We want to add a dog to the family, and have been planning on getting a doodle for awhile now. But, recently I started looking into a standard poodle instead. I was so turned off by poodles at first- I guess I always just associated them with all the hair and the whole poodle stigma. But the idea is really growing on me.
It seems like a standard poodle may be a better fit for us. From what I have read, they are supposed to be calmer and they do not shed at all, like a lot of doodles. If we did get a poodle, we would shave it like a doodle, and I even found a breeder who wonât crop its tail. Basically I want it to look just like a doodle :lol:.
Do any of you have standard poodles? If so, how do they do with horses? I want a dog that will stay around the arena while Iâm riding, a dog that can be off leash is a must. Is it hard to keep your dog clean at the barn? Kind of worried about that part. Will the dog be a tangled hot mess every day after I finish riding? That part worries me a little bit :concern:
I donât have a doodle or a poodle, but a friend of mine who has bred warmbloods for 30+ years now? has breed several breeds of dogs, including standard poodles. Her poodles have run of her property during the day and are great dogs. They are fine with horses. She lives in the desert and her poodles go into her tile floor house. If anything, they track sand in with their curly hair, but they are easy to groom. She shaves the poodles with the poodle do, doesnât shave her poodle/Neo mastiff/Pyreneese crosses. Some go in the house. Pretty much none are tangled hot messes, even if they lay in or around the arena.
I have 2 Standard Poodles and 1 Bordoodle. The poodles are wonderful with the horses, very well behaved. The bordoodleâŠwell we are working on her barking at the horses and running the fenceline. She is half Border Collie and she seems to have inherited the herding and higher energy traits of that half. Also, my Standards were a lot simpler and quicker to train. Still working on the Bordoodles manners
ETA: I keep my Standards clipped short. They do not shed at all, and stay relatively clean, although one is blue and one is black so stains donât show up much lol. Our Bordoodle does shed but not horribly so, she stays relatively clean as well and has a very doodle-ish coat.
We have miniature poodles (basically the same just smaller) and they do get tangled however they are easy to brush. They are great with our horses and VERY smart. 1 of ours is super high energy and the other mopes around, so it depends on the dog. Just make sure you interact a lot before you buy! Enjoy your new dog!!
Putting in my standard exhortation to adopt and save a life. Greyhounds are amazing dogs that seem to fit the criterion youâve listed. You can easily find unraced ones who were used as breeding bitches if you worry about them chasing too much.
That requirement will take many dogs out of the picture.
A dog that can be kept loose is one that has been raised properly, confined and trained until it can be reliable off leash.
There are some breeds that inherit the kinds of traits, herding instinct, like border collies and prey drive, like greyhounds, that make them way harder to train to leave loose and not, when the situation presents, follow their instinct to do their thing.
Those traits are in most breeds, but muffled in some breeds and in some individuals regardless of the breed and can be modified with good, careful training.
Poodles generally are more apt to stick with their group than go do their own thing, may just be a better breed for someone that wants a dog that wonât take off.
I have known some very neat ranch poodles, some that were even working cattle.
You do have to keep their hair trimmed very short in a puppy clip and brush them regularly when it is getting longer to keep them comfortable, all kinds of burrs really stick to them.
We trimmed feet, faces and vent every week, the rest every month.
If kept short, it doesnât take long and they always look neat.
In the world, there seem to be poodle people and non-poodle people.
It comes with the territory that some will love them, some not at all.
If you ever have one, they have a way to win you over.
Personally I wouldnât want either of those coats at a farm. Hay, shavings and sand will be everywhere in your house as well as in the barn.
I also donât think there is any reason to believe that either breed will be âreliable off leashâ without significant training - both are hunting breeds. Be prepared to crate/tether/confine in some way. Just because someone elseâs dogs will stay nearby does not mean yours will.
The best predictor of temperament and trainability is that of the parents - donât make assumptions based on âbreed typeâ because itâs also about breeding. Especially with any of the cross-bred types.
Just a âheads upâ. All dogs shed. Double coated breeds continually shed the softer inner hair into the longer hair and if not frequently combed out right down to the skin form mats. Breeds without a double coat shed continually and the hairs are on the floorâwherever the dogs spend time.
All dogs shed and it depends how much grooming you expect/want to perform.
Iâve had Bouviers, And a Tibetan Terrier both double coated, a Rhodesian Ridgeback and. BRussels Griffon both smooth coated all shed one way or another.
I have had farm poodles for 15 years now. I keep them in a short coat, though slightly longer in winter since they are out with me a significant amount of time. I keep face and feet trimmed with a ten blades every few weeks. Run a slicker through them once a week unless they get into burrs(which are our bain!!)
They are very smart, loyal and have been incredibly easy to train. My dogs donât roam, but I spent a few weeks making sure they understood boundaries and they TAKE THEM SERIOUSLY!!! But I spend energy training my dogs, and I know not everyone does.
I ADORE my poodles. They are amazing and I wonât have any other breed.
Greyhounds are lovely dogs, but they arenât great off-leash, which is one of the OPâs wishes. I agree with you 100% about adopting rather than shopping but itâs clear the OP is set on a purebred or designer mutt of some kind.
OP, Iâve been around standard poodles and they were wonderful farm dogs. I would describe them as fairly high-energy, and they are quite large. But as long as they get proper exercise I think they are wonderful dogs.
Unraced, greyhound breeding bitches are not immune from being âa sight hound.â They are bred for that purpose. I had a friend who had 2 standard poodles, they were delightful. Smart and loyal.
Get a poodle, of course, I am slightly prejudice based on all the poorly bred dogs being used for the doodle mixes. The only dog that stays on your property is a well-trained dog, it is not a magic trait that dogs have.
Get a Standard Poodle. They tend to be stable, sensible dogs and do well on a farm. Also, much more consistent in temperament and personality (obviously, since theyâre an actual breed, not a random cross-bred), so youâre far more likely to get the dog you want rather than chancing that youâll get the worst traits of both breeds combined.
That doodle-mix coat is horrendous to deal with, according to umpteen groomers. Itâs notorious for matting badly at the blink of an eye. Most doodle mixes have a blend of undercoat AND the Poodle-type hair coat, so it creates a coat thatâs impossible to keep matt-free if it has any length at all. If you keep it shaved closely (say a #10 blade every three or four weeks), it might be manageable on a farmâŠyeah, but maybe not even then. :eek: How much time daily do you have to devote to combing thoroughly and de-matting?
As someone above mentioned, keep the face and feet clean-shaven and it will go a long way to keeping down dirt, burr-collecting, and slimey muzzles.
I have an Aussie/Poodle cross who is very low shedding/if any, hair is coarse-ish and wavy, not curly. Heâs 30 lbs of love bug. Needs room to play- as a puppy he and my lab/GSD mix are almost impossible to wear out. They play ALL THE TIME>
and Iâve known poorly bred neurotic poodles whose teeth fell out by age 7. Anecdote /=data.
each dog can be evaluated. NO dog can be guaranteed off leash for multitude of reasons. Itâs just an example, there are obviously any number of breeds and mutts for adoption. I understand why people want purpose bred horses, although I am not a breed snob and have had wonderful grade horses as hunters and dressage mounts. Dogs, howeverâŠvery VERY few people actually sport with them, weakening any argument that one MUST have breed X for Y purpose.
Personally Iâd never want to upkeep a curly coat on a dog who spends any time in manure and dirt.
I vote a purebred Poodle. I have a toy and he is fabulous around the horses. His coat is pretty easy to keep up with. I keep him in a short sport clip and just run a a brush through him in the evening.
He is smart as a whip, super easy to train and a tough little dog. I love the Poodle personality and would not hesitate to get another some day. We adopted a Poodle/Dachshund mix last June and she has been a blast as well. She is very Poodley, just short and long.
Sheilah
Just chiming in again - I think Poodles are fabulous. But you have to be prepared to maintain their coat in some way - either keeping up with clipping or going to a groomer. If I was looking for a farm dog with an âeasy coatâ, it wouldnât be my top choice. But if I wanted a Poodle, well, then it maintaining the coat would be worth the effort.
The phrase âI want my Poodle to look like a Doodleâ is bizarre. I donât understand the interest in cross-bred dogs, but Iâll leave it at that.
I vote for a Poodle, carefully selected. You have a much better chance of a healthy, sane dog with the type of temperament you want by going with a purebred breeder. Most of the crossbred âdoodlesâ are not from the best stock of either breed and can inherit issues from both sides!
I found the temperaments vary between lines (and of course individuals). Some tend to be boisterous, goofy clowns. Others are more reserved. The ones Iâve known (about35) havenât had very strong prey drive. Many would chase a squirrel, etc, but were not obsessive or even actively looking. Because they tended to take to obedience training very easily, training the âleave itâ isnât too difficult. Choosing from a mother with a temperament you like will help your odds. Standards are not as popular as pets as miniatures or toys due to their size, so you have a good chance of finding a pup.
You do have to be willing to trim it or have it trimmed. It takes some practice and proper blades to do faces and feet. The overall trim with a 5 or 10 blade is dead easy. If you get a puppy from a good breeder, the pup has already been trimmed and is used to it.
BTW many years ago Mikail Barishnakovâs Std Poodle had 12 puppies in his NYC penthouse. Iâm sure the help really wanted to place those puppies when they were older and running about! :lol:
I vote standard poodle! I have a black female standard who is an awesome, low key barn dog. I keep her clipped short on the body with long ears, head, and tail floof that I brush periodically or when she runs through a burr bush. She has lovely manners and sticks around the barn off leash all day. I had to teach her to stay as a puppy but Iâd expect that for any breed.
If youâre looking for a great breeder Iâd highly recommend Krista at Azel Poodles in Indianapolis.
