Our new Mini Goldendoodle (HELP!)

[niru]

Hi friends,

I am new to the forum. My Fiancee and I are picking up our mini goldendoodle in August. She is cross between Brandy, a female golden retriever (picture attached) and Rusy, a male toy poodle (picture attached). We found out yesterday that Brandy had a successful litter and we have put a hold on "Chloe" (a female apricot). The breeder sent us a pic and she mentioned that Chloe is the biggest female in the litter. This is probably a tough question but can anyone give us an idea of what we should expect from the coat and how big she may get. Rusty is about 12 pounds and Brandy is 45 - 50 pounds. Thanks for your help!

Brandy-017-300x225.jpg

Rusty.jpg

chloe.JPG

[AndySharon BoomerShaynaMariner]

Just from our experience - you can not predict.  Our female, Shayna is about 45 pounds.  Her mother was a 42 pound F1 GD and her father a 15 pound poodle.

[niru]

Thanks, appreciate the quick response. Did you find that the coat colour changed as she grew older? We have heard different things. 

[Kurt Gustafson]

That photo is really too younge able to say anything concrete about coat. We started seeing big differences in our litter by 3 weeks. As far as size, that can be a toss up. The intent of a mini-cross is to produce a small doodle. However, a poodle build and a retriever build are dissimilar so it is not as simple as taking an average of the two. If your breeder has had multiple litters, you can ask how large the biggest pups have matured. I'd guess as tall as the largest parent, but a fw pounds lighter. In standard size doodles it is not uncommon for many of the pups to be larger than the parents due to the combination of the tall narrow poodle build with that of the more broad retriever.

[F, Calla & Luca]

I don't think this adorable pup will be really curly but that is as far as I'm willing to guess.

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

I'm just curious as to why you had to select so soon.  There is going to be a huge change in these puppies before time to go home.  Please keep in mind that this puppy could be anywhere from 10 - 50 lbs probably.  There just really is no accurate way to know.  Also, the reds tend to fade.  Very few stay the really dark red colors.  You really want to see a little more of the personality of the puppies before making your pick.  All just things to consider.  Good luck and we look forward to watching her grow up.

[niru]

It's not that we had to select so soon, it's more so that we chose to. We wanted a female apricot mini-doodle with a teddy bear face. So based on these requirements this girl fit that description from the breeders most recent litter. I also wanted a standard initially but got talked down the breeder told us that this girl was the biggest female in the litter. 

[Judi Kilpatrick]

Hi Niru, I have 2 medium goldendoodles and the parents sizes are very similar to Brandy & Rusty. Our boys have the same dad, different mothers. One mother was about 55 lbs, the other was about 45-50 lbs, Barkley is 8 months old and 32 lbs., Oscar is just over 7 months and 28 lbs.. They have pretty much stopped growing but I suspect they will add a bit more weight as they mature. Recently made contact with one of Barkleys sisters, she is about 25 lbs. While there is no guarantee Chloe might be somewhere in the 30 lb range, give or take a few lbs. Looks like she will be adorable, can't wait to see more pictures!

[Judi Kilpatrick]

Forgot to mention, check out the Pup to Adult group, lots of pictures there that will give you an idea of the color changes that can occur in the darker doodles.

[Leslie, Yogi & Maci Bear]

It's nice to know what you want your pup to look like, but far more important to choose the pup whose temperment will best fit you and your families lifestyle.  Just a thought.... Our doodle's mom was 48# and dad was 18#.  Yogi is probably done growing now and he is 33-34#.  He was also the largest of the litter.

The colors do seem to change a lot on the doodles.  Ours had a small white spot on his head as a pup, now his whole head is white.  He also starting turning a darker red at his tail maybe at 10-12 weeks that worked the way up to his neck.

That's another good reason to not just choose on looks as opposed to picking out the personality you want.

Good luck on whichever one you choose!

[Stephanie and Ragley]

I agree- looks are nice, but a temperament that fits your lifestyle is far more important. With doodles there are ZERO guarantees with what the final "look" will be so it is best to pick on temperament. She may be apricot/red now, but she may end up looking cream as an adult. Her face shape will also change A LOT by the time she is even 5-6 weeks old. I would seriously consider waiting to pick one until the puppies are much older. Just my thoughts though :)

[Ginny Nightingale]

I just looked at your pics and that is a cute pup--but, wow--you really can't tell anything yet--I raise puppies and they change so much--size at this age means almost nothing unless there is a really big difference--color-wise, that is a very dark red,  so she may end up apricot to light red. As far as coat, you really can't tell a thing from this pic except that she will not be really curly---here is a pic of a really curly pup at the same age....the waves are already there--and then a pic of him at 8 weeks. Your pup may have a wavy coat and you would have to wait a few more weeks to see if the waves start to show up in the ears and around the neck, which is where they show up first. (See last pic)

(By the way, clicking on the photo which is second from left in the tool bar allows you to imbed the photo)

I agree that choosing a pup by looks can be a big mistake--you will love them for their temperament in the long run.

[niru]

Here's an updated pic. She looks like such a cutie! 

We are going to visit the breeder in a few weeks before we pick her up in August.