Goldendoodles

[Lone Elk]

I have a GoldenDoodle. Raised it since 8 weeks old. She is 12 now. Had Golden Retrievers previous to this one. She has been none less than a great dog. She loves people and is overly friendly. She also has a great nose, unfortunately I do not hunt upland birds as much as I should have. One thing about Golden Doodles is to look at their appearance. Our dog resembles more of the Golden than the Poodle. She also sheds more than the Poodle appearance variety. Shedding issues is why my wife decided on this breed vs. the Golden, which we did not know at the time of acquiring her. I am not as all disappointed with my dog, she has been kid friendly, obedient , and docile for most of her life. After having this one, I would have no issues getting and raising another. But I would lean toward the Golden appearance one, due to my favoritism.

 

[WestKyHunt]

How much these dogs will shed depends on their generation. F1 is a golden retriever with standard poodle. F1B will be a F1 with a poodle (my doodle, sheds less as she is 2/3 poodle).
Any generation past that you might as well get a 100% poodle imo

 

[BrentD]

High quality golden retrievers are darn hard (and expensive to come by). Will owners of such dogs really agree to breed to a poodle? None that I know of will but I certainly don't know that many breeders.

 

[COEngineer]

I suspect most of the anecdotal comments above are based on observations of dogs with little or no training. We were puppy raisers for golden-doodles and labra-doodles. My wife and two kids spent many hours doing basic obedience, kennel training, socialization, etc. The first pup we had from 8 weeks to 1 year old while we were being trained to be the trainers. At the end of that first year, he was the best dog I have ever had any extended contact with. The professional trainer took him for the last month of training and he was sold for $20k to a family with severe allergies. This led me to the belief that doodles can be outstanding dogs, but just like any other breed, you have to put in the time.

We did quite a bit of backpacking/hiking with our puppies and they can get a million cockleburs stuck in their fur, but that didn't happen that often - we kept them trimmed pretty short in the summer months. I also agree with the comment that if you just want a pet that will be lovable, get a plain lab.

 

[Benfromalbuquerque]

Looking at getting a male goldendoodle. Wondering if anyone has any experience

If you can meet the parents of the litter and talk with the owners, that would be best.
I say this because some breeders are sheisters and will talk you into a shitpoodle. We had French bullshit dog named Guinness that now lives with friends. Good people, salt of the earth and I do miss that dog. They made him an instagram too, just like he was a goldendoodle.
But you see, he couldn’t maintain with children. Or other dogs. Geese are bad too. That dog goes full retard without much provocation. So when we introduced our firstborn, he had to go.
The thing is that Guinness is pedigreed, could have been shown in AKC and we still got a French bullshit dog due to the breeder’s choice of parentage. Goldendoodles are mutts which may cause breeders of such to be even more careless with breeding and create $1000 shitpoodles.

 

[OntarioHunter]

I suspect most of the anecdotal comments above are based on observations of dogs with little or no training. We were puppy raisers for golden-doodles and labra-doodles. My wife and two kids spent many hours doing basic obedience, kennel training, socialization, etc. The first pup we had from 8 weeks to 1 year old while we were being trained to be the trainers. At the end of that first year, he was the best dog I have ever had any extended contact with. The professional trainer took him for the last month of training and he was sold for $20k to a family with severe allergies. This led me to the belief that doodles can be outstanding dogs, but just like any other breed, you have to put in the time.

We did quite a bit of backpacking/hiking with our puppies and they can get a million cockleburs stuck in their fur, but that didn't happen that often - we kept them trimmed pretty short in the summer months. I also agree with the comment that if you just want a pet that will be lovable, get a plain lab.

Twenty grand? Really? I wouldn't pay twenty grand for Lassie ... even if she was still under contract with a studio. How could you insure a labradoodle? I don't think Loyds of London would cover it.

 

[Benfromalbuquerque]

Twenty grand? Really? I wouldn't pay twenty grand for Lassie ... even if she was still under contract with a studio. How could you insure a labradoodle? I don't think Loyds of London would cover it.

Freakin right! For $20k I would expect a top tier dog with excellent OFA on everything and exceeding marks in multiple disciplines. Like the type of doodle that could be a model of “breed” by which all after are measured.

 

[buckbull]

My sister owns a mobile dog grooming business. The doodles are the only breeds she refuses to do. And she does pit bulls and cats.

 

[COEngineer]

Freakin right! For $20k I would expect a top tier dog with excellent OFA on everything and exceeding marks in multiple disciplines. Like the type of doodle that could be a model of “breed” by which all after are measured.

I think that price included training of the owners (how to use the dog) which took about two weeks with a professional trainer. These dogs were selected, trained, and trained some more. If you've ever seen a bomb-sniffing dog, these dogs do the same thing, but for peanuts (for kids with severe allergies). They have to go anywhere and not be distracted by anything. The first one we helped train would sleep under our feet at a few months old...on a basketball court...during a game. The org we volunteered with fell apart, so I'm not going to share a link, but they produced some exceptional dogs. We are still FB friends with the owners of that first dog and are proud to have helped him get through childhood with no more trips to the ER ($20k isn't much compared to repeat ambulance rides).

 

[TimeOnTarget]

My son has one. If you are looking for a pet they are awesome. He has a great personality and sheds very little. Great with other pets and kids. His has zero hunting instincts that I can see other than maybe a little prey drive. Maybe the right breeder would have hunting doodles but I haven’t seen it around here. I think his coat would be a nightmare in the field.

This sums up my experience as well.

I just sent 2 home from training. They went home obedient. They are hard not love as they want human interaction, love to be petted etc. Little marking ability, great noses but couldn't figure out how to use them effectively. Not much in the way of prey drive. They HATED water.

Get yourself a lab or even a golden and call it a day.

 

[Irrelevant]

My boss has one. We call it Volvo. It's a designer dog, that costs more than it should and is constantly having problems.

 

[Benfromalbuquerque]

I think that price included training of the owners (how to use the dog) which took about two weeks with a professional trainer. These dogs were selected, trained, and trained some more. If you've ever seen a bomb-sniffing dog, these dogs do the same thing, but for peanuts (for kids with severe allergies). They have to go anywhere and not be distracted by anything. The first one we helped train would sleep under our feet at a few months old...on a basketball court...during a game. The org we volunteered with fell apart, so I'm not going to share a link, but they produced some exceptional dogs. We are still FB friends with the owners of that first dog and are proud to have helped him get through childhood with no more trips to the ER ($20k isn't much compared to repeat ambulance rides).

With intensive training over time, I’m fairly certain a man could teach a garbage can-found opossum to sniff out peanut butter. Nobody here is questioning your dedication to dog training, especially scent training and it sounds like you finished admirable specimens.
It’s the goldendoodle itself that’s got us all here. Whatever the goldendoodle can do has already been designed in another breed and that other breed does the thing better.

 

[BrentD]

With intensive training over time, I’m fairly certain a man could teach a garbage can-found opossum to sniff out peanut butter. Nobody here is questioning your dedication to dog training, especially scent training and it sounds like you finished admirable specimens.
It’s the goldendoodle itself that’s got us all here. Whatever the goldendoodle can do has already been designed in another breed and that other breed does the thing better.

There it is. Could not be better said.

 

[COEngineer]

Whatever the goldendoodle can do has already been designed in another breed and that other breed does the thing better.

Except being hypo-allergenic. Most people with severe food allergies also suffer from other allergies and you can't take some breeds into any setting (settings with people who are allergic to everything).

 

[Benfromalbuquerque]

My Dad was allergic to all sorts of things. No shit, he bought one of these and called it Dog.