Big Dog Mom has written a good article about the designer dog craze
that has engulfed our country. I am with Stephanie on her points.
I don’t have anything against the dogs. I have met some lovely doodles. I love all dogs. But to mix Poodles, (An exceptional and amazing breed) With Labs, Goldens, Bernese Mountain Dogs, and just about any other breed out there and call it a “Doodle” and, charge twice as much as a preservation breeder would charge for their well bred dogs, is “deliberately breeding mixed breed dogs and calling them “designer “making [them] a con artist and [their] buyers, willing victims.” [1] As Stephanie said to me: “It is one thing to buy a mixed breed dog because you want the mix. In my mind, it’s a completely different issue to pay a premium for a mix that will never live up to the “designer” claims of its maker. It’s the marketing of these dogs that I have such a problem with”. I could not agree more. Good preservation breeders spend many hours researching pedigrees, looking at the longevity and health of the lines they are breeding to, as well as spending a lot of money on testing and health screenings, to produce the best dogs they can. Preservation breeders know all too well that the raising of a litter is a science and not something to be left to chance. They know what the stages are that puppies go through and how to handle them. Like the fear stages a pup will experience and how to safely get them through it. Doodle breeders don’t do that. Good breeders also know that the longer a pup stays with its litter mates (10-12 weeks) the better. From their litter mates they learn valuable life lessons.
As Stephanie points out, mixing breeds to create a new breed is not a new thing. But this has always been done to fulfill a need. Not so that you can create the
name of a new mix breed. Folks, these are not new breeds, they are not designer dogs and for Pete’s sake, they are not Hybrids.
Creating a new breed of dog takes time, in most cases about 100 years . Not you buying a poodle and a golden to create a doodle.
Don’t be taken in. Read Stephanie’s post. She has said it beautifully.
Here is a fun video about “Doodles”
From Stephanie’s site, I have linked below a site for a breed that is in development called a Silken Windhound. This woman has been working
for decades to create this breed. She had a purpose and a need in mind and has worked hard to fulfill it. In her words her vision of the new breed is:
“ideal sporting companion for those wanting the elegance and athleticism of a sighthound, with the protective addition of a silky coat, and a smaller size than any other long coated sighthound.”
The Silken Windhound is an example of crossbreeding in the modern-day done the right way and for the right reason. [2]
The Allure Of Designer Dogs – A Mixed Breed Illusion (bigdogmom.com)
[1] [2] Stephanie Seger aka Big Dog Mom.
Kennel Kristull – Silken Windhound History (silkenwindhounds.com)
