Myth Busted

[Heidi & Milton]

One of the main incentives that inspired us to purchase a goldendoodle was the "fact" that doodles do not shed.  A doodle is part poodle, so there should be enough poodle genes mixed in to prevent that annoying side effect of dogs.  Since Milton is an F1 (cross between a golden retriever and a standard poodle), we were aware that he might shed a "little" unlike a F1b (cross between a standard poodle and a F1 goldendoodle) who supposedly does not shed "at all."

When we acquired Milton, we lived in an apartment for the first six months.  We vacuumed a tremendous amount, but what we sucked up looked like an awful lot of dirt (He's a dirty dog.) combined with an awful lot of my hair.  Jeff and I never saw Milton's blonde hair on the carpet, rarely on our clothes (unless we wore black), and certainly never on the tile floor.  Foolishly, we assumed that our doodle was a non-shedding one.  Now that we live in a house with hard wood floors, we have changed our sentiments. 

Fur ball

Fur balls

These are the fur balls that roll across the room at any given moment like tumble weeds.  These light clumps of fur tend to collect behind doors, under beds, and around tables.  They are certainly "dust bunnies" for as you go to sweep or suck them up, they simply hop away from you.

Here are the remnants from a recent vacuuming.  Yuck.  I know. 

Grimy, kind of impressive

Is our goldendoodle's fur and dust habit a deal breaker for us?  No, of course not.  Compared to the average shedding dog, Milton's shedding is "practically" non-existent.  It is really the dirt that gets under our skin.  To have a cleaner home, Jeff and I certainly need to be more vigilant with the brushing and bathing of Milt. 

Fur clump from recent brushing - reminiscent of sheep wool!

Milton is a tough dood to keep up with in the cleanliness department, but we certainly are trying!

The Milt To read more about Milton the Goldendoodle visit www.goldilocksandherdoodle.com

[Willow and J]

I love the last picture. Seems like Milt is doing his share to keep the house in order. Is this the arrival of adolescent coat change for Milt?