Labradoodle vs. Australian Labradoodle
After researching the development of this new breed I discovered that the Australians had been selectively breeding Labradoodles since the late 80’s as hypoallergenic service dogs. I became very intrigued, particularly knowing that in the beginning when you cross two separate breeds, the gene pool is very random, and the pups do not come out genetically consistent as an exact mix of the two different parent breeds. In the development of the early stages of a new breed (the Labradoodle for instance) the first litter will contain pups in which some will resemble labs, some may be more poodle like in form and some will be in between. Some will shed heavily, some will shed lightly and some may not shed at all! ! Fortunately, we lucked out and got a dog (Bear, our F1b…see our story) that was completely non-shedding and low allergenic. We lucked out with his appearance as well, for he has the appearance of a selectively bred Australian Labradoodle. Being such an early generational mix of lab and poodle we really could have ended up with a very different looking dog in the end. Many early generational lab-poodle crosses throw out quite a varied gene pool of characteristics. They often have quite a “Benji” shaggy dog appearance to them, they may or may not shed, they may have a more poodlie personality or a more labby personality…and similarly for the body type as well. They may look more like a lab with fringes or may be very poodle like in appearance!
The two main research and development centers in Australia, Rutland Manor and Tegan Park, have been working on developing consistency in the pups with regards to these four main characteristics:
1. The dogs should be non shedding
2. They should be low to non allergenic
3. They should be bred for temperament
4. Only the dogs with the highest health standards should be bred
The Australians were looking to fill a special need for a hypo allergenic dog with a service dog quality temperament. They have done this, selectively breeding only the dogs with the exact characteristics desired. Through many generations of selectively breeding the desired coat type, temperament and health standards, Tegan Park and Rutland Manor Research centers have developed the standard that we now know and love.
For our family, because of asthma and allergies, I felt that the Australian Labradoodle and the carefully bred American Multigen Labradoodle, with it’s long line of selective breeding, was the only way to go. I could know for certain that my girls would most likely not be reactive to almost any dog that we had. We lucked out with Bear…it could have gone either way as far as shedding and allergies go, but God is good, and he saw fit to place the right dog with our family! Another dog in that same litter may not have worked out as well for us.
Our dogs either live in our home or in a wonderful guardian home as a treasured family pet and they are an important part of our families. All of our dogs intended for breeding are health tested, and will not be bred if they test positive for any genetic health defects.