saw daylight when he was brought out to stud. Took years of training to get over the abuse he suffered as a pup and stud dog.

KC isn't some nirvana of dog breeding, far from it.

[drinkingwineoutofamug]

Serious question that I've always wanted to ask. When we got our dog chip said whippet cross. She put weight on and she looked nothing like a whippet except body shape and speed!
She is in fact a Belgian Mali cross whippet. Had a dna test. Some may remember my thread about this last year. In her family on the mums said there is also greyhound and staffie. Does this make her a mongrel or a cross breed?
Not being goady etc. A serious question as some people who meet her say that mongrels make the best dog.

[RoombaSavedMySanity]

Regardless of end choice, I am concerned about how many people make a decision about which dog to get with very little understanding of the animal they are buying. I think we are asking dogs more and more to be something other than dogs.

We are asking them to be childhood friends, mood enhancers, behaviour modifiers, teddy bears, dressing up dolls, instragram stars. We expect them to never really do anything doggy - never hump, bark, growl, dog, chew, play rough and tumble, sleep in the most comfy spots, sniff each others bottoms, etc. And we ask them to accept being switched on or off at will - expecting that they are ok to shut down and sleep whenever we leave them or need to do something else.

Now, we obviously want make living with them safe and pleasant for everyone. But it feels like we are pushing them too far and, in doing so, there is this expectation out there dogs SHOULD be these cartoon/fanatasy versions of the animals they really are. We need compassion to realise we are asking the dog to be something quite different to his real nature.

I fear the rise of the cross breeds is just part of this, they often have a reputation as some magic dog that will not bite, bark, shed, smell doggy, etc. It only ever ends badly for the dog when it is expected to be something it is not.

[HowlsMovingBungalow]

Mongrel obviously @drinkwineoutofamug - if your pup didn't come with KC paperwork and some golden handshake to the gates of the 'proper' dog breed ownership, it is a mongrel .

[drinkingwineoutofamug]

@HowlsMovingBungalow she was rescued out of a fuckwits cellar where she was beaten and starved. We did a better job of rescuing her than the rspca who we reported the old 'owner' to. So no paper work. Not arsed what she is . She's a misbehaving little bundle of joy . No she won't walk next to me. She plays rough, barks, chews stuff and does what dogs should do ( agreeing with pp) Training hasn't helped one bit as she looks at me as if to say 'no slave I'm doing it my way' love her to bits

[drinkingwineoutofamug]

Sorry to derail thread 😬

[HowlsMovingBungalow]

I'm glad she's found a loving home @drinkwinefromamug the poor little mite. Our abused terrier couldn't be fully trained until he mellowed with age, took about 10 yrs .

[drinkingwineoutofamug]

So theres hope ! I have dog walkers who have had a go at me for having a twat of a dog, their dogs are well behaved and walk next to their owners. I no longer go to that local park so she doesn't get to see her dog friends who enjoy some rough and tumble especially the 2 rotties

[LochJessMonster]

But try entering one for best in show for the kennel club. Try for any show for the kennel club.
They are not pedigree dogs.

Who's saying they are? Maybe the owners didn't buy the dog to show? Maybe they don't give a shit about your precious medals, and just wanted a loving pet?

Your post wasn't at all about warning about puppy farms because it didn't give a single but of information regarding them. Puppy farms are just as full of pedigree breeds as well as cross breeds.


I have a pedigree (rescue), a mongrel (rescue) and a 'designer crossbreed' that I spent a ridiculous amount of money on because its my money, my dog and my choice.

My 'designer crossbreed' - a doodle cross gasp is perfect. She is literally a dream dog. Not a single regret.

I don't care what breed someone has, what they want to call it, as long as its well loved, look after and trained.

You are a snob, and its people like you that make posters avoid asking questions on The doghouse.

[lillibelles]

mix bred dogs generally live longer as they have a mix of genetics.not everyone wants their dog to be a show dog,just a valued family pet.i have a chihuahua that i think mayb b crossed x a chihuahua x Chinese crested ,they r wonderful dogs and i wouldn't have them any other way.but on the flip side i do agree that people charge way to much for a cross breed as they have the tag " designer dog".but if people have more money then sense its up to them at the end of the day x

[BiteyShark]

This is a goady thread deliberately to start an argument.

However I will bite. I have a pedigree but I honestly do not think that this makes me better than others that choose the crossbreed.

The reason for high money is supply and demand. That would be the same as some pedigree breeds. I don't care what a dog costs someone as long as they look after it.

Being a winner at crufts doesn't make you any better in my eyes than a pet owner. In breeding of some pedigree dogs leaves a lot to be desired.

Making people aware of puppy farms and mistruths about crossbreeds is a good thing but starting a thread like this isn't the right way and shows you up as just being goady.

[userxx]

Yep, they are mongrels. Nowt wrong with that but the £1000 price tag is fucking ludicrous.

[LochJessMonster]

Nowt wrong with that but the £1000 price tag is fucking ludicrous. but £1000 for a pedigree is money worth spent? Or £1000 on a handbag, or a car, or a holiday.

Your money, your choice.

[TokyoSushi]

We have a Sproodle. He's a springer spaniel crossed with a Labradoodle

He is the most fabulous family dog, well behaved, easy to train, brilliant with children, we absolutely love him.

[EvilPea]

Do KC still say you should put your Dalmatian down if it’s spots are too big? Like they did late 80’s

Keep that line pure



Whilst there are a lot of twat dog owners out there who aren’t training the dogs properly, aren’t being responsible dog owners and yes they probably are the ones coming from puppy farms, The impulse “dog for Christmas” type. I know plenty of “poo” owners who researched it, were happy to get whatever mixture it came as, but wanted that type of dog and they did pay a lot. But why wouldn’t you, the pure bred bitch (god what a horrid phrase!) could have had a completely pure bred breed (commanding a high price) so it needs to be financially beneficial to mix it.

I have to say a lot of rescues seem to be filled with ex puppy farm dogs looking for homes after breeding. And I can’t work out how getting one of them is better? It’s giving the farms an out (admittedly better then killing them though). But as an owner your still getting the poorly dog.

[TheyAllFloat]

Nowt wrong with that but the £1000 price tag is fucking ludicrous.

The sooner we stop thinking there is inherent value in a dog - like it's a bloody object made in a factory - the better.

Breeders should charge a price appropriate for the care, attention, time, effort, food, knowledge, medical attention etc that it takes to breed happy, healthy, well adjusted dogs.

That means that the cost of doing so for a cockapoo is going to be similar to the cost of breeding a pure breed cocker. Their breeding requirements are very similar. Similar health conerns. Similar sized liters. Similar nutritional requirements etc.

Where this falls down is where people think they are buying an object, like a piece of jewellery, that's cost is linked to it's worth.

Intead they need to...

• check the £ they are paying is contributing towards higher welfare for the dogs
• check whether the £ they pay has also funded proper health checks for the parents etc.
• not fall into the trap of thinking that breed (or lack of it) should be translated into a monetary value, rather than seeing the cost of a puppy as being a direct link to the cost to breed it well.

[userxx]

but £1000 for a pedigree is money worth spent? Not in my eyes. I'm all about rescue centres, there are so many unwanted dogs out there its heartbreaking.

[GeraltOfRivia]

I mean, you could look at the positives of cross breeding assuming it's being done to remove damaging genetic traits and make generally healthier more robust dogs. An obsession with some sort of non existent genetic perfection has left us with a large number of pedigree breeds which have a high risk of serious health issues.

It's never as clear cut as "this is good and this is bad"

And what people pay is up to them. If people won't pay it then they won't get sold.

As long as these pups a bred by someone who cares for them and finds good homes for them and they go on to be loved, then a winner

A dodgy breeder could be pushing any dog. If you want to educate my suggestion would be to talk about what to look for in a breeder and offer guidance. Not insult a large number of people by criticising their dog.

[mommymooo]

I haven't started this to start arguments I'm saying people are getting silly with new silly breeds that aren't recognised breeds and it's putting the pups in ill health not in all cases but some and the mother dogs.
Moaning about my use of written English is just pathetic I'm not her to educate on English literature.
French bulldogs are now been overbred in horrible conditions because now trendy as are dachshunds.
I'm just wondering why mix up all the breeds just stick to the original ones. Don't mix them because you have allergies don't have a dog or get a breed that doesn't shed fur a poodle for example.

[userxx]

@TheyAllFloat I think you've misunderstood me. I hate the value that are being put on these dogs. It disgusts me to be honest.

[JKScot4]

I wouldn’t consider the KC much better to be honest, breeding for a certain look, dogs rejected for not being perfect. Showing dogs is not something I would consider for the dogs benefit it’s vanity by the owner and to increase the value of their breeding stock.
OP you let yourself down there 🙄

[AlternativePerspective]

I have no issue with cross breeds. There are all manner of reasons to crossbreed dogs, guide dogs for instance cross labradors with golden retrievers and golden retrievers with GSD’s and they have some labradoodles in the mix there as well although they are apparently not easy to train and very few of them make the grade.

The issue I have is that dogs have become a fashion item rather than a loved member of the family. And because people are prepared to pay hundreds and even thousands of pounds for them they have turned into a commodity.

The same can be said of some purebreds as well. Bulldogs are a fashion item whereas staffies are seen as the hard man’s dog, and actually this has destroyed their reputation as a decent family dog.

The sooner we move away from attaching labels to certain breeds and costs breeds and re-defining dogs as family pets or working dogs rather than as must-have items, the better.

And I say on here time and time and time again, make it illegal to profit from the sale of animals and you will shut down the puppy farming industry overnight. And yet those who speak out against puppy farming don’t agree. .

[userxx]

make it illegal to profit from the sale of animals and you will shut down the puppy farming industry overnight.

I agree with you.

[HowlsMovingBungalow]

All fucking dogs were once 'silly new' breeds. How do you think your bearded collie came about? Dog breeds have all had their times where they were popular and fashionable.
My dog's vet practise has a large poster on popular pure bred dogs and how their breeding has effected their health.
The snobbery is fucking rife when it comes to dog breeds.
Pathetic.