Few questions about shedding

[Discussing Labradoodles & Goldendoodles]

I have a 14 week old male goldendoodle. F1 I believe. His dad was a poodle and his mom was a golden retriever. He shed a bit not to bad, but the last 2 weeks he is shedding like crazy. I mean worse than a cat would shed. HAIR is everywhere. Is this normal? Will he shed like this from now on? When do they start loosing their puppy hair, and i know with fall they shed more. I have tried to look online however there is SO much information that i dont know what to believe or is legit. 

He is the best dog, only had one accident in the house. If I point one finger he will sit, if I put up two fingers he will lie down. PERFECT with my kids. Just so much hair. WOndering if this is going to slow down.

Thanks so much!

[Amy and Truman]

Mine started shedding around that age and at 5 months is still shedding like crazy. I do think it has tapered off some in the last week or so, maybe we are reaching a halt. Good luck, the hair is driving me crazy. Thankfully he is amazing and that makes up for it!

[Brandi]

Hi Scot, your pup will go through many coat changes in the first year.  It is completely normal for him to shed at his age, and within 14 to 16 weeks is when mine 2 started their real shedding.  It will probably slow down a bit then start again because the changes come in phases.  You really never know what kind of coat they will have until they are about a yr old. Don't be alarmed with the hair.  Some doodles will have a "flat" coat and will shed like a retriever all their life, but, most F1's are a good mixture of both breeds and shed very little.  I have 2 doodles and they both did shed quite a bit in the first year over several different phases but now they shed very very little if any.  I have an F1 and an F2. If you google "coat changes in goldendoodles" there is quite a few different links to read about it so you know what to expect in the coming months.  The one thing I can suggest is brush, brush, brush.  Try to brush him every day because during their coat changes in the first year is the WORST matting time.  My first doodle I didn't have clipped until she was about 9 months old, and had dealt with a lot of matting before finally taking her first trip to the groomers, then her coat was easier to maintain.  My second doodle, I clipped at 16 wks and kept her shorter during her coat changes and it was way easier to deal with.  Good luck with your little guy, they are wonderful wonderful dogs, I can almost promise that you will catch the "doodle fever" I call it, and before he's grown, chances are you'll want another one, it happens to most of us ;)

[Doris, Knox & Flash]

An F1 can easily be a non-shedder or NOT. Really, it's a crap shoot, because the puppy could get more of the golden retriever characteristics (like shedding) than the poodle characteristics (like non-shedding). You just really can't predict how your puppy will be as an adult, but if he's shedding now, I would bet that the shedding will continue on some level. You say he's the best dog and that's what is really important!!

[Barbara B., Sasha & Oliver]

Sasha is my 2 yr. old goldendoodle and she does not shed at all... never did. She is very poodley.  Oliver my labradoodle is a shedder.  I read either they have the shedding gene or they don't (from the poodle) or something in between.  Oliver is 16 months old and does not go thru shedding stages... he just sheds all the time.  I alwasy had NON-shedding dogs so when I got doodles I knew that there would be a possibility that they would shed.  There are black tumble weeds of hair all over from Oliver, I stay on top of it with vacuuming and brushing every day.  Since Oliver is young he may grow out of it but I doubt it!   I have learned to deal with it - LOL.

[Christine & Camus]

Camus is an F1 labradoodle who sheds like a champ!  I adopted him at 12 mos. (he is 26 mos now) and although I knew he shed I had no idea he would shed as much as he does. And, year round so there is no break from the hair.  However, he is a wonderful dog and so the shedding is just something I deal with.  One thing I have done to try and deal with it is to start wearing light colored clothing instead of my usual black and use the light Sherpa dog throws from Costco on his beds (or sheets during the warm weather).  At least it doesn't show as much and it is so easy to throw the covers in the wash.  Camus' coloring is the same as your puppy. Now having said all of that - I have met many F1 Goldendoodle owners who say their dogs do not shed.  But, like others have said you really will not know for sure until the adult coat comes in.  Either way he is an adorable puppy.

[J and Riley (and Luna)]

Luna is an F1 mini goldendoodle, and she shed a LOT from the time she was about 4-5 months until 8-9 months. 

 

Since then it has calmed down a bit, but since she has a very retriever-ish coat, she has the seasonal (spring & fall) coat change it seems.  She's still young, so she may not continue the seasonal shedding next year (it may just be another coat change in her adolescence), but we think she will still shed as an adult.

[A. M. Iacobellis]

Does Luna have a double coat like the Golden Retriever?  Just trying  to get a handle on what to expect with Maple.

[J and Riley (and Luna)]

She does have a double coat - a white, downy undercoat (thicker in the Winter) and a coat of longer hairs (white at the base with red/apricot tips).  

During seasonal changes Fall/Spring I rake out the undercoat with a furminator de-shedding tool.  Helps a bit with the tumbleweeds around the house.

[A. M. Iacobellis]

Thanks for the quick response....Is this typical with all flat/sport coat doodles?  Do you recall when the double coat came in?  Maple is 5 months now and her coat feels much coarser then before but having a difficult time identifying if there is an undercoat there?  She doesn't feel thick if that makes any sense....

[J and Riley (and Luna)]

I think it's typical for flat goldendoodles, not sure about labradoodles.

I think the double coat came in shortly after her adult coat, probably around a year old.  The undercoat doesn't really grow in much until the Fall when it starts to get cold.  Even then the "undercoat" hairs are all mixed in with her regular red ones so you can't really tell they're there unless you brush her and you get all the fluffy downy undercoat hairs in the brush/comb.

[Moe]

If they are going to be non shedding as adults will they still shed their puppy coat or do non shedding dogs never shed?

[J and Riley (and Luna)]

They will still shed their puppy coats, they do a full replacement of their super soft "baby" fur and it converts to an adult coat.  Usually with a non-shedding dog you'll have to comb out the puppy coat as it gets replaced, otherwise the matting is horrible.