# Perfect temperament for standard puppy with kids?



## Winnow (Jan 2, 2010)

I would go with a pup that gets mostly 4 and 3

Mostly 4's
A pup that scores a majority of 4's is an easily controlled, adaptable puppy whose submissive nature and high Pack Drive will make him continually look to his master for leadership. This pup is easy to train, reliable with kids, and, though he lacks self-confidence, makes a wonderful family pet. He is usually less outgoing than a pup scoring in the 3's, but his demeanor is gentle and affectionate.


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## PaddleAddict (Feb 9, 2010)

Please be aware that poodle crosses (or any crosses) don't breed true the way a purebred does, so you have a wider variety or temperaments as well as looks. Not to mention that many "doodles" shed and can cause problems for allergy sufferers. You will not know if a dog will shed or not until their puppy coat falls out and the adult coat comes in... so if you are really needing a hypoallergenic dog, you really shouldn't go that route.

Also, some allergic people react to poodles, too. I would suggest spending a few hours in someone's home who has poodles that live in the house to see if you react.

We have a poodle because my husband has dog allergies. He did actually react to our poodle when he was a puppy and needed to use his inhaler a few times a week, but he either acclimated to the dog or he was just reacting more to the puppy coat, but now he has no reaction to the dog and can hold him, kiss him and let the dog lick him with no problem.


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

The jury is out on how reliable puppy temperament testing is as an indicator of adult temperament - how the pup is raised and educated seems to be by far the most important element. I would most definitely avoid a nervous pup if I wanted one that would cope happily with young children, though. As PA says, do spend some time with adult poodles before making your decision - and if your main issue is allergies, do not believe everything you read about part poodle mixed breeds. One of the reasons so many labradoodles are finding their way into shelters is that the "hypoallergenic" puppy turns out to be far less so as it grows up (as well as often being daft as a brush and difficult to train).


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## Feralpudel (Jun 28, 2010)

Poodles can be pretty high drive, and love to chase and retrieve. They can also be mouthy and love to jump up and grab at clothing. This is partly a training issue, but you also need to pay attention to temperament and make sure that you don't get more dog than you're prepared to keep busy. You will probably do better with a puppy that has a sturdy temperament but a little mellower. 

If you give us an idea of where you are, we may be able to suggest breeders.


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## Winnow (Jan 2, 2010)

sniah said:


> We are going to visit with a labradoodle breeder in our area today. Their puppies will be ready for homes in mid February. Their overall approach and outlook on breeding looks great, but I have some serious reservations about participating in "designer" dogs. I don't really have a problem with hybrid/muts in general (as long as they don't kill my allergies), but I don't have a good feeling about the profit motive that this extreme cost brings. One good feeling I got from the website of the labradoodle breeder is they mentioned that one of their dogs has a 'warm temperament', a different one has a good temperament for a service dog, and another has more of a clown temperament. I like to hear about these specific determinations, since it gives me confidence that they are perceptive about the personalities, and considering them as first class attributes in breeding and placing their pups.


I missed this part. 

I would not even look at the lab x poodle mix since you have allergies and honestly you don't know what you will get and if the breeder guarantees that he will be allergy free she is lying 

I also think that the lab x poodle would have a higher energy level then the poodle. 
I have own both a purebred lab and poodles and there is a huge difference when it comes to there energy levels and I would personally not want to have a lab around small children I know they are good temp and all that but there is just so much going on around them.

Here is a pic of my Vaka when she was 1y with a one year old girl. 
Vaka has not been raised with children but its like she knows exactly what to do with them. I would say most spoos with a solid temp are just naturally child friendly. She stayed for a few days with the family of the girl and they where best buds.


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## wishpoo (Sep 12, 2009)

I would not buy a doodle - you never know is they will actually shad (and MOST end up doing so). Also, most grow up to be high energy dogs - again something you said you would not like to have.

If temperament testing is not available with a poodle breeder, you can perform one yourself : ))). Not complicated at all - just google it and there are also some demonstrations of how to do it on a youtube.

You definitely do not want a dominant puppy when you have kids , NOR a shy one. You need a "middle of the road" dog. One that is not touch sensitive or sound sensitive and is eager to "follow the leader" : )))! 

Also, try to stick with a breeder that does all necessary health testing on her/his breeding stock.


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## cbrand (Aug 9, 2009)

Doodles... blah. They have all of the stamina of a Standard Poodle but none of the shut-off valve. As puppies, most of them are mouthy and hyper with an extended adolescence. They also have very difficult coats to groom. You will get an easier to live with dog in a Standard Poodle.




sniah said:


> One good feeling I got from the website of the labradoodle breeder is they mentioned that one of their dogs has a 'warm temperament', a different one has a good temperament for a service dog, and another has more of a clown temperament. I like to hear about these specific determinations, since it gives me confidence that they are perceptive about the personalities, and considering them as first class attributes in breeding and placing their pups.


Umm and what if they are just making this verbiage up? How do they know that their dog has a good temperament for doing therapy work? Is it a certified therapy dog? Have they done therapy work before? In my experience, Doodle breeders are not experienced dog people. I would say that 85% never bred, showed or worked dogs before they started breeding Doodles. The other 14% were Lab or Golden breeders who saw that they could make more money breeding Doodles. I would go on to say that 99% of the Doodle breeders out there know little to nothing about Poodle health or temperament even though many are breeding Doodles who are 75% Poodle. As a buyer that should scare you.

Where are you located? When I was looking to place one of my puppies into a family with children aged 3 and 5, I looked for the following characteristics:

*Non-reactive.* I wanted a puppy who was not startled easily by noise or movement. You can judge this through observation, but you can also do things like drop a pan lid and watch what the puppy does. The ideal puppy for you would startle but recover quickly, though perhaps not go investigate. I would say no to the puppy who high-tailed it out of the area or who hid under the furniture.

*Forgiving.* There are some puppies who just have a natural tendencies to take life in stride. Life happens. When something goes wrong, you want a puppy who can either bounce back or who doesn't take offense in the first place. Avoid the puppy who seems scared or who need tons of reassurance. 

*Low prey drive.* I evaluated a litter not too long ago and I can tell you that it is clear that some puppies have a natural prey drive. Take a white dish towel and drag it around. Most puppies will follow and chase it but some will give up quickly (you want this one) while some will not stop and will obviously be very intense in their chasing behavior (you don't want this one).

*Enjoys people.* There are always those puppies in a litter who are lap surfers. Rather than going out to explore, they are content to just sit in a lap and be loved. These puppies might be a tad softer, but don't let that put you off. Soft is not the same as fearful.









thanks![/QUOTE]


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## murieics (May 10, 2009)

In addition to what Carol said (Cbrand), I would also add:

Just because the breeder didn't say much about the individual puppies' personalities doesn't mean she doesn't know what they are. My breeder said little/nothing to me by way of personality (of my puppy or any of the other puppies- in fact, she told me absolutely nothing about the other puppies); however, Jake has the exact personality that I was looking for. Exact. I was extremely detailed in what I told her I wanted, and I don't think I could have picked a better dog myself, even if I had tried. So I wouldn't rule out the poodle breeder as unknowledgeable about her puppies' personalities or anything like that right off the bat. 

As far as dominant vs. submissive goes, I feel like you are going to want something somewhere in the middle. I don't think a very submissive dog would be well-suited for a house with younger children- all of the chaos would likely overwhelm them (although I would also say the same thing about an overly dominant dog). 

I also noticed that you mentioned that your family is not very active. Make sure this is something that your breeder knows. Poodles seem to vary widely in the amount of energy that have, and some need a ton of exercise to be happy (read: to stay out of trouble). I would say my puppy is on the low end of the energy spectrum. I can definitely tell when he doesn't get enough exercise, but he doesn't need THAT much exercise to be happy. He is also a mini. Keep in mind that poodles were originally bred to be hunting dogs, so they are, by nature, a high energy breed. They are also extremely intelligent- they need both physical and mental stimulation. 

If you don't provide them with that stimuation, they will provide it themselves. And usually they find something you would rather them not be doing as an outlet for that excess mental/physical energy. 

As far as doodles go- if you have your heart set on one, I would suggest looking through rescue organizations. You can try your local shelter, and you can also look on websites like petfinder.com. There are usually quite a few of the mix breed dogs available as rescues- oftentimes, there are even puppies available. This way, you wouldn't be supporting a doodle breeder directly by paying a fortune for a mutt. Also, most rescue organizations will allow you to return the dog if it doesn't work out for you/ your family. This would allow you to make sure your allergies will be ok with a doodle (some of them have just as much dander as a lab- which is to say- a ton!), and it would also give you a chance to make sure the dog has the personality you are looking for. There are several people on this forum who have had success adopting rescue dogs (including both poodles and doodles).

Good luck! Getting a new puppy is very exciting!


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## 3dogs (Nov 3, 2010)

Just wondering if you have considered adopting an older pup or an adult dog? This is the route we just took & adopted a small St. Poo & he was exactly what we were looking for. It was hard to pass up pups at the rescue but he was the perfect fit to integrate into a family that already had 4 dogs & a 5 yr old boy. No potty training, no whinning, no crate training, no teething etc... all that had already been done & his temperment is rock solid.
I just thought being your 1t dog you might find an older puppy or young adult might meet your needs.


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## sniah (Jan 21, 2011)

Thanks for the great feedback so far!
The particular Australian labradoodle breeder we met with has a 3 year guarantee (full refund for any reason), and said that she has had zero dogs returned from their allergy owners in the years they've been breeding. Their parent dogs are tested for eyes and hips. I'm perhaps fortunate enough that my allergies end at stuffy nose / congestion and itchy eyes. I had years of it from being around pets as a kid. I would guess that if I didn't become allergic to a dog until their adulthood, I would probably just put up with the allergies. I can't really see returning a one year old dog that my family has bonded with unless the allergies are literally killing me. 
The poodle breeder does great testing - eyes, hips, and DNA.
We have considered an adult dog, and have been watching some online sites like petfinder. I'm in the Seattle area, and I have not come across any adult poodles that seem like a good fit. You're of course right that an adult dog would be a ton less work. We can very much appreciate how nice it would be to skip all of the trials of puppy and adolescent months. 
My wife home schools our kids and, although I know it would be a ton of work, I feel like we could really end up with an outstanding dog if we were in charge of all of these formative months. I think it would take a long time to become completely comfortable with an adult dog around little kids. I would probably be a bit more trusting if I knew we had done a lot of careful dominance exercises with the kids through their puppyhood.


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## PaddleAddict (Feb 9, 2010)

sniah said:


> The particular Australian labradoodle breeder we met with has a 3 year guarantee (full refund for any reason), and said that she has had zero dogs returned from their allergy owners in the years they've been breeding.


Just a bit of friendly advice, but the above to me is a big red flag. I just don't know how a breeder of cross-bred dogs could possibly say that not ONE of their dogs has ever shed or caused an allergic person to react. Just think about that statement. It's possible for a poodle breeder to say that none of their poodles have ever shed because poodles breed true and their coat doesn't shed per se the way other breeds do. But how in the world could this breeder claim 100% nonshedding dogs when at least one parent or recent relative somewhere down the line is a heavily shedding breed (a Lab)? There is no way this could be true.

My neighbor recently purchased a mini goldendoodle from a breeder and although I am not a fan of purposly cross-breeding dogs, I at least give this breeder credit for telling my neighbor that the dog might shed and that the breeder couldn't predict the dog's ultimate adult size with any accuracy since it was an F1 cross.


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## Feralpudel (Jun 28, 2010)

sniah said:


> My wife home schools our kids and, although I know it would be a ton of work, I feel like we could really end up with an outstanding dog if we were in charge of all of these formative months. I think it would take a long time to become completely comfortable with an adult dog around little kids. I would probably be a bit more trusting if I knew we had done a lot of careful dominance exercises with the kids through their puppyhood.


In my experience, it's less a matter of dominance (notwithstanding what certain TV trainers would have you believe, LOL) and more a matter of puppy/adolescent exuberance that gives me pause about mixing young kids and any dog. 

The trainer Sue Ailsby has a wonderful essay here with her thoughts on dominance, and why it isn't a very useful concept in dog training (and what concepts can replace it):

Dominance


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## Karma'sACat (Jun 1, 2010)

I have dog allergies and have been allergic to every single doodle I have ever met. Yes, even the ones who were "guaranteed" 600th generation Austrailian/American/Antarctic allergy friendly (please excuse my sarcasm, ever person who say me break out and start wheezing after petting their dog was totally amazed this happened after they were told it wouldn't). The reason they aren't returned is a)the allergy sufferer's body has become accustomed to the dander, b)they are miserable but attached to the dog or c)the dog was rehomed without telling the breeder.
I am so sick of breeder saying their dog has a service dog temperament. The vast majority of these are using it as a buzzword. They likely don't really understand what service dog programs and owner trainers actually look for in a temperament and it is way beyond being nice.
My service dog retired last year, I did a ton of research on breeds, which is how I wound up encountering so many doodles as they have become unfortunately popular in service work (because they are being billed as allergy friendly and often aren't). I met poodles, doodles (although my program doesn't use them), collies and goldens to see what I did and didn't react to. The only one I didn't react to was the poodle. I met multiple adults and never had a reaction. Meeting adults is so important because the puppy coat is different from the adult coat and you may be allergic to one but not the other.


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## Ray'nBC (Dec 16, 2009)

sniah said:


> I can't really see returning a one year old dog that my family has bonded with unless the allergies are literally killing me.


Which is a possible reason the breeder has had few dogs returned. 

I would venture that many dogs who turn out to be less than or other than advertised by a breeder are never returned simply because the owner has become very emotionally attached to the dog.


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