Regardless of where these dogs originate from, they are loved very much by their humans.

In my business it makes no difference to me if the dog is a pure breed that the owner purchased for several thousand dollars or if the owner found the dog wandering around in the neighborhood and decided to give it a home. It makes no difference to me if the dog is treated like royalty, has it's very own bedroom and sleeps on a gold, gilded bed and spoon fed by servants. Remove the diamond-studded collar, remove the pink nail polish, give that prissy dog a raw bone and watch what happens. The dog will behave like an animal because it isan animal.

My story is about the trendy, muchglamorized, high-dollar 'designer' dogs. Dogs that were once classified as mutts are now being reveled as the latest and greatest 'must have' fashion. The question here is, WHY? Well, just like anything else we gullible Americans waste our money on, if the media announces that something is trendy, fashionable, "everybody has one, so should you", celebrities own one or two or three, then being the suckers that we are, we rush out and obtain it. Something inside us called 'ego' makes us want to be unique. Special. We might as well wear a sign around our necks that read: "Hey look at me! I have nothing that sets me apart from everyone else so I bought a designer dog!" We get stupid when it comes to having the 'now and wow'. Gotta have this, gonna get that. I MUST HAVE IT!!

Ever hear the phrase, "He could sell a drowning man a glass of water"? That very phrase applies to just about every ridiculous purchase we as Americans make. How many techno gadgets do you buy just because it's new and cool? Probably plenty. It's no different when it comes to paying thousands of dollars to have a media-glamorizeddog walking beside you at the end of a rhinestone-studded leash. Don't believe that these mutts sell for thousands of dollars? There is a Goldendoodle website that lists various prices for Goldendoodle puppies. The 'premium' package puppy goes for over six-thousand dollars. Six-thousand dollars for a mutt. What do you get for your six-thousand dollars? Less than what you would get if you adopted this very same dog from your local animal shelter for sixty bucks. At least if you adopted this dog from an animal shelter or humane society the dog would already be spayed or neutered and vaccinated and your donation would go to help find homes for the remaining dogs.

For those of you who have not been enlightened about what a Goldendoodle dog is, it is the result of breeding a Poodle with a Golden Retriever. That's it. People who breed these dogs and advertise them all over the Internet want you to believe that these dogs are superior to other dogs because of healthy genetics, fabulous DNA from the parents, low-shedding (because of the Poodle parent) and on and on. What these so-called breeders don'ttell you is this: The Poodle is one of most intelligent dogs on the planet and is not a dog that is fooled easily. The Golden Retriever is an excessive shedding dog, a sporting dog with an enormous amount of energy. Put these two breeds together and you will get a dog that is just the opposite of what you have read on the Internet by the very 'breeders' who want to take your hard earned money. If you research this mixed dog you will read that the dog is "low-shedding, loves people, loves children especially, is the best choice for families, very obedient, loyal, easy to train, low maintenance, hypo-allergenic and on and on and on. If you believe all of this about a dog, I have some swamp land I would like to sell you. It's only six-thousand dollars!

The truth about the Goldendoodle dog is this: ALL dogs shed. Period. Anything with a skin will shed. Breeders who say the Goldendoodle is the best choice for anyone who suffers from allergies to dogs is feeding you a line of bull. It isn't the hair that people are allergic to, it's the dander. What is dander? Shedding skin. Any breeder who advertises that the Goldendoodle dog's coat is "low maintenance" obviously has never groomed one of these dogs! The only way to keep the coat maintenance "low" is to cut the coat very short. If the hair is allowed to grow it becomes tangled and matted and unless you are willing to spend hours brushing this dog's coat orspending money to have it groomed every week, your dog is going to look like a mess. How many dogs have you ever owned that actually liked to be brushed for hours? How many times have you attempted to untangle your dog's hair only to have the dog yelp in pain?

I now want to share my doodle training experiences with you. Remember I said that the Poodle is a very intelligent dog? It is. Not only is it intelligent, it is curious, suspicious by nature and makes a pretty good watch dog. The Poodle can be taught a great deal of commands and tricks and remembers what it is taught. Working with Poodles is a lot of fun providing the dog isn't nervous and many Poodles are. If the dog is nervous the dog tends to do one of two things. It will either run and attempt to hide or it will bite. Gaining it's trust is first and foremost. Once that has been established, everything else is a breeze. Training a Golden Retriever on the other hand is quite a different story. The Golden Retriever is a sporting dog, is a high energy dog, loves to run, swim, play and my favorite word for this dog is: squirrely.

This does not of course describe allGolden Retrievers nor does what I said about Poodles describe them all. Just like people, every dog is different. Every dog has a unique personality and quirks. Now, let's put the Poodle and Retriever together and make them one dog. Let's add into the mix, the owner of this dog. Nine times out of ten, the owners call me when they have reached their patience limit and are ready to find a new home for their trendy, expensive 'designer' dog. After listening to the owner's concerns and issues with their Goldendoodle dog, I come to the same conclusion almost every time. These people bought the doodle dog because of the hype. They read about it online or in a magazine or someone they know has one, etc. They were 'reeled in' by all the wonderful characteristics the breeder promised. They were told that their dog would be the most wonderful companion, would love to lay by the owner's feet while the two of them watched television, the dog would welcome anyone who knocked on the door and the dog would be the most loving, gentle creature that a child has ever met. Throughout my hour long consultations with the doodle owner I learn this: the dog was not properly socialized in the litter, the dog is afraid of people and barks excessively. The dog hates small children and tried to bite the neighbor's kid. The dog is super hyper and destructive. All the dog wants to do is dig holes, run around in the yard destroying plants and anything else it can sink it's teeth into. When walking the dog, the dog is aggressive and wants to rip other dogs to shreds. The dog "has a mind of it's own" and pulls the owner here and there and everywhere while on the walk. The dog always looks like it rolled in the dirt and it's hair is matted and has to be shaved. (that isn't my forte). The owner has basically given up all hope of ever having this dog behave like a good dog is suppose to.

Well, you should know what is coming next. I ask the owner if the dog has ever had any obedience training at all? No. Has the dog ever been socialized with any other animals and people? No. Why? Because the dog wants to bite my family and friends. This banter goes on back and forth for awhile and then I must ask theinevitable. Do you plan to keep the dog? When the owner says yes then I proceed to explain why the dog is behaving the way it does and after the owner finally realizes what they must do, I set up a training program for them. Most of owners of Goldendoodles did not realize that this dog is considered to be a high energy dog. They believed everything they read on the breeder's website. After explaining the traits of the Poodle and the Golden Retriever, the owner has a 'light bulb' moment and that's when I know that this doodle owner did notdo his or her homework about either breed.

There of course is much more to it than just obedience training. The owner of anydog has got to understand what it means to be a pack leader and most dog owners are clueless about this. The Goldendoodle dog is no exception especially if the dog is dominant. Being half Poodle and being dominant can be a disastrous combination if not recognized right away and 'nipped' in the bud. Mixing intelligence with dominance, high energy, and God forbid this dog is the result of inbreeding, will most certainly result in behavioral problems.

The point here is this: Just because a dog or any other animal for that matter has become the latest trend, it doesn't mean that this animal has the best DNA of it's pure breed parents. That is, ifthe parents are pure breeds. Many doodle breeders start out breeding two pure breeds of dogs but will 'back breed' the doodle dogs to each other. This can create some very unhealthy and unstable puppies.

My advise to any person who wants to add a dog to their household is this: Don't give your hard earned money to a breeder just because it's fashionable or trendy or Paris Hilton owns one. These breeders are only out to make money and if they weren't, why would they sell a mixed dog that you can adopt from the animal shelter? Before you write that check for thousands of dollars for a puppy that may be the result of inbreeding or that was born in a puppy mill and sold to a pet store, visit your local animal shelter or humane society. Don't think these 'designer' dogs are in shelters? Think again. Where do you think these dogs end up when their owners can't afford to hire me?