# Question Short legged poodle



## glorybeecosta (Nov 11, 2014)

I meet a lady and she had a little white poodle, say 9 to 11 pounds. Beautiful little dog, nicely trimmed, good coat. She said she was registered AKC. But that poodle had really short legs and the body was long. It was out of proportion. I never saw one like that. Why would its legs be really short with a long body? I am sure it was a poodle, the face and hair was just like my girls, so I do not think it was a mix, as I could so no other dog in it.


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

Just poor conformation, it happens.


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## patk (Jun 13, 2013)

akc registration is not much of a guarantee of anything except registration. there are commercial breeders who produce akc dogs for sale at pet shops.


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## Coco86 (Oct 23, 2014)

Our Rosie has short legs. They aren't super short/stubby, but definitely shorter than what a poodle should be. She's about eight pounds right now. Our Toy Poodle Dolly, who passed 7 years ago, was even smaller than Rosie at 4 pounds, but I remember her legs being in normal proportion to her body. 

Rosie sure can jump though!

In this photo you can really see how short her legs are. I think that is why she sits funny?

https://www.flickr.com/gp/[email protected]/009Bq7


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## lisasgirl (May 27, 2010)

A lot of the poodles I see around here have short legs, especially the smaller ones. They're very cute, though it's definitely a different look than the long legs like Archie has. It changes a lot about how they move.


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## Verve (Oct 31, 2016)

I agree with what everyone else said--it's a common fault with poorly bred smaller poodles.


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## Mfmst (Jun 18, 2014)

My best friend has two Toys and their structures are very different. Her female is breed standard, but the male is poorly conformed, sort of bow legged. When I first met them the boy was in a teddy bear clip and if I didn't know she had two Poodles I would not be quite sure what he was.


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## Jsc (Jan 30, 2012)

There is an ANKC mini poodle breeder near me that produces dogs that look like what you're describing. The breeder sounds like a very nice lady and seems to produce healthy dogs with good temperaments, but her dogs definitely have short legs with long bodies. Some of the 14 inch mini poodles, I'm sure, would be considered standards if their legs were in proportion to their bodies.

I really prefer the look of long-legged, square poodles, but she seems to have repeat and loyal customers, so I guess some people either don't know better or don't mind.


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## Dechi (Aug 22, 2015)

If not bought from a reputable breeder who shows or who has shown at some point, most poddles have shorter legs, I find.

Most people who see Merlin comment on his long legs. To them it is unusual, that is not how they are accustomed to see poodles.


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