Hello from a prospective novice Labradoodle owner!

[Nick]

Evening All,

My family and I have decided that the time is almost right for us to complete our family unit and get a dog. Having done lots of reading and research on different breeds I discovered the Labradoodle and haven't looked back!

I've started to learn more about the breed to ensure that when we do take the plunge we do it properly and correctly in order to give our puppy the best chance in life. This Forum has been an amazing source of information and your love and knowledge of these wonderful dogs is very clear!

We've decided that we'd quite like to get a miniature Labradoodle and I have a couple of questions regarding them and some things I've read and heard about them:

1, That it's impossible to guarantee that they will be mini (16" or so)
2, That they are more hyper than a standard sized Labradoodle

In your experience how far have you found these to be accurate or is it just down to making a judgement about the puppy and parents when you meet them?

Finally, can anyone recommend good breeders of mini Labradoodles? I've been in touch with Sue Quain and Carol Gowing who have been really helpful. It's all about finding the right litter at the right time with the right breeder though so the more I can get in touch with the better.

Sorry for rambling on a bit - it's the mixture of excitement and trepidation of becoming a prospective owner of one of these lovely creatures!

Thanks and take care!

Nick

[We5Kings]

Welcome to the forum Nick, you will find so much help on here.
We have Dude, a nearly3 year old Multigen Standard doodle. He is a calm dog, but he has his moments! He was a quiet puppy in a litter of 11. His mother is very docile but the pups varied in bounciness!
If you have young children a Mini may be better. Big doodles can easily knock children off their feet! Anny

[Noglet]

Hi Nick,

Welcome to the crazy world of doodles!

We have a standard (George, coming up to 4 years old), and a mini (Stan, just past 6 years old). Stan's a first generation cross working lab / miniature poodle and about 14" to the shoulder. He's fairly sloth-like most of the time in the house, but gets excited about walks and ball throwers! I don't think I'd say he's more hyper than George, but like us, I'm sure they're all different!

Sarah

[Doodle Dee]

Lulu is just like Stan above. She is a first gen cross white min poodle and chocolate lab. She is about 15 inches and 13 k. She is both excitable and extremely calm and very intelligent Her excitement is in meeting people and her ball and wAlks. Good luck

[Coco and Annie]

Hi Nick

Welcome to the forum!

I have two 'mini' labradoodles. Our first was Coco an F1 (mini poodle dad/lab mum). She is now 2.5 years and weighs 15.5 kg and measures 17" to the shoulder. She is the sweetest dog, perfect in the house now, but still very excitable on a walk. Her recall is getting better but she does tend to jump up at people if she can. This is improving though. Luckily she is quite small so hasn't done much damage. As a puppy she was very excitable and super friendly. Unfortunately she has mild hip problems although her parents hip scored ok.

When we came to getting our second dog, we chose an Australian labradoodle as they hip score for a minimum of 5 generations as it is a recessive gene. So we got Yoshi from Tora labradoodles near Glasgow when Coco was 11 months old. Yoshi was supposed to be a large miniature as his parents were about 16" high but he has grown to 20" but only 18kg in weight. I can still pick him up easily if I need to. Yoshi is very much calmer and much less excitable. He also has a lovely devoted and loving nature and has been very gentle with our children. We had very little puppy biting. He is quite wary of strangers though and can get scared easily.

Both dogs are gorgeous and I love them dearly however Yoshi has proved to be an easier dog to train as he is so much calmer. He comes from therapy lines. This is what Australian labradoodles were originally bred for.

Hope this helps a little.

Look forward to hearing all about your search.

Annie X

[PippaTheDoodle]

Hiya

Welcome to the forum - I joined when we decided to get a pup and she's now over a year old... Time flies!

My bubbas Mama has just had a 11 pup litter in Tonbridge, Kent. My Pippa weighs 19.8KG and is a complete bundle of love. Our experience with the breeder was AMAZING. We went to their first birthday party last month and we catch up often on Facebook and all pups are not too far away from them so we meet up for 'Doodle Fests'. Having this experience made getting a dog a much more enjoyable experience than some friends and family have had and I truly believe our enthusiasm for our dog is mainly due to the wonderful experience. We met Mum and Dad and Dad came along for their party and brought them all a little bone! So sweet.

Let me know if you want their details!

Amanda and Pippa Xxx

[Nick]

Hello,

Thanks for all of the kind welcomes, information and support! I'll be sure to keep you updated on our quest for a pup!

All the best,

Nick

[susiet]

Also Nick - if there's a Doodle walk taking place near your neck of the woods do go along and join them. You'd be very welcome and usually there is a mix of all doodley types and plenty of people who would give kindly advice. The Surrey Strollers are having a walk tomorrow if you are in the S E area. from Wray Lane car park over Reigate Hill. We always meet at 10.30. Walks are usually posted up on the forum on the M.E.S.S. page (stands for meet every second Sunday!) We have a wide range of Doodles who come, from very mini to very large!

Good luck in your search!

Susie Flo and Ruby

[Nick]

Hello,

Thank you for the kind offer - unfortunately I'm based in the East Mids so you're gathering is a little too far for me to travel!

I've had a look on the M.E.S.S. page and noticed they had a gathering at Elvaston Castle grounds recently - practically on my doorstep. I shall keep my eyes peeled for the next one.

Take care,

Nick