Why a doodle?

[Stacy]

I'm sure this is a conversation that has come up before, but in light of all the ugly political talk going on right now I thought it might be fun to share what made people choose a doodle. Obviously because they are adorable and the best dogs ever, but is there anything beyond that? 

I'll go first! I love soft, long haired dogs. I obviously liked the idea of no shedding, though I know there is no guarantee. I don't necessarily buy into all the hype about hybrid vigor. I could have/would have gone with a standard poodle, but I can't stand the idea of docking ears or tails and they dock tails on poodles. There are a lot of breeds that I love, but would never get from a breeder for that reason. The doberman comes to mind. I think they are so fancy and elegant. But with the exception of reproductive organs I think my dog should have all the parts it came with. (No judgement, just my personal feelings) I think I would have gone with a standard doodle initially, but when I got to the point where I couldn't wait one more minute for a dog the breeder I found only had a litter of minis that were almost ready. And there was only one girl available. And Katie turned out to be my perfect dog. Now I have one of each. And while I think I would miss the ability to pick up and carry my dog around, I think I will probably stick with the big ones. I really love Ava's size. She takes up all the room in the bed, but her extra large snuggles are amazing. 

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

We were on our annual ski trip and out cross country skiing in the woods and a lady appeared with the most beautiful dog ever. His name was Jefferson, I think, and I asked what he was and the rest is history. I really was not all that informed and did believe they didn't shed. We had Labs before and loved their temperament, but this time I thought a non-shedding dog would be lovely. I now know they can shed, but we got lucky. I started searching that night online and found our Fudge. 

[Stacy]

I know that feeling of love at first sight! I'm lucky, Katie doesn't shed at all. I'm still waiting to see what Ava will do when her hair grows out. She doesn't seem to be shedding much, maybe a little bit but not enough to make hair tumbleweeds all over the house. But I love their temperment and their hair and everything about them. 

And I think your Fudge and Vern are beautiful. I'm sure Vern is beautiful even when he has rolled in whatever stinky thing he can find.

[Kristen and Piper]

They are adorable.  I'll be honest I wanted to go with a rescue dog.  I wanted to walk into a shelter and pick our dog.  My husband wanted a dog where he knew where the dog came from.  We had not decided one way or another until I kept seeing the Doodle Litter pop up on Facebook.  At first my husband said No Way.  Well... long story short our cat got hit by a car and the next day he told me they still had some Doodles left and did I want one.  Very rash decision but BEST one we ever made.  Piper is hysterical and keeps me on my toes.  I work from home so it is so nice to have her with me.

[Stacy]

Sometimes those impulse decisions turn out to be the best things ever! 

[Kristen and Piper]

and this one was! Totally rash and the last female left of the bunch but she has been absolutely wonderful.

[Lori, Daphne, Lucy & Pippa]

I have had miniature poodles all my life while growing up and I got another once I was married. I had wanted A Golden Retriever for many years but my Dad did not want a shedding dog. So after much convincing, my husband finally agreed to allow me and the kids to get one even though he only wanted to have one dog (we still had our poodle). She was the best dog in the world! Sweet, Loving, Loyal...all the things you've ever heard about Goldens. I always thought that the ideal dog would be a cross between the two and so I looked it up and guess what I found...Lol? The most adorable dogs ever!

Chloe, my Golden, died at age 12-1/2 with bone cancer. I blamed myself after learning that her food had a cancer causing preservative so while I was researching healthy food I came across Doodlekisses and my fever renewed. We got Daphne shortly after and we feed her a MUCH healthier food thanks to Karen and DK!

[Stacy]

And now there are three! I wonder if that's a tiny part of the reason I stayed single. I never wanted anyone to tell me how many dogs I could have. Compromise may not be my best quality. 

Karen helped me find a great food for my kids too. Ironically I think it's cheaper than the bad food I was feeding before. I am very grateful. 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

In the long run, the better foods often are cheaper, because they are more nutrient dense and you feed less. 

[Stacy]

I know that's true (now) but without even taking that into account, I was just looked at the pricing and a 14 pound bag of the royal canin I was feeding is 38.99 and the 30 pound bag of Fromm is 51.83. I really thought I was feeding a premium food. I was paying a premium price! Cost was never an issue. I just didn't know better. Now I feel really good about giving them a healthy, safe food.

I know that Petsmart, Petco, etc are big box stores. But it's still weird to me that they don't carry the true premium brands. It can't be a pricing thing. Some of the foods they do carry are just as expensive. There are local places where I can find it - but I love having chewy deliver it to the door. But they are all the small boutique pet stores. And some of them I won't shop in, because I won't shop in places where they sell puppies. There are still a few places around here that actually sell dogs, not just have an adoption center for rescues. 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

The better companies (and not just dog food companies) will often not sell to "big box" stores, and that's mostly an image or marketing thing, I think. 

If you use the store locators on the manufacturer's websites, often you will discover small out of the way places, often feed stores, that you didn't know existed. One member found they carried many of the premium dog foods at one of those stores that sells seed and feeders for wild birds in her area.  

[Lori, Daphne, Lucy & Pippa]

Yes Stacy, now there are three (plus Lyla, my granddog who lives here temporarily). And sometimes we have a foster...Lol! Its amazing the magic that those doodles can work!

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

When we were camping, I saw someone walking a small, red dog that I fell in love with.  I chased her down the street to find out what breed it was.  It was a mini labradoodle.  I was in love!  Ned was our next dog purchase, even though we already had two dogs and did not need a third.