Poodle breed questions

I know there are poodle owners on the forum.

I have some questions:

- Do they get along with other pets/small animals if raised with them? Or do they have a high prey drive?

- How often do you bathe them?

- How obedient are they? I can deal with a dog who is more independent thinking and who does not listen ALL of the time, but I don't want a breed that has NO interest in obeying me.

-Do all poodles get "eye-gook" or is that from bad breeding?

- Can a poodle be trusted off leash (to a point). Like in a front yard playing with the kids. Are they wanderers?

- Any good or bad points you can share?

-Do you own a toy, mini, or standard poodle? And why did you choose that size?

Thanks!!

theres quite a few people on here with poodles,

theres someone with 2 standards and someone with 2 toys and a mini
and theres lots of poodle mixes

i dont no much about them, their spose to be really intelligent and easy to train.

i have a bichon, but they are kinda similar.

- Do they get along with other pets/small animals if raised with them? Or do they have a high prey drive? with my birds, he has a prey drive with them. but i think if we had a rabbit or cat, he'll get along with it.

- How often do you bathe them?
whenever he needs it (like if he's muddy) otherwise i brush him with an ionic brush which controls bad odors. i take him to the groomers to get trimmed and cleaned up like every 6 months.

- How obedient are they? I can deal with a dog who is more independent thinking and who does not listen ALL of the time, but I don't want a breed that has NO interest in obeying me.
my dog adores people. so he'll do anything to please people.

-Do all poodles get "eye-gook" or is that from bad breeding?
sometimes its bad quality food. currently i can't afford to buy them those good quality food, but there are stain-removals you can use.

- Can a poodle be trusted off leash (to a point). Like in a front yard playing with the kids. Are they wanderers?
this depends on the dog. i'm teaching pepe stay and come and so far he's been pretty good with obeying the commands. but i am working on his door darting.

- Any good or bad points you can share?
they love to give affection. i would love to make pepe a therapy dog someday. ooh and i love that they don't shed! well not completely, but just a could strains of hair, not like other dogs though. i hardly see pepe's hair around my house or clothes.

-Do you own a toy, mini, or standard poodle? And why did you choose that size?
not a poodle, but he's 17-19lbs so mini. my mom choosed him, he was a shelter dog and the closest looking-dog to my shih tzu who has killed by a car. a standard poodle though will be out the question, because my mom would more than likely make it an outside dog

Hi,
I have one 11 month old poodle and I had another one for 11.5 years.
I think they are the best dogs (no offense to everyone else, I am just a tad bit biased).

- Do they get along with other pets/small animals if raised with them? Or do they have a high prey drive?
Both my dogs got along with the three cats we have.
We even brought in a kitten after my poodle had gone blind and she never tried to hurt the cat, even when the cat would chase and smack her. My last poodle was dog aggressive, we did not know any better and did not socialize her as a puppy. This poodle however, is fine with other dogs. As long as they are socialized at a young age they should be fine, so if they are raised with them that is even better.

- How often do you bathe them?
Both poodles went to the groomer every 4 weeks. They get bathed and cut at this time. Our last poodle did not like to go outside so we almost never bathed her in between. This poodle loves the outside and often smells like "dog" lol... so we do bathe her, usually once in between her groomer visits.

- How obedient are they? I can deal with a dog who is more independent thinking and who does not listen ALL of the time, but I don't want a breed that has NO interest in obeying me.
With proper training, poodles can be just as obedient as any other dog. They are very smart. Sometimes they have that "I dont really wanna" attitude... but it is easily worked through in training classes.


-Do all poodles get "eye-gook" or is that from bad breeding?
All Poodles have "eye-gook": some more then others. I have never had a light colored poodle, so i dont know about stains... but as long as we wipe her eyes once a day she is fine.

- Can a poodle be trusted off leash (to a point). Like in a front yard playing with the kids. Are they wanderers?
This all depends on the level of training you are willing to do with your dog.

- Any good or bad points you can share?
Poodles are very affectionate. They are loving and very people oriented. They want to be with you as much as possible.

-Do you own a toy, mini, or standard poodle? And why did you choose that size?
Like I said before both times we bought toys. We tend to travel a lot and wanted a dog we could easily take with us. We also live in a town house and did not want a very large dog who would not have room to move. (we dont have a fenced in yard either). I have known other toys, mini's and a number of standards they are all very similar in their personality and all great dogs.

Poodles are a great breed if you choose to get one.

If you have any more questions feel free to ask.

**Make sure you look for a good breeder, there are LOTS of bad poodle breeders.**

Elissa

Don't have one anymore but we used to have a toy poodle Gideon that I grew up with.



- Do they get along with other pets/small animals if raised with them? Or do they have a high prey drive? Gid got along with everyone but he was raised with them. When our barn cats would have kittens Gid would pace back and forth whining the whole time and helping to clean the kittens. We had cats, rabbits, hamsters, guinea pigs, birds all types of small animals and Gideon was fine with them all.

- How often do you bathe them? When ever he felt like he needed. Probley about once to twice a month

- How obedient are they? Very they take training like any other breed but are VERY smart Gideon listened very well.

-Do all poodles get "eye-gook" or is that from bad breeding? Gid never did but I have seen some with it.

- Can a poodle be trusted off leash (to a point). Like in a front yard playing with the kids. Are they wanderers? Gideon was a velcro dog he never EVER ran off and ever poodle I have seen has been this way.

- Any good or bad points you can share? They can be a bit off if you over shelter and coddle them and can become nervous or aggressive if not properly socialized but this comes with any breed. But 99% of the poodles you will meet are sweet hearts extremely smart. They are hardy they are not so froo froo as people think they are. They are just all around good dogs.

-Do you own a toy, mini, or standard poodle? And why did you choose that size? We owned a toy we didn't choose him he was given to us by my aunt when she moved and couldn't take him with her. I love all poodles but I have a real soft spot for a Mini or a Toy.

poodles are awesome dogs. they're very intelligent, which can be a pro if you're willing to put the time and energy into them that they require, but a con if you're not because they'll find plenty of ways to entertain themselves.

the amount of drive really depends on the dog. my trainer says that her standard has very high prey drive.

i used to have a mini- she was 15 when i got her and i had her for about 18 months. i wouldn't have chosen a mini. she just kind of happened. i absolutely love standards though. love. someday i'll own one.

if you're looking at breeders- make absolutely sure they CERF eyes. PRA is a problem in the breed and it would be really lousy to have your dog go blind at 2 years old. if you're looking at the smaller poodles, make sure the breeding stock have patellas certified- again, another big problem. in standards, addison's disease is a big concern.

My neighbor has a Standard and a Toy , and they are as different as night and day .

Thanks everyone for the replies and information.

Thanks everyone for the replies and information.

bubba, I'd imagine bad breeding if the standard and toy were so different, since the standards are identical except for size I believe. It is so sad to see some of the SAD looking poodles being produced by BYBreeders

Guess I'd better start talking with some breeders at dog shows If I want to get a poodle. I have a hard time spening $$$ on a dog when there are poor shelter dogs needing homes.

look for poodle rescues in your area.
you will pay an adoption fee, but give a dog who needs a good home a place to live.

ELissa

I have 2 standards. Farley is 7 yo and Chloe is 5 yo. After getting Farley I soon realized how much I absolutely love the breed and wanted another one!

- Do they get along with other pets/small animals if raised with them? Or do they have a high prey drive? My 2 were raised with my cats and they were fine in the house with them. Having said that though, one of my cats used to go outside sometimes and if the cat ran the chase was on. I don't think the dogs would have ever hurt him and were just playing but the cat never chanced getting caught and would quickly go up a tree.

- How often do you bathe them?
They go to the groomer every 8 wks. If they happen to get muddy in between times I find once they dry it very easily brushes off.

- How obedient are they?
Out of all the dogs I have had over the years this breed has been by far the easiest to train. They are very intelligent which has its good points and its bad points. Farley has figured out how to do things that none of my other dogs would have figured out in a million years.

-Do all poodles get "eye-gook"
Both of mine do. Chloe's is very minimal and just in the corners of her eyes and comes off very easily. Farley has allergies and his eyes need to be cleaned with a warm, wet washcloth each day.

- Can a poodle be trusted off leash (to a point).
With appropriate training they can be outside off leash with supervision. Again having said that and being the worrywart that I am there are places that I personally wouldn't take the chance.

- Any good or bad points you can share?
My 2 haven't met a person or a dog they don't like. My 2 have been fantastic with my grandchildren. They love to play fetch, swim, chase squirrels and snuggle with me. They are pretty much up for whatever you want to do. They are wonderful companions and comediens in a fursuit!
They do need to be clipped on a regular basis but I keep mine in a short clip which only requires clipping every 8 wks and is very easy to maintain between groomings. No shedding all over the house is also a big plus!

-Do you own a toy, mini, or standard poodle? And why did you choose that size?
Mine are standards. I have always been drawn to the larger breeds. After having had Great Danes the standards don't seem big to me but to others they do.