His aim was to combine the low-shedding coat of the Poodle with the gentleness and trainability of the Labrador, and to provide a Guide Dog suitable for people with allergies to fur and dander. Guide Dogs Victoria continue to breed Labradoodles today and Labradoodles are now often used around the world as Guide, Assistance, and Therapy Dogs, as well as being popular family dogs.
Appearance and temperament
The Labradoodle as a dog breed is still developing, and does not yet "breed true," i.e., puppies do not have consistently predictable characteristics. While many Labradoodles display desired traits, their appearance and behavioral characteristics remain, from an overall breed standpoint, unpredictable.
As such, Labradoodles' hair can be anywhere from wiry to soft, and may be straight, wavy, or curly. Some Labradoodles do shed, although the coat usually sheds less and has less dog odor than that of a Labrador Retriever. The color range includes white, cream, gold, apricot, red, brown and black, and most of the other colors seen in Poodles.
Like most Labrador Retrievers and Poodles, Labradoodles are generally friendly, energetic and good with families and children (although as with any dog the temperament may vary between individuals). Labradoodles also often display an affinity for water and the strong swimming ability present in both their parent breeds.
Like their parent breeds, both of which are amongst the world's most intelligent dog breeds, Labradooodles are very intelligent and quite trainable. Labradoodles can be taught to obey verbal or sign language commands, or both, and remain commonly used as guide dogs for disabled or handicapped persons around the world.
Types of Labradoodle
A 3 year old Labradoodle with a hair type coat and dominant labrador traits.
There is no universal consensus as to whether breeders should aim to have Labradoodles recognized as a breed. Some breeders prefer to restrict breeding to early generation dogs (i.e. bred from a Poodle and Labrador rather than from two Labradoodles) to maximise genetic diversity, in order to avoid the inherited health problems that have plagued some dog breeds.
Others are breeding Labradoodle to Labradoodle over successive generations, and trying to establish a new dog breed. These dogs are usually referred to as Multigenerational (abr. Multigen) or Australian Labradoodles. Australian Labradoodles also differ from early generation and Multigenerational Labradoodles in that they may also have other breeds in their ancestry. English and American Cocker Spaniel/Poodle crosses (ie Cockapoos), Two Irish Water Spaniels and Soft-Coated Wheaten Terriers have variously been used in some Australian Labradoodle lines. The Curly Coated Retriever were used too, but these lines did not work out and they were discontinued.
Labradoodle coats are generally divided into 3 categories: Wool (with tight curls, and similar in appearance to that of a Poodle, but with a softer texture); Fleece (soft and free-flowing, with a kinked or wavy appearance); or Hair (which can be curly, straight or wavy, but is more similar in texture to a Labrador's coat). Labradoodles come in a wide variety of colours, including chocolate, cafe, parchment, cream, gold, apricot, red, black, silver, chalk, and parti colours. They also can be different sizes, depending on the size of poodle (i.e. toy, miniature or standard) used.
Although most Labradoodles are healthy, they can suffer from certain problems common to their parent breeds.
Both Poodles and Labrador Retrievers can suffer from hip dysplasia, and should have specialist radiography to check for this problem before breeding. The parent breeds can also suffer from a number of eye disorders, and an examination by a qualified veterinary eye specialist should be performed.
Over the past couple of years, a number of Multigenerational Labradoodles have also been found to suffer from Progressive retinal atrophy (PRA), an inherited disease that causes blindness, which occurs in both Miniature Poodles and Cocker Spaniels. It is strongly recommended that Multigenerational Labradoodles be DNA tested for PRA before being bred.
A limited number of Labradoodles have also been found to suffer from Addison's Disease, also last but not least you may be looking at dog doors with simple steps for your own panel pet doors, an effortless way to allow for your pet access to the outdoors is with a pet door put in specially for them. To see a great list of different types of pet door, go to Panel Pet Doors
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