Whoodles?

[LuvMyAbby&Kaela]

Does anyone know anybody who has a whoodle? Or have any info/opinions on them (wheaten/poodle). There are some being bred not too far from where my mom lives and they intrigued me. If ever I end up shopping for another dog....

[Adina P]

Wheatens I believe are already non-shedding so that ensures the shedding issue. I've heard mixed opinions. I've 'met' some people online who have them and like them quite a bit. But others who think terriers aren't a good thing to mix with a poodle. I'm not sure of a good reason "WHY" to mix the two as they aren't really complimentary breeds.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

To my mind, it's kind of a silly thing to mix those two breeds, and I would look into the breeder very carefully. There are people who are breeding anything together with poodles, and some of the mixes not only don't make sense, they are only being bred by mills and uneducated, inexperienced people. I think you would have a hard time finding a reputable breeder, who does health testing on the parent dogs, breeding "whoodles".
To begin with, Wheaten terriers do not shed. Ever. They gained popularity as house pets for this reason, as an alternative to the poodle, and because they are of a desirable size, right between miniature and standard poodles. So the less-shedding factor that is one reason for breeding doodles is absent as a reason for breeding this mix.
Second, although I'm sure many would disagree, terriers can be very stubborn, aggressive dogs. Wheatens are known for having issues with jumping up at kids, nipping at kids, jumping fences, and typical terrier stubborness, which makes housebreaking and training difficult. Also the traditional terrier behaviors of digging and chasing smaller animals...they were bred as "ratters". So the wonderful retriever temperament that is also a reason our doodles exist is also absent in this mix. If they were easier dogs with better temperaments, they would no doubt be the most popular breed in the country, as they combine non-shedding coats with a perfect not-too-big, not-too-small size and have few genetic health problems. The fact that they are still not very common speaks volumes to me.

[LuvMyAbby&Kaela]

Ya I was thinking along the same lines. Like Adina said I dont see the point in mixing the two - at least not for the coat as they both are non -shedding. I thought maybe to get the poodle intelligence in there? I agree about terriers they are tenacious.

I had a dog that I got from a byb for cheap. (accidental breeding probably) No research. I didnt get a pick - just got the last puppy available. Saw the ad in the paper. $250. non-shedding puppy. She was half Shitzu, half miniature Schnauzer. I miss her so much. She turned out to be the smartest, most human-like, mighty-dog imaginable. She thought she was a lab. She swam, dove, caught frizbees in mid-air. Super fast learner, new all the tricks. She was pooty trianed super quick, she didnt like to get in trouble and gave you this sad depressed look if you spoke harshly to her. I just was so amazed about her. She died at 9 yrs old of breast cancer. (well had to be put down because it had advanced and was incurable)

Anyways my point is that the breed doesnt say too much to me because you can get docile dogs of a hyper breed, smart dogs in a dumb breed, dumb dogs of a smart breed. But because of her - I will never get a purebred. I am sold on mixes. - thus my curiosity about the whoodle.

But everything you said Karen were thoughts in my own mind as well. But I would love to hear what a whoodle owner says as well. (or a wheaten owner for that matter)

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

My first dog as an adult was the result of a friend wanting to breed his miniature poodle to another friend's schnauzer...a "schnoodle", before they had an "official" name. She was the absolute best dog I ever had...sweet, affectionate, phenomenal with kids, easy to train & housebreak, and the perfect size for me: 25 lbs. I knew I could never replace her after she died, and my next dog was a purebred miniature poodle. At the time I bought her, her father was the number one ranked miniature poodle in the USA and Canada. Her pedigree is still available on-line. She took a day-and-a half to housebreak, and lived 16 very healthy, trouble-free years. So I don't think you can say mixed breeds are better than purebreds, or the reverse. In every case, the genetics and the environment factors are what makes one dog great and another one not so.
But to me, there are very important moral & ethical issues involved in breeding and acquiring dogs, and I really think those come into play when deciding what kind of dog to get and from whom. I personally think there has to be some justification for deliberately bringing living creatures into this world, whether you are doing it for profit or not.
On a side note, I would think a "whoodle" would be a grooming nightmare, lol.

[LuvMyAbby&Kaela]

I totally agree

[April Cliber]

A Whoodle sounds like something out of a Dr. Suess book! lol :o)

I should talk.... but I did immediately think of Dr. Suess.

[Noble Vestal Labradoodles]

Go to Rutland Manor's website. They are the co founder of the Australian Labradoodle, they use wheaten in their lines, there are some US and Canadian breeders who imported dogs from those lines. You will find most if not all Australian Labradoodle breeder (there are very few who dont) test their dogs.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Yes, but they aren't breeding "Whoodles", lol. My comment was in reference to whoever it is who's breeding 50% poodle/50% Wheaten.
According to my research, there was a commercial breeder in Australia who was breeding labradoodles while Wally Conron was still trying to develop them, as well as a veterinarian who had a poo-mix breeding business going on, all before Rutland started their program. I don't know what "the" Australian Labradoodle is, but Rutland was not the only one who was mixing breeds together to make labradoodles. Whether or not there is Wheaten terrier in some of the Australian lines, it would have been just one of (to my understanding) 6 or 7 different breeds that made up that particular line of labradoodles. I think that's a lot different from a dog that is 50% Wheaten terrier.

[Noble Vestal Labradoodles]

I realize that, my comment was just to point out that there are Labradoodle lines with Wheanten in them and there are awesome breeders who do test. Since most breeders that I know of that breed Whoodles dont actually test I cant recommend them but there are tons of them out there.

[Linda Flanders]

We had our female wheaten for 14 years until last Aug. We got her just before they became "discovered". They do not shed at all and they have hair, not fur. They have one of the most high maintainence coats of all breeds, they get mats at the drop of a hat. We were blessed with a super girl, she had an atypical Wheaten/terrier persona. As gentle as she could be, a super couch potato and never nipped at anything in her life. Knowing we had had one in a million, we got Sadie, our goldendoodle in Nov., we knew another Wheaten could never compare ! The Wheaten Rescue had 3 "Whoodles" last fall but, I don't think this combo is a good one. Wheatens typically can be high strung and I have seen quite a few on the rescue site turned in by owners because they do not get along well with other dogs or they are nipping at children.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Heidi Clark is a new member here who has a rescue dog she thinks is a Whoodle. Otis seemed like a neat dog the time I met him.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

There is a new member on doodlekisses named Heidi Clark. She has a rescue dog that is thought to be a Whoodle. I met Otis once and thought he was a neat dog.