Questions about Goldendoodles

[Andrew Davis]

I'm looking to get a goldendoodle over the summer before I start my new job. I'm getting married in September and want to surprise my fiancee with a doodle as sort of a wedding gift. We've always wanted a dog but just haven't been able to get one until now.

 

Both of us will be working, and while I want a Goldendoodle, I don't want to be unfair to it if it's going to be seriously affected by our absence during the day.

 

So for you owners, mind answering a few questions for me?

 

• Do you live in an apartment? How does your Goldendoodle handle it?
• How long is your Goldendoodle left alone each day?
• How much exercise do they need?
• How much do they bark? Can you train them to stop barking?
• How difficult was the training period?
• How big has yours gotten?
• Where did you get your Goldendoodle?
• How much does it shed?

For the most part I think that aside from the time away from home issue, we'll be able to provide the right environment for the dog.

 

It's killing us that apartment life and work life seems to interfere with having a four legged companion, so it'd be great to hear from some owners.

[Adina P]

I don't board, but not because I'm against it.  I am not even against kenneling.  But our set-up is less expensive and mostly SO much easier on all involved.  We leave our dogs at home and have a friend stop by 4 times a day with the last stop being a couple hours (he watches DVDs/Netflix and the dogs play).

 

If I were to board I'd want to be sure their normal schedules were considered, they were given adequate time to potty, a little play time and I'd be happy.  I don't need anything fancy as long as it is sanitary and clean and they weren't encouraged to practice bad habits, I'd be okay with it.

[Camilla and Darwin]

• Do you live in an apartment? How does your Goldendoodle handle it? - Yes, and he handles it very well. He is a pretty mellow dog, and we take him for a short walk or off leash run every day, he is very calm indoors. I think apartment living has helped his behavior, because he is very used to loud noises, new people, doors opening and shutting, etc. He's not at all reactive to them, loves everyone and almost never barks.
• How long is your Goldendoodle left alone each day? Darwin is left alone for up to 6 hours in his crate. If we are going to be gone longer, we put him in daycare.
• How much exercise do they need? It greatly varies depending on the dog. I would say most are pretty energetic, and need multiple walks per day, and an off-leash run. Darwin is much more mellow, and doesn't need a whole lot.
• How much do they bark? Can you train them to stop barking? Darwin very rarely barks. Maybe once every couple of months. Only if he's SUPER excited or extremely startled, even then it's only a single bark. When he was a puppy, we would say "No" sharply every single time he barked. It only took a few times for him to stop altogether. I don't know if he's just not prone to barking, or if our consistent corrections helped. No idea.
• How difficult was the training period? I'm going to assume you mean the puppy stage.  It was tough, and It think Darwin was an easy puppy. :-) He house trained quickly, didn't bite/mouth us, and wasn't big on destroying things. Still, the adjustment you will make in your sleeping, social and work schedule are very significant. I was overwhelmed to the point of panic for the first week. But it got better. :-)
• How big has yours gotten? About 65 lbs.
• Where did you get your Goldendoodle? A local ad for someone who bred their family dog to their friend's dog. Not too legitimate... I've learned a lot since then. :-)
• How much does it shed? Darwin sheds minimally. He shed a little bit when he went through the worst of his coat change but now there is just some floating hairs when we brush him. However, because he doesn't shed he does mat and I brush him regularly. Nightly when he's long (that is a brush through and comb through) and 3 times a week when he's short.

We are students, have jobs and live in an apartment. Honestly I think that if you are dedicated to spending the time and effort to raise your dog, you will do great. Make a commitment to exercise, groom, and spend the amount of time necessary to be  a good dog owner. It may not be the ideal situation to live in an apartment, I know some people would never consider it. But it's worked wonderfully for us. :-)

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

The first 3 responses are great.  Just wanted to add that my husband and I work full time, have from the beginning. Until Saturday, we lived in a condo and be prepared that it is a pain walking them in the rain, etc...but it is totally doable!

 

My tidbit of advice:  for the first 2 or so years, you simply MUST have someone take the dog out during lunchtime.  My husband and I have rotated lunch duty since day one.  Now we don't go home every day; however, they get a 6am long walk every day to tire them out and we come STRAIGHT home from work every night to walk them and give them exercise.  Also do daycare once or twice a week.  We do not do anything on Friday nights with friends now (away from our house) unless we have had 2-3 hours at home with dogs before. They need to have love and care.

 

I have a mini goldendoodle (f1) and she doesn't shed but that is RARE for first generation doodles. She is 25 pounds.

 

Be prepared to shell out $1500-$2500 for a good doodle from a quality breeder.....and as an fyi, their grooming costs are expensive.

 

I highly recommend formal obedience training. I have spent over $500 in training my Peri and it is paying off. 

 

At 2 years old, she just now earned my trust to stay out in the house while we are gone. She is a chewer!

[Gregg Aprahamian]

• Do you live in an apartment? How does your Goldendoodle handle it?  HOUSE
• 
• How long is your Goldendoodle left alone each day? About 2hrs - 6 hrs/day
• How much exercise do they need? The More The Better
• How much do they bark? Can you train them to stop barking? Doesn't bark much yet (15 weeks old)
• How difficult was the training period? Still doing it.  VERY SMART!  But gets confused with too many people giving commnads in house
• How big has yours gotten? 21lbs and HUGE paws by 15 weeks, will maybe be 60-90lbs
• Where did you get your Goldendoodle? Breeder in PA (not for everyone...)
• How much does it shed? Hardly at all

[Jennifer,Chloe & Myla]

We live in a smaller house  They were being left alone about 9 hours or so and were crated until recently (they are 3 & 4 now)We have mini goldendoodles 32# and 19#   They LOVE to run around, they need a few walks a day   My older one NEVER barked until the second one came along-they sit in the window and bark at people, but we also live directly in front of a gas station so there's a lot to watch. We also leave the radio on so they don't hear every little thing.

We had NO problems with potty training, they are very smart-we put a bell on the door and said potty everytime we went out and we rang it, eventually they started ringing on their own. We had a handful of accidents, but every dog is different.

We bought our first from a pet store not knowing what a goldendoodle was before then the second I found on Pet Finder, she was a runt with an underbite and needed a home The younger one sheds a bit You could get a dog walker or doggy daycare if you are cincerned about the being alone. I wish we would have put them in daycare instead of the crate at least a couple days a week. Good luck-if it's right for you to get a dog, they are an awesome breed.

[BG and Gavin]

• Do you live in an apartment? How does your Goldendoodle handle it? - House with a fenced in yard.  Love this as he adores being outside regardless of the weather so usually spends at least two hours or more over the course of the day outside
• How long is your Goldendoodle left alone each day? During the work week, 3 hours in the morning, then one of us comes home for an hour at lunch and then four hours in the afternoon.  If we go out for an evening, we try not to leave him longer than 6 hours at a stretch and have the neighbour boy take him out  for a while.
• How much exercise do they need? He runs and plays fetch in the yard usely twice a day (not counting frequent squirrel chasing sessions and we walk him twice a day for a total of 4-5 miles. This keeps him mellow and well behaved and lean.
• How much do they bark? Can you train them to stop barking? We did not think our guy even had a voice until about 6 months old.  He never barks inside the house and will occasionally bark at certain dogs passing when he is outside.
• How difficult was the training period? Potty training was quick, but we were super consistent.  You cannot be lazy in this regard.  We has less than half a dozen slip ups and none in the crate.  Training classes are a must in my opinion.  My guy enjoyed and needed the mental stimulation and it keeps you on track too.
• How big has yours gotten? About 67 lbs.
• Where did you get your Goldendoodle? A local breeder
• How much does it shed?  He sheds a bit - mostly in the brush, but I find the occasional clump of hair (doodle bunny) here and there.  He is an F1

[Taylor & Huff]

Sorry. Bryce put this response up and she didn't tell me. Now, I can't edit it.....

[Taylor & Huff]

I was not meaning to premote the breeder I was just saying which breeder we got Huff from.

[Camilla and Darwin]

Taylor, I don't mean to be nit picky but there is absolutely no evidence to prove that a dog with longer hair is less energetic than one with longer hair. In fact, many doodles that have long hair are very energetic, and many with short hair are mellow. It doesn't make a difference. :-)

[Taylor & Huff]

I know it doesn't. I don't even know where Bryce came up with that. (I know you probably don't believe that it really was Bryce but, it was haha:))

[F, Calla & Luca]

Speak to Samson : )

[Camilla and Darwin]

ROFL