Labradoodle

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Labradoodle

A brown Labradoodle with a fleece type coat. The appearance of Labradoodles may vary.
Country of origin Australia
Traits

A Labradoodle is a crossbred or hybrid dog created by crossing the Labrador Retriever and the Standard or Miniature Poodle.

Contents

[edit] History

The Labradoodle was first deliberately bred in 1989, when Australian breeder Wally Conron[1] first crossed the Labrador Retriever and Standard Poodle for Guide Dogs Victoria.[2] His aim was to combine the low-shedding coat of the Poodle with the gentleness and trainability of the Labrador, and to provide a Guide Dog suitable for people with allergies to fur and dander. Guide Dogs Victoria continue to breed Labradoodles today [3] and Labradoodles are now often used around the world as Guide, Assistance, and Therapy Dogs[4][5][6][7][8] as well as being popular family dogs.

[edit] Appearance and temperament

The Labradoodle as a dog breed is still developing, and does not yet "breed true," i.e., puppies do not have consistently predictable characteristics. While many Labradoodles display desired traits, their appearance and behavioral characteristics remain, from an overall breed standpoint, unpredictable.

As such, Labradoodles' hair can be anywhere from wiry to soft, and may be straight, wavy, or curly. Some Labradoodles do shed, although the coat usually sheds less and has less dog odor than that of a Labrador Retriever.

Like most Labrador Retrievers and Poodles, Labradoodles are generally friendly, energetic and good with families and children (although as with any dog the temperament may vary between individuals). Labradoodles also often display an affinity for water and the strong swimming ability present in both their parent breeds.

Like their parent breeds, both of which are amongst the world's most intelligent dog breeds, [9] Labradoodles are very intelligent and quite trainable. Labradoodles can be taught to obey verbal or sign language commands, or both, and remain commonly used as guide dogs for disabled or handicapped persons around the world.[10]

[edit] Types of Labradoodle

A group of Labradoodle Assistance Dogs.


There is no universal consensus as to whether breeders should aim to have Labradoodles recognized as a breed [2]. Some breeders prefer to restrict breeding to early generation dogs (i.e. bred from a Poodle and Labrador rather than from two Labradoodles) to maximise genetic diversity, in order to avoid the inherited health problems that have plagued some dog breeds.

Others are breeding Labradoodle to Labradoodle over successive generations, and trying to establish a new dog breed. These dogs are usually referred to as Multigenerational (abr. Multigen) or Australian Labradoodles [11]. Australian Labradoodles also differ from early generation and Multigenerational Labradoodles in that they may also have other breeds in their ancestry. English and American Cocker Spaniel/Poodle crosses (ie Cockapoos), Two Irish Water Spaniels and Soft-Coated Wheaten Terriers have variously been used in some Australian Labradoodle lines. The Curly Coated Retriever were used too, but these lines did not work out and they were discontinued.[12]

Labradoodle coats are generally divided into 3 categories: Wool (with tight curls, and similar in appearance to that of a Poodle, but with a softer texture); Fleece (soft and free-flowing, with a kinked or wavy appearance); or Hair (which can be curly, straight or wavy, but is more similar in texture to a Labrador's coat) [13]. Labradoodles come in a wide variety of colours, including chocolate, cafe, parchment, cream, gold, apricot, red, black, silver, chalk, parti colours[14], and generally all the colours that can be found in Poodles. They also can be different sizes, depending on the size of poodle (i.e. toy, miniature or standard) used.

[edit] Health

A 3 year old cream Labradoodle with a hair type coat and dominant labrador traits.

Although most Labradoodles are healthy, they can suffer from certain problems common to their parent breeds.

Both Poodles and Labrador Retrievers can suffer from hip dysplasia, and should have specialist radiography to check for this problem before breeding. The parent breeds can also suffer from a number of eye disorders, and an examination by a qualified veterinary eye specialist should be performed.

Over the past couple of years, a number of Australian Labradoodles have also been found to suffer from Progressive retinal atrophy (PRA), an inherited disease that causes blindness, which occurs in both Miniature Poodles and Cocker Spaniels. It is strongly recommended that Australian Labradoodles be DNA tested for PRA before being bred.

A limited number of Mutigenerational and Australian Labradoodles have also been found to suffer from Addison's Disease [15].

[edit] The labradoodle in popular culture

A 2 1/2 year old apricot Labradoodle with a wool type coat.
  • The Oxford English Dictionary now lists "Labradoodle" [16]
  • Monopoly board game included a Labradoodle icon in its "Here and Now" [17] and Australian [18] editions.
  • New York department store Lord and Taylor raised $50,000 in 2004 and $55,000 in 2005 for Guiding Eyes for the Blind selling Labradoodle plush toys.[19]
  • Macy's department store raised funds with plush Labradoodles "Grace" and "Courage" for Breast Cancer Awareness in 2006.[20][21].
  • An animated soft toy Labradoodle, "Lucky the Incredible Wonder Pup", was a FamilyFun Magazine 2006 "Toy of the Year" award and an Oppenheim Platinum Toy Award winner.[22]
  • In the 70th episode of Scrubs, "My Office," Dr. Cox compares both JD's medical skill and personality to that of an un-pottytrained labradoodle, then tells JD and Elliot that together they "make one barely-passable doctor... slash-Labradoodle."[23][24]
  • Presidential candidates Barack Obama[25] and Hillary Clinton[26] were both compared to Labradoodles during the 2008 election campaign.
  • In the 23rd episode of The Big Bang Theory, "Cooper-Nowitzki Theorem," Sheldon Cooper said that giving a talk to a bunch of graduate students is like explaining the law of thermodynamics to a bunch of labradoodles.
  • In the movie "Marley & Me" [27], John Grogan (Owen Wilson) is advised to buy a Labradoodle by his friend Sebastian (Eric Dane), but chooses a Labrador instead.
  • US President Barack Obama announced on a January 11th, 2009 interview with George Stephanopoulos that his family had narrowed down their choice for "first dog" to either a Labradoodle or a Portuguese Water Hound.[28] [29] [30] [31] [32] [33] [34][35][36][37] Obama stated the family "is going to start looking at shelters to see when one of those dogs might come up."[38] Michelle Obama said that the new dog would be a rescue, and was scheduled to arrive in April 2009 [39][40]
  • Australian actor Bryan Brown plays a Labradoodle in the 2009 movie, "Dean Spanley". [41]

[edit] Notable Labradoodle owners

A labradoodle with a fleece type coat
A three-month old Labradoodle

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://www.readersdigest.com.au/content/printContent.do?contentId=43132
  2. ^ a b Labradoodle FAQ
  3. ^ Guide Dog FAQ: Guide Dogs Victoria
  4. ^ http://www.guidedogs.org.uk/index.php?id=5669
  5. ^ Colchester: More than puppy love! (From Gazette)
  6. ^ http://aloha-labradoodles.com/index.html
  7. ^ [Association for the Blind of West Australia
  8. ^ Honolulu Star-Bulletin Hawaii News
  9. ^ Coren, John (1994). New York Free Press. ed. The Intelligence of Dogs. New York, NY: New York Free Press. http://www.petmedsonline.org/top-10-smartest-dogs-in-the-world.html. Retrieved on 2008-10-16. 
  10. ^ Staff (2008-1-1). "Labradoodle". Labradoodles. Animal World. http://animal-world.com/dogs/Mixed-Dog-Breeds/Labradoodle.php. Retrieved on 2008-10-16. 
  11. ^ The Australian Labradoodle
  12. ^ http://www.goldendoodles.com/faqs/australian_labradoodle.htm
  13. ^ Coat Types
  14. ^ http://www.ilainc.com/IALA/ALabradoodleBreedStandard.html
  15. ^ http://www.goldendoodles.com/health_hereditary/addisons_disease.htm
  16. ^ Oxford Dictionary hoovers lush new words. 11/08/2005. ABC News Online
  17. ^ USATODAY.com - Move over, Rover: Hybrid labradoodle replaces Scottish terrier token
  18. ^ The Sydney Morning Herald Blogs: Stay in Touch
  19. ^ CDC.GuidingEyes.Org - GEB Community News
  20. ^ http://www.bcrfcure.org/part_promo06_macyslabradoodles.html
  21. ^ Designer Dog-Fights - Jon Mooallem - New York Times
  22. ^ Lucky the Incredible Wonder Pup
  23. ^ FamilyFun Magazine Toy of the Year - Raving Toy Maniac - The Latest News and Pictures from the World of Toys
  24. ^ Platinum Award Winners 2008: Toys
  25. ^ Is Obama a "Hybrid"?
  26. ^ Mutts: If candidates were dogs
  27. ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0822832/
  28. ^ http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/01/12/obama-chic-finding-dog/
  29. ^ http://www.philly.com/inquirer/magazine/20090113_Sideshow__Two_finalists_for_top_dog.html
  30. ^ http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2009/01/14/america/NA-US-AP-Poll-Obama-Dog.php
  31. ^ http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/articles/2009/01/14/news/40karins%20column.txt
  32. ^ http://www.theweek.com/article/index/92242/3/Choosing_the_Obamas_dog
  33. ^ http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/01/sen_edward_kennedy_chimes_in_o.html
  34. ^ http://www.9news.com/news/watercooler/article.aspx?storyid=107727&catid=337
  35. ^ http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/pets/38332389.html?elr=KArks8c7PaP3E77K_3c::D3aDhUec7PaP3E77K_0c::D3aDhUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUU
  36. ^ http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/11/choice-of-first-dog-is-narrowed-to-2-breeds/
  37. ^ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/wendy-diamond/political-pet-news-the-go_b_161011.html
  38. ^ Stephanopoulos, George. "George's Bottom Line–Obama: Finding Girls' Puppy 'Tougher Than Finding Commerce Secretary'". abcNEWS. January 11 2009. http://blogs.abcnews.com/george/2009/01/obama-finding-g.html. Retrieved on 2009-02-26. 
  39. ^ http://www.newsday.com/news/local/politics/ny-usdog0226,0,5647679.story
  40. ^ http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2009/02/25/future_first_dog_news_sort_of.html
  41. ^ http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4861404a1870.html
  42. ^ Hounded out: Fur and loathing in the dog world - This Britain, UK - Independent.co.uk
  43. ^ ABC News: Is Tiger the U.S. Team's Hope at The Ryder Cup?
  44. ^ http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/hit--run-meet-the-biden-babes-962543.html
  45. ^ My Months Tracking Neil Young, Ben Whalley, BBC News
  46. ^ The Labradoodle Dog in the News
  47. ^ Celebrity Dog Watcher - Digging up Celebrity Dog News - Arf! » Celebs Turn out for BowWowWeen
  48. ^ Q&A: Graham Norton | Weekend | Guardian Unlimited
  49. ^ http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/this_britain/article2339260.ece
  50. ^ http://richardhammond.bravehost.com/index.html http://richardhammond.bravehost.com/index.html
  51. ^ Christie Brinkley: A CoverGirl at 51
  52. ^ We Love 'Letters'
  53. ^ Animal Wellness Magazine - devoted to natural health in animals
  54. ^ Hugh Panaro Online - 12/28/2004 Article
  55. ^ Welcome to the Chestnut Hill Local
  56. ^ Montreal Mirror - Music: Billy Bragg
  57. ^ The Student Operated Press
  58. ^ icNewcastle - It’s a dog’s life as Andy waits on op
  59. ^ The Bob & Tom Show
  60. ^ Q&A: Garth Stein - 4/1/2008 - Library Journal
  61. ^ Celebrity gossip juicy celebrity rumors Hollywood gossip blog from Perez Hilton » Teddy Hilton
  62. ^ Smith Mountain Lake Virginia (VA), including Smith Mountain Realty, News and Lifestyle Features - smithmountainlake.com
  63. ^ Why do men love 'dangerous' dogs? - Times Online
  64. ^ NHL Wife Invents Best Selling Pacifier Accessory to Eliminate the Problem of Lost Pacifiers - PR.com
  65. ^ http://chestnuthilllocal.com/issues/2008.12.18/locallife1.html
  66. ^ http://www.randyortiz.com/
  67. ^ http://showbizandstyle.inquirer.net/lifestyle/lifestyle/view/20081218-178742/Randys-home-for-Christmas
  68. ^ http://weos.publicbroadcasting.net/aboutus.html
  69. ^ http://www.moneytrack.org/meet/
  70. ^ http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/shinan/archive/2009/02/25/shinan-chicago-we-have-liftoff.aspx
  71. ^ http://ourvalley.org/news.php?viewStory=3950

[1]Newsweek report Dogs: I'm A 'Labradoodle' Dandy

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