About Labradoodles

If you’re thinking about getting a new puppy why not consider a labradoodle? This new breed hasn’t gotten as much publicity, but that doesn’t mean it’s any less charming than a beagle, or a golden retriever. The labradoodle is a mix between a Labrador retriever and a poodle. Those considering buying one for a family pet should beware that they have many options to choose from.

To start off, there are several color and coat types to consider. Tight, curly wool; tight, wavy wool; tight, combination wool; loose combination tool; very wavy fleece; medium-wavy fleece; and almost straight fleece are the different labradoodle fur types. These dogs come in a rainbow of colors; chalk, white, cream, gold, apricot, chocolate, black, sliver, and red are the colors a new labradoodle owner can expect to pick from. Make sure the labradoodle breeder you go through is trustworthy and has a good record; otherwise you may regret your purchase.

There are three varieties of Labradoodles being produced today.  The first variety is the American Labradoodle. Considered a hybrid dog, the American is also called a first generation or standard Labradoodle and is the result of crossing a Labrador Retriever and a poodle.   The Australian Labradoodle that is often bred in the United States is a second variety, using the Labrador, poodle, Labradoodle and sometimes cocker spaniel to create a multi-generational cross.

The third variety is the Australian Labradoodle, bred and recognized in Australia with the express goal of creating a quality purebred dog without undue health issues.  Cascade Mountain Labradoodles has the third variety of the third Labradoodle variety, but in miniature.  Breeding stock has been thoroughly tested (and loved, and nurtured).  These are adorable, active, occasionally comical dogs, quick to learn special tricks and tasks.

Many Labradoodle enthusiasts feel that the biggest obstacle to working with this breed is prospective understanding of the difference between the generations of Labradoodles, the difference between an Australian Labradoodle and Labradoodle, and what makes for a healthy coat and desirable temperament and what does not. 

Unique families will need to be matched with different generations or varieties within the Labradoodle breed due to differences in traits, temperament and appearance.   However, inexperienced breeders do not always completely understand what they are producing in their litters, and puppies are sold and more are produced before essential knowledge is gained.  When this occurs, the consumer loses and so does the breed.  A worst-case scenario that happens all too frequently is that dogs end up in shelters because a family purchased a first-generation, high-energy, low-shedding Labradoodle, but had instead wanted a fleece-coated, non-shedding Australian Labradoodle.  Please research the breed and the breeder before committing to that adorable little fluffball—not only for the dog’s sake, but for your own.
 

One of the first questions people ask who are learning about labradoodle dogs is what colors their coats can be, and there are quite a few possibilities.  Black, chocolate, café, silver, cream, chalk, gold, apricot cream, apricot, and red are generally the solid colors seen in the labradoodle breed.

Red and apricot variations are the rarest shades at the present time, and the red will often become a more muted shade, but remain striking in appearance.  There are also parti-color variations of the labradoodle coat.  “Parti-color” (or “parti”) is defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary as showing different colors or tints, but more specifically, having a predominant color pattern broken by patches of one or more other colors.
 

Labradoodles seem to be absolutely everywhere right now.  Celebrity owners such as Tiger Woods, Jennifer Aniston, and Barbara Eden have made the breed very visible.    Other trends illustrating the popularity of the Labradoodle are the inclusion of the word in the Oxford English Dictionary, a Labradoodle game piece in the ‘Here and Now’ Monopoly game, and the award-winning ‘Lucky the Incredible Wonder Pup’ animated toy.

The labradoodle was originally created in Australia in the late 1980s to be a hypoallergenic service dog, and many labradoodles have indeed proven to be outstanding service dogs. However, due to the speedy propagation of the breed by people who wanted to cash in on this idea, labradoodles that are available today cannot reliably be expected to be hypoallergenic, and they do require some regular grooming.  Doodles, as they are fondly called by their fans, are available in a range of sizes.  There is little uniformity in their appearance–some favor the poodle portion of their ancestry, while others resemble a shaggier Labrador.  Doodles are clever, energetic, funny, and intelligent.  Eager to please, doodles are generally straightforward to train and are ultimately capable of learning many unusual tricks.  They are too friendly and nonaggressive to be reliable watchdogs, and can be mischievous if not kept in check by their people, who they love dearly but may occasionally try to outsmart.

Since Labradoodles began as a hybrid of a miniature or standard poodle and a Labrador Retriever, there has been no universal push to have Labradoodles recognized as a breed.  Some breeders prefer to mate a poodle and a Labrador rather than two established Labradoodles. This method is thought to maximize the genetic diversity in the resulting offspring and avoid some of the inherited health problems that have been exacerbated by inbreeding in other dog breeds.

Other breeders combine Labradoodle with Labradoodle over successive generations in an attempt to establish a breed.  These dogs are usually referred to as Australian Labradoodles.  Australian Labradoodles differ from some other Labradoodle varieties because they may have other breeds in their ancestry such as cockapoos, two Irish Water Spaniels, soft-coated Wheaten Terriers, and a Curly-Coated Retriever.