# Poodle sizes?



## Feralpudel (Jun 28, 2010)

sandooch said:


> I know there are only 3 official sizes of poodles: Standard, Miniature and Toy. But I've seen people say their poodles are tiny Toys or small/large miniature, etc... I've read over and over that a Toy is a poodle that is 10 inches or under at the withers, a Miniature is between 10 to 15 inches and a Standard is above 15 inches.
> 
> If you get your poodle from a reputable breeder and the poodle is sold to you as a miniature but grows over 15 inches, is it still a miniature but a large miniature? I guess I'm asking this because in the recent pictures of gorgeous Kai I asked Spoowhisperer how talk he was, and she said 17 inches, but he's still considered a miniature.
> 
> Just wanted to see if someone could explain to me what the guidelines are for poodle size?


The sizes in the standard are as you stated, and a toy over 10" or a mini over 15" who shows up in the breed ring can get "measured out." 

But many quality toy and mini breeders are always working up against that size limit, so you wind up with dogs like Kai and Nickel. It makes sense to refer to them as oversized minis rather than standards because a) they look like minis and b) their pedigrees look like mini pedigrees, from mini lines and c) because they are bred from mini lines, they are more likely to be susceptible to the inherited health problems minis have (e.g., PRA) than to the problems standards have (e.g., AD, SA). So it will be more informative to Kai's vet to know that he is from mini lines.


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## neVar (Dec 25, 2009)

your right on the sizes. 

AKC considers all poodles one breed. just different sizes. So technically if KAI was to be a show dog- he'd have to show as a standard. however people never show dogs on the smaller scale- you ideally want a dog near the top end for tha tvariation (IE the 15" mini the 10" toy the 24+" Standard). 

Now that said i think most people agree there are difference personality and slightly build wise between Mini lines, toy lines etc. So if a Mini grows too big. Or a standard is too small. one would still refer to them as a mini or a standard. IE a toy poodle who has toy poodle parents but grows to 10.5" is still a toy poodle in most peoples minds. However he could not SHOW as a toy poodle technically. 

As to tiney toys- that like 'teacup' is just a sales pitch. breeders who are breeding for as small as they can get.


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## PaddleAddict (Feb 9, 2010)

Because toys are bred to toys and minis to minis, and standards to standards, the three varierties have distinct looks. Yes, all three varieties in theory should look very similar in all aspects but size, but differences do exisit. Toys are far more refined than minis, and minis look different from standards. 

An oversized mini usually looks like a miniature, not a small standard. And if you know your poodle came from mini lines, you know it's a mini that grew too big. Lots of minis go over the limit because breeders are always pushing right up to that 15-inch height limit. 

So I guess technically a 17-inch poodle is a standard, but most people would just say it's an oversized mini.


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## PaddleAddict (Feb 9, 2010)

Ha ha, we all answered at the same time.


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## LEUllman (Feb 1, 2010)

And we like our oversized minis just fine! As far as our family is concerned, 17" is the Goldilocks size. Not too big, not too small, but just right!


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## sandooch (Jan 20, 2011)

So, LEUllman, does that mean that Beau is 17 inches tall, too? ;p


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## LEUllman (Feb 1, 2010)

sandooch said:


> So, LEUllman, does that mean that Beau is 17 inches tall, too? ;p


Yes, Beau is somewhere between 16-1/2" and 17"; it's not easy to measure a squirming dog exactly without one of those wickets they use at shows. I don't know why we don't recognize and breed Kleins here in the States (not that Beau would be one, for the same reason he's not a "standard" even though he qualifies, height wise). It's such a great size, and there's a big gap between the minis and standards, just waiting to be filled . . . .


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## schnauzerpoodle (Apr 21, 2010)

Nickel is almost 17.5 inches tall. The only time that I wish he's shorter was when I wanted to take him on a plane trip. Otherwise, I love his size.


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## spoowhisperer (Apr 26, 2010)

I would like to have a very accutate measurement sometime, but Kai is oversized as his breeder said he would be. For me, it was just what I wanted, and he is the perfect fit in our family! Yay!

Dogs and cameras by maryac58, on Flickr


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## PoodleLicious (Nov 17, 2010)

My rescue girl is between 19~22 inches (i forget what I measured her at)
she weighs 28 lbs and next to minis she looks HUGE and next to standards she looks TINY. So the only thing I know how to classify her as is moyen/klein. But I tell people small standard and they look at me like im nuts or dont know the average size.
shes perfect size as I was thinking about buying a purposely bred poodle of this size. But she was found in the woods as a puppy, so who knows where she came from or if this size was purposely bred for (id think it would have to be) shes def. All poodle and def. Has the personality of a standard. Though I could believe it if someone said it was a mini+standard breeding because she has a feisty side too.


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## Dante's Mom (Apr 14, 2010)

LEUllman said:


> And we like our oversized minis just fine! As far as our family is concerned, 17" is the Goldilocks size. Not too big, not too small, but just right!


Why YES we do!!!:amen:


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## BambiDog (Apr 24, 2011)

*Good, this answered my question, sort of...*

In the UK the measurements are; Toys 11inches and under, Minis 11-15inches and Standards over 15 inches. 

Bambi was bought as a toy (and she was the smallest in the litter!) But I just measured her and she is 12" to her withers. So even though she's technically too tall, I can refer to her as a toy?


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## Jeremy (Mar 9, 2010)

When you're dealing with living creatures, there are no guarantees. You can't guarantee kids will be this or that height just because mother or father is or isn't. Same with dogs. Obviously there are the three distinct sizes, but even within each size, you'll find there is variance: males are usually bigger than females...a 14.5" miniature bitch would be considered too big, a male not so much. A 12" Toy bitch is great as a brood bitch - breed her to a smaller male and you'll get a bigger litter than usual of smaller sized pups.


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## 3dogs (Nov 3, 2010)

Well I refer to my pup as an OT/Mini. She comes from a slight oversized dam [email protected] 1/4" but her sire is 14" & was sold to the owner as a "toy". Is he a "toy" in my opinion NO since AKC only goes by size & he is well over the size limit. Too bad there isn't a classification for OT or OM on papers that would clarify the lines. I registered my dog as a "MINI" because height wise that is what she is. Now at 8 months of age she is just hitting the 12" mark. She is almost 9lbs but not there yet. She is a great size but I just think that since the AKC only accepts 3 sizes based SOLEY on height then one should register the dog by height. Although this does get confusing I do tell people that she is a Mini.


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## Sapphire-Light (Jun 9, 2010)

FCI has 4 sizes, it has the medium poodle :angel2: that AKC don't have. 

This is from wikipedia



> *Standard, Grande *
> over 45 cm to 60 cm (+2 cm) (18ins to 24ins)
> 
> *Medium, Moyen*
> ...


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## Minnie (Apr 25, 2011)

We refer to Bella as a Tiny Toy because at 5mo she is only 3 lbs and expected to be apx 4lbs as an adult. She was not bred to be tiny - she comes from a high quality show line however the other pup in her litter - that didn't make it :-( was large which seems to be why Bella is so small.

So unexpectedly small but just perfect in our hearts is our Tiny Toy Bella


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## 3dogs (Nov 3, 2010)

I am sure your pup is going to be a Toy & most likely not more than 5lbs. AKC though does go by height & not weight. My dog's Dam is at the most 10 1/2 but more like 10 1/4 & she weighs in at 10lbs. I also groom a nice little 10" Poo that only weighs in at about 5-6lbs. You just measure once your pup is square on a flat surface to measure from the flat surface to you dog's withers. I usually put a comb on the withers to make a flat, easy to read spot. I also mark the wall once she is square on the floor & then just mark the wall & measure.


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