Poodles are among the most interesting breeds out there. They’re incredibly smart. Actually, they’re the third smartest breed of dogs. They’re athletic, elegant, sweet, and loving.
They’re also pretty cute and take to people easily. That’s why they can be a great addition to your family.
Here, we rounded up a list of the most popular types of poodles. In the next sections, we’ll talk about the different types, and see what’s so special about this amazing breed.
3 Varieties of Poodles
There are 3 main varieties of poodles — Standard, Miniature, and Toy. We’ll discuss them first, and then, move on to our favorite breed mixes.
Poodles are mainly differentiated by size.
1. Standard Poodles
Standard poodles are usually over 15 inches tall at the shoulder. They’re typically the biggest of poodles. They’re active and incredibly elegant. Standard poodles are squarely built and well proportioned.
They’re generally smart and active; responding quickly to training and orders. Even though they’re not aggressive dogs, they make good watchdogs as they have watchful and protective instincts.
Despite that, if socialized from an early age, they grow to become social and friendly. They’re not difficult with other animals, including other breeds and even cats. They’re great children’s companions. You’re guaranteed to give your children an amazing new best friend if you choose a standard poodle.
With all those qualities, you have to keep in mind that standard poodles are demanding of your time and energy. They require regular clipping every 4 weeks on average. They’re also very energetic, so daily exercise is a must.
This doesn’t stop at a casual walk. Jogging and swimming are recommended exercises to satisfy them and keep them in shape. Play sessions are also something that is fun for them.
If they don’t get enough exercise, they might become cranky and hyperactive.
They’ll usually express this by barking and destructive chewing. As mentioned previously, they’re not aggressive, but those are basic needs for them.
Despite their energetic nature, they’re a nervous breed so they’re easily startled and prefer a peaceful home with no occasional loud sounds. This isn’t trivial, their sensitivity results in stomach troubles and anxious behavior.
You should also be aware of their high-risk serious health issues. Because of inbreeding, they’re at risk for eye diseases, immune system diseases, and seizures.
If you feel like standard poodles are too high-maintenance, then take a look at miniature poodles in the following section.
2. Miniature Poodles
Miniature poodles usually range from 10 to 14 inches. They’re graceful and elegant. They’re usually squarely built, which is the normal build for them. However, often enough, they come with a physical deformity, chondrodysplasia, that changes their shape.
Those miniature poodles have short legs and a long back. This leads to them not being as athletic and agile as their squarely built brothers.
Miniature poodles are very playful and active. They don’t, however, need as much physical exercise as Standard poodles. They could do with light play sessions.
Mental stimulation is as important to them as physical stimulation. That makes them easy to train and fun to play with.
Their coat is non-shedding, but they need clipping every 4-6 weeks.
They’d also make good watchdogs, but they aren’t naturally aggressive. With strangers, they’re usually reserved if not un-polite. But again like Standards, they need to be socialized from a young age to get less timid and reserved.
Don’t let their reservedness around strangers fool you though, Miniatures like to always have company. If left alone for long hours, they’ll get frustrated and start showing signs of anxiety. It also shows when there’s a stressful situation at home. They’re peaceful and get easily triggered.
Although their life-span is 15-17 years on average, they’re not susceptible to health issues. Some of their usual health problems are allergies, joint disorders, and eye diseases.
3. Toy Poodles
Toy poodles are obviously the smallest of poodles. They’re usually smaller than 10 inches and weigh about 6 to 9 pounds. Their size isn’t a hint for their intelligence or energy.
Poodles, in general, are even smarter than most of the other large breeds.
They share most characteristics with miniature poodles, like activity level, timidness, and reservedness. Due to their cute size and playfulness, they’re a favorite among children.
Like his cousins, a Toy poodle would need constant grooming. Once annually for the whole body and once every 4-6 weeks for the feet and face.
Toys are eager to learn and are routines-oriented. This means that despite their playfulness and usual excitement, they like to have a stable routine. That routine should include a consistent amount of time for activity.
With a good diet and regular visits to the doctor, they’ll grow old happy and healthy.
5 Types of Poodles
Standards, Miniatures, and Toys are the three main varieties of poodles. Due to their inbreedings, there’s a lot of poodle types right now.
We’ll show you a few of them to decide what’s the best poodle for your family.
1. Cavapoo
This type is bred from the Cavalier King Charles spaniel and poodles. It’s about the same size as the Spaniel. This size, hitting 25 pounds at most, makes it easier to care for and play with.
However, they need constant activity and attention. They’re prone to neurotic behaviors if left alone for too long.
A big family with a few kids would be perfect for the Cavapoo, it’ll love the attention and will get as much playing around as it needs.
As for health, they have sensitive stomachs and have inherited the same high risk of heart diseases from Cavaliers. They need constant attention to their health and occasional check-ups.
2. Sheepadoodle
Sheepadooles are bred from Old English Sheepdog and poodles. It’s slightly rarer than the other mixes and also bigger than the average.
Although it could be smaller if bred from a miniature or a toy, its weight often ranges from 45 to 75 pounds.
The Sheepadoodle is friendly and nice with children, but it’s important for them to be socialized from an early age. They descend from the Sheepdog, which isn’t really family-friendly.
They also require a high activity rate, so you must consider your time and energy with them.
Their size and hyperactivity make it vital to have enough space as well. Grooming, shaving, and brushing are very important for the Sheepadoodles as they inherited the Sheepdog’s thick fur.
Most of their health issues revolve around hit and joint troubles.
3. Goldendoodle
The Goldendoodle is bred from Golden Retrievers and Poodles. This is one of the most popular breeds mixes, and not for nothing. The Goldendoodle inherits the lovely color of the Goldendoodle and the elegant stature of the poodle.
They’re usually small as they’re bred from Toy poodles. This wasn’t always the case. They were usually bred from Standards, but now it’s more common to breed them from Toys and Miniatures.
This led to them being more family-friendly and small enough to be happy in an apartment or a small house.
They rarely shed hair. This is perfect if you or a family member have allergies, but constant grooming would be needed. They also need to be washed twice a week.
Goldendoodle, if socialized well as puppies, will grow up to be incredibly friendly and lovely. They would make an amazing best friend to your children. However, be careful if they aren’t well socialized and haven’t learned to play well, they could be a bit aggressive.
Even when not aggressive, they could underestimate their strength and hyperactivity. With good training, this wouldn’t be a problem at all.
Common health issues among the Goldendoodles are bloating, hip dysplasia and ear infections.
4. Cockapoo
Cockapoos, like the Cavapoo, are among the smallest of Poodle breed mixes. They’re bred from the Cocker Spaniel and Poodles. They hit 25 pounds at most.
Their size makes them perfect for young children and families. However, as with all the other mixes, they need to be well-trained and socialized from a young age.
Children love them in general as they’re very easy to pick up. Their silky fur also proves itself attractive to kids.
Their size doesn’t, however, limit their hyperactivity. They’re a very playful breed and always want something to play with. Also, they’re usually very loud and bark a lot to get attention. This is easily solved by giving them sufficient attention.
Cockapoos are prone to blindness and dementia as well as certain types of cancers.
5. Bernedoodle
Bernedoodles are bred from Bernese Mountain Dog and Poodles specifically to be a fun family-friendly dog. They range in size from 10 to 90 pounds, so try to note the sizes of the parents to get an idea about its possible size.
They’re intelligent and easily trained. They’re also friendly with children and other pets, whether dogs or cats.
Neither of the parents is particularly aggressive, so the chance that the Bernedoodle would be aggressive is pretty low. However, their hyperactivity could result in restlessness and destructive behavior.
It’s important to engage them in games and play sessions daily.
They’re not as prone to cancer as their Bernese parent, but they have other common health issues. The most important and common of them are hip and elbow dysplasia and eye problems.
Conclusion
We’ve provided you with a simple guide of some of our favorite poodle breeds as well as the three varieties of the parents. This should be a helpful guide to understand poodle behavior in general and how it manifests in their hybrid children.
There’s so much more to learn about poodles. But we hope that we’ve given you enough information to gain a better understanding of them. They all have their great potential to be the new beloved of your family.
Forrest is a lover of dogs, the wild outdoors, deep mysterious conversations… and coffee. He is the owner of several websites, including Canine Weekly. He resides in Austin, Texas.