Fad Dog Breeds & Our Responsibility

Let’s talk about dogs. Specifically let’s talk about how super cute half-and-halfs keep cropping up as fad breeds; you’ve got your Labradoodles, your Golden Shepherds, your Pomskies, Cockapoos, Schnoodles and Puggles, all that. The thing is, these dogs are often bred for a combination of adorable cuteness and profit, without a lot of thought about what makes a good dog and our responsibilities as the beings that control the genetic lines of these wonderful creatures.

Take Labradoodles, half Labrador, half Poodle. They are adorable, true, but they are super high energy, and most canine behavior problems stem from the fact that people are not well equipped to provide adequate energy expenditure and enrichment for their dogs. Both Poodles and Labradors were specifically created to get up at dawn and go running and swimming all day. American labs were then bred to compete in field trials, and even though they have a reputation for being a great family dog, some canine authorities note that they are better suited for professional owners with more experience and time to devote to training. Poodles were bred to be intelligent and independent problem solvers and when used as hunting dogs, require their trainer be extra skilled and experienced, being otherwise prone to various problematic behaviors. When you combine the extreme food drive of a Lab with the extreme independence of a Poodle, and a double dose of intelligence and high energy levels, you wind up with a dog that is going to be a real challenge for the average dog owner to handle.

More importantly though, both Labs and Poodles have a genetic propensity for eye disorders. As demand for these fad dogs increased, supply ramped up without sufficient thought or professional development, and now most Labradoodles have a high chance of coming down with progressive retinal atrophy, a condition that results in blindness.

So when you see a dog that’s half adorable, half precious, ask yourself - do these personalities fit well together? Do these genetic lines have overlapping health concerns? And don’t contribute to the hyper-popularity of a new breed just because it looks cute. One should never get a dog without doing adequate research - into dog care and habilitation in general if getting a rescue mutt, and additionally into the breed and breeder otherwise.