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 The
name "Doodle" is the playful moniker used to describe a hybrid between either
a Labrador & a Poodle (called a "Labradoodle") or a Golden Retriever & a Poodle
(called a "Goldendoodle"). They were first produced as service dogs for owners that
were sensitive to dog dander. Labs and Goldens have some similar traits that make them
very popular; they are typically gentle with children, steadfastly
loyal, eager to please and have very cheerful dispositions. Poodles are
one of the most intelligent dog breeds, very family friendly, non-shedding and hypoallergenic to boot!
Labradoodles and Goldendoodles both
warrant the name "Doodles"
because they are terrific, fun, loyal, smart, loveable and less (or
no) shed combinations of their parents. A Standard Doodle results from
having a Standard Poodle as one of the parents. A Medium or Miniature Doodle
results from using a Miniature Poodle as the sire and a Lab or Golden as
the dam. The nomenclature for a first cross of a Lab & Poodle or
Golden & Poodle is 'F1'.
Truly the best of both worlds, Doodles have
proven to be highly intelligent, easy to train dogs. They have a
beautiful long coat that is soft and can be straight, wavy or
loosely curled. The shedding factor cannot be determined by the type
of coat and there is no guarantee (from any breeder) as to the
amount of or lack of shedding demonstrated by a particular coat
type.
'Backcross' Doodle, or 'F1B'
When
you start with an F1 Doodle (either Labradoodle or Goldendoodle) and you
breed them to a poodle (any size, but in our case a Miniature) you get a
"backcross" Doodle (the nomenclature is F1B). What is the benefit? Naper Doodles has chosen this
direction for two reasons:
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The first reason is size. Our Labradoodle,
Joy, is a Medium Doodle. She weighs 42 pounds and is 18 inches
at the shoulder. Breeding Joy to a 15 pound miniature
poodle produces puppies maturing to 20-35 pounds. This is a
great advantage for those families desiring a small to
medium-size Doodle. A Standard size Doodle (with a Standard
Poodle as one parent) has the same great character, but can
weigh anywhere from 60-80 pounds. (If that's the size you are
looking for please see our
Questions? page
for other great breeders!)
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The second reason is shedding. An F1 can shed
as much as either of it's parents-- as much as a Lab/Golden or
as little as a Poodle. An F1b Doodle is two generations
descended from the major shedders and will tend to exhibit
better characteristics. Our F1 Labradoodle dam, Joy, sheds about 30% as much as a full Lab; breeding
her to a non-shedding, hypoallergenic
Miniature Poodle will result in
extremely low or even non-shedding puppies.
You can see Naper Doodles F1b Labradoodle puppies
as they grow
on our
Gallery
page.
I prefer mutts.
The artificial construction of the gene pool is bad for the species as a
whole.
In a restricted gene pool, the defects pile up.
The truly superior specimen is the outbred, not the inbred.
Michael Swift
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