Is the Goldendoodle dog a good match for myself or my family? Many people seeking a family pet for the first time have many questions to ask themselves BEFORE considering a Goldendoodle. The first question is, can I afford to raise and own a Goldendoodle ? The second question would be, what is my lifestyle ? Many people do not take their lifestyle into consideration before adding a pet to their home.
Do you have time to spend with a Goldendoodle? Do you have time to devote to training your Goldendoodle? A Goldendoodle is a very family oriented, loving, affectionate and shaggy dog. They require YOUR time, patience, love, attention and your pocketbook. As a young puppy, the Goldendoodle does not require much coat maintenance, but as an adult, their coat will need to be groomed. One must take into consideration who is going to be the care taker of your new Goldendoodle, once it arrives at your home. A young Goldendoodle puppy always seems to eating, sleeping, peeing and pooping. Will you have the time to dedicate to his or her well being ? Do you have the time to ensure he or she will have a routine so that he or she can become potty trained? Sure, the ideal dog is to purchase one that is already housebroken...already trained and knows commands...has an on and off switch....but this is reality, not a dream. A Goldendoodle can become lonely if left for long periods of time. One must take into consideration their demanding work schedule. Do you live close enough to home where you can drop by during lunch to check in on your Goldendoodle puppy ? Do you have time in the afternoons to take him or her for a walk?
Many people see a cute, cuddly dog and want one without taking into consideration many factors that will either make or break your ability to enjoy your new Goldendoodle. This lovely hybrid comes in a variety of sizes and their sizes are not dependent upon the sizes of their parents. This hybrid does not fall into size categories regardless of how many breeders will lie to you and tell you that they do. We've created the Goldendoodle since 1999 and are fully aware of the fact that regardless of the size of the Goldendoodle's parents, every sibling inside of a given litter will be a different size. When a Poodle is bred to a Golden Retriever, regardless of their size, a breeder has to take their entire lineage into consideration. Unfortunately for the breeder, unless they own the entire lineage, their dogs' pedigree is NOT going to tell you what size all of ancestors were as an adult. Thus, a breeder must rely on their own personal experience and feedback from their past customers.
Some parents want to purchase a Goldendoodle for their children but do not take into consideration that their child may not have been exposed to dogs, in general. The fact a young child has not been exposed to dogs will cause that very child be timid around even a puppy. After all, everyone is fearful of something they may not have been exposed to. It's human nature to be wary of things we are not sure of. Perhaps you may want to expose your child to dogs for awhile before considering committing to one. Perhaps your family is an active family who is always on the go. In this case, you will have to take into consideration of the places you visit. Do they accept dogs ? Will this change or affect your routine ? A Goldendoodle should be a life long commitment. Not just a whim. If you have gone through all the above considerations, perhaps the Goldendoodle dog is going to be right for you and your family. A Goldendoodle is a bright, intelligent, low shedding canine who is demanding in attention, your affection and your love. A Goldendoodle is a dog who commands attention where ever they go. They are their own celebrity in their own right. If you have considered a Goldendoodle for your next family pet, the next thing you'll have to consider is your budget. While it may be true that you can locate a Goldendoodle for under $500, one must be weary of breeders who have their prices set very low. The reason for this is because many of those breeders are where the pet stores also get their Goldendoodle puppies. A pet store scouts the United States for Goldendoodle breeders who will sell the entire litter for a mere $500 so that they do not incur any expenses in caring for the puppies, yet the pet store will then turn around and sell each puppy for as much as $2000 or more. A pet store is completely the inappropriate place to purchase your Goldendoodle. Don't blame the pet store, blame the breeders who allow their puppies to be placed into the hands of pet store owners. This type of breeder is a commercial breeder who provides the entire litter to a pet store as soon as they are weaned from their mother. Many pet stores do not even know the history of the Goldendoodles they have in their stores, nor will they have the ability to share such information with the buyer. You will want to purchase your Goldendoodle from a breeder who registers their litters with a kennel club and who is an experienced Goldendoodle breeder. We began creating our Goldendoodles in 1999 and we began as a purebred Golden Retriever breeder in 1996. You will want an experienced Goldendoodle breeder so that they can tell you everything you need to know about the new hybrid you are taking home with you. Many Goldendoodle breeders are new to this hybrid and place erroneous information upon their websites or in their advertisements and unfortunately for those on a doodle quest, many doodle breeders who are inexperienced piggy back on breeders who post inaccurate information about this terrific hybrid. This makes it very difficult for those who are new to the Goldendoodle, at figuring out what is accurate and what is not. Many use canine testing as their reasons for commanding very high prices yet won't provide their buyers a lifetime guarantee even though they will tell you that they sell "healthy, genetically defective free" Goldendoodle puppies. Many Goldendoodle breeders have average prices...don't test...yet, are very experienced, good breeders. Because there are quite a few Goldendoodle breeders who are backbreeding, inbreeding and linebreeding their Goldendoodles, it is very important that you purchase only a first generation Goldendoodle. Any breeder that tells you a multi-generation Goldendoodle is a non-shedding, hypoallergenic dog and is a much healthier animal than a first generation Goldendoodle is telling you a lie. Every Goldendoodle, regardless of generation, will have a low shedding coat (unless it has been backbred to a Golden Retriever); every Goldendoodle will work out for those with mild allergies; every Goldendoodle will go through various coat phases and changes and every Goldendoodle will at some point in time, require coat maintenance...as all dogs do. So, if you are on a doodle quest, you have your work cut out for you. As far as the Goldendoodle dog is concerned, if you don't own one, you haven't ever owned the ultimate family dog! They are over all, fantastic dogs who are eager to please and always ready to be your friend.
2007-all rights reserved. Author/breeder- Dee Gerrish of Goldendoodle World