Can anybody help me find a good breeder of Cockapoo's in the UK?
Many thanks
Charlie charlie14_67@yahoo.com

I think most of the members here agree that good breeders dont crossbreed on purpose, so you are asking the impossible.

Know the guest can't reply but would love to know why anyone would be seeking a Cocker/Poodle cross, are they prepared to pay for the silly name? What they will get is a pup and they will have know idea how that pup will grow up, have know idea what the dog will look like or the sort of temperament. Just can't understand why people want to buy a pup that is nothing but a lottery, and pay through the nose for it. So much better if you want a crossbreed to go to the local rescue centre and pick one, at least you will know what it looks like!

Couldnt agree more, Jackie. Seems to me these "breeders" pick the breeds to cross by what name they can call the offspring. The biggest shame is, that people fall for it and seem to think they are getting an actual breed.

Whilst I wholeheartedly agree that deliberatley breeding cutely named crosses in pursuit of a fast buck is just wrong, please remember that there are sometimes the results of genuine mistakes needing a good home. I know a litter of Am. Cocker x Min Schnauzers at the moment, they are healthy, beautiful, glossy bundles at the moment, and the people who get one will be assured that them have a small dog, and will have the joy of bringing up the babes themselves. Also, as both parents are fully health tested (for their respective breeds) the gene pool of health should not be so much of a lottery as for a rescue dog who comes from goodness only knows what parentage and upbringing.

And before everyone jumps down my throat, yes Rescue dogs deserve a second chance at a good home and loving family life, but the potential problems which can be associated with them are not for everyone. People who feel thaty can happily pick and cope with them are very special and have my upmost respect, but lets not forget that the "mistakes" can make someones ideal companion too.
bye
Gwen
Edited in case this sounds like an ad for pups - no they are not my pups and I am not tryhing to get rid of them on this site - as far as I know they are already all spoken for!

Yes Gwen, but this accident doesnt mean the puppies are going to be advertised as "Schnockers" and sold at an inflated price to anyone who happens to want one! The labradoodles, cockerpoos etc are being bred deliberately by unscrupulous people to make money.

Yes I know it happens and that is fine but what I don't understand is why some one would actively seek and encourage the breeding of cross breeds when there are plenty available at rescue centres and from breeders who have the odd mishap. Some crossbreeds are lovely, others look like un-made beds but their owners would not change them for the world, but you do get some who the purchaser thinks will be a nice little dog and it turns out to be an elephant, or have an uncertain temperament, so off it goes to the rescue, that is where the dogs come from, people who don't want their pets any more they are not all from broken homes or dead owners, they are from people who did not realise what they were taking on.

I agree with you all but you have to admit people are bound to think such a breed exists when books like the bruce fogle encyclopedia of dogs breeds has half a page all about the 'cockerpoo', its stupid i know but alot of people who own that book beleive it to be breed.

Well if they can read they sould not be confused, it is under the topic experimental and it says 'A Cockerpoo is a crossbreed' and that is the opening statement.

just a quick response to this discussion, i was looking for a companmion for my 6mth lab acouple of years ago as our elderl;y dog died suddenly ihad always wanted a lab and amber was everything i expected of a lab & is was my baby so when we lost molly my reaction wasy i would only get anotyher lab as she was so wonderful, but then irealised that with my physical heath varying on a day to day basis that i couldn't be able to cope with two full growm 30-35kg dogs, so idecided to look at the possibilty of a smaller dog as i'm very fond of gundogs i started thinking about springers(molly was a cocker along with alll the heath probs so i really wasnt ready for another) we then found some really helpful people whi manged to get us to think again as springers were as they put it quite mad, then came across someone who breeds first crosses with no silly names or anything like that and she had a litter of lab/springers, so we took the plunge and i can honestlty say that sam is a true cross bringing out qualitys from both side of his gene pool he lives for retriving swiming etc, he is more intelligent that amber but that might be just one of thopse thing but the thing is ihe is 15ks smaller than a proper lab. sure his abit bouncyer but in every other way he is my ilttle choc lab runt as everyone calls him burt i dont care.

I am very pleased that you found a dog which suits you so well, and I can see that you believe that you have the best of both breeds in your boy. What has to be remembered though, is that in many cases the puppies turn out to have the worst of both breeds. They can have the health problems associated with both. Very rarely are the parents of crossbreeds health checked and anyone purposely crossbreeding probably have inferior specemins of the breeds or they would not be crossbreeding in the first place. Also is due consideration given to the bitch who may be giving birth to puppies that are too big for her?

Hi Dawnbee- I can only offer a cautionary tale here about first crosses! Someone I know also has a very nice 'Springador' as you have. He got it, thinking it would be a bit like a small lab but a bit hairier. What he actually got was a giant all black springer spaniel, who has the springers springiness and the labs bounciness, can eat like a horse and goes selctively deaf when outside. The problem with crosses as has been stated before, is that they don't always run 'true' to type. You can get good ones and bad ones!!!
Anyway-good luck to you with yours

Ali :)

hi ali thanks for your cautiuonary advice ,i might be bumping into on sat afternoon as a prospective memeber of your club

some ped dogs must have been cross bred with other types of dogs to get that certain breed. there are so many breeds out there im sure you can all think of one or two..
Horsey people often say the same . then i add well a tb is actully a cross of a arabian so its swings and round abouts isent it.
Although these cocker poos are getting very populare .id much rather have a cocker or a poodle anyday! it makes me laff at the name thou:d

I met a cocker poo today and chatted to the handler as he is a training Hearing dog and was deliberately cross bred for this purpose, apparently this cross makes an excellant hearing dog and from what I gather they were bred by the charity for hearing dogs for this reason. I will stand corrected if I misunderstood that bit or someone knows better with regards to the hearing dogs charity.

Jude

If Hearing Dogs are now breeding thats news to me! The last time I spoke to the person who started the organisation he told me that most of their dogs game from rescues in Wales

Regards, John

John, I think it was Hearing Dogs who deliberately crossed a Labrador and a Chihuahua. :( The potential for disaster of a labrador-sized dog with the temperament of a chihuahua. There was a lot of hoo-hah about it in the press at the time, and the experiment (thankfully) doesn't seem to have been repeated.

OMG! What on earth did they think they were doing? That is stupidity of the highest order!

John

I don't think it is stupid as all 8 puppies from that particular cross (even though they were extremely ugly) passed and have made 8 deaf people more independent. Hearing Dogs find one of the best crosses that gives them the highest pass rate is a working cocker cross poodle.  They are experimenting with breeding various breeds and cross breeds as they cannot fulfil the demand by rescue dogs alone and many of the rescue dogs aren't really suitable. They have recently taken on a couple from that large RSPCA raid as well but are desparate for anyone who has smallish breeds of dogs or a litter of unwanted puppies. However, they will not touch working breeds (such as collies) and the guarding type breeds.

Or would you rather they didn't cross any dogs and didn't help so many people?

Jesse

So you think it a good idea to mate a dog weighing possibly around a pound with another weighing around 80lbs??? A difference so great that a normal mating would be impossible! You are entitled to your opinion Poodlebabe. It's obvious from your posts that you don't think much of me and take every opportunity to have a dig but quite frankly, with the news of the last day or so I am far to happy to bite.

John

The mating was carried out normally albeit with the assistance of a bag of dog food, did no-one read all of this in the dog papers when it first came out? I just find it strange that people don't have any problems with the Guide Dogs crossing breeds but critisise another worth while charity for doing the same?

Jesse

There is a bit of difference between crossing two retrievers (Golden & Lab) to produce what is found to be best for most people wanting a guide dog and crossing a Lab with a Chihuahua to produce, WHAT a dog to act as a hearing dog, what nonsense the only requirement for a hearing dog is that it is biddable and hearing, who in their right mind would consider that a cross of this type was required. I believe it to be the action of a warped mind. These people have always in the past used rescue and gifted dogs for training and I always admired what they were doing helping the deaf and helping unwanted dogs, and I have always supported them, but not any more. Think they should look at their employment policy as they have must have some very strange if not deranged people under their roof.

Why deranged? They clearly got it right didn't they or none of the dogs would have passed. They still use about 70% rescue dogs but not all dogs in rescue are suitable for hearing dogs and it really isn't as simple as having a dog that is biddable. It has to be trainable, very people orientated and have a willingness to work. Toy dogs tend to be very people orientated and labs very willing to work (or usually are) so what is the problem.
Guide Dogs do not restrict their crossing to just labs and retrievers either. Clearly you'd rather restrict the lives of these Deaf People because you don't support a breeding program that WORKS. Good job I'm not so narrow minded as that eh!

Jesse

Well if you really thing it is a good idea, enough said.

Jesse, my problem with that particular cross (well, one of my problems) is that chihuahuas have a reputation for being, well, 'feisty', shall we say, to be polite. I well remember a pair of them doing their utmost to savage one of my bitches, who, bless her heart, refrained from retaliating, because she had a very good temperament. Imagine if the pups had inherited that snappy temperament, but were nearer the size of a labrador? What a hell of a risk to run with living creatures.

If you are happy with the mating Poodlebabe then thats up to you. As I said before, you are entitled to your views. I personally look a bit sideways at your judgement over this but then, I'm just as entitled to my view.

John

Sounds a flipping funny mix to me! Why cant a lab be used as a hearing dog without the chihuahua bit or have I missed something?

Gina

Surely the ultimate aim of any breeder is to produce a dog with the desirable traits? Therefore parents are selected with the traits required and crossed together and fingers crossed you well get a proportion that fulfil your requirements. Clearly these 2 dogs had the required traits and as has been proven all the pups passed and went on to their receipients. There was no intention to breed on from these dogs as all training dogs are neutered as I believe are all dogs trained to assist people.
Hearing Dogs train around 130 dogs a year, 70% of which are obtained through rescue. How many other charities take that proportion of rescue dogs for training? None, in fact most either have the Guide Dog rejects or will only take pure bred donations of labs or retrievers. Hearing DOgs also have (I think) about a 2 year waiting list, which is added to continually. If they don't get enough dogs in then people will have to wait longer. Therefore producing puppies with the required traits is another step into reducing their waiting times. You have to remember that they also match the dogs to the people, they aren't just handed out to the next person on the list.
Not many breeders donate puppies, as their recent advertisement response shows so where else can they get the dogs they need to train if they don't breed some themselves?

Jesse

Why will they not touch working breeds? If I remember correctly, my 18mth BC's great uncle became a really successful Hearing Dog! I know some collies are extremely lively, but my 2 are quite content after a walk to sleep until told otherwise.
Char123

I think those that are bred to work such as collies are far too active for most. I'm sure there are exceptions to ever rule and if they have a suitable temperament then I can't see why they can't be used but that is what they place in their adverts. They will consider everything else although they prefer smaller breeds.

Jesse

If they like small breeds then why cross with a Labrador?

The particular labrador bitch they used was a smaller working type one. As I said before all the puppies passed their training and there are now some much more independent people out there and that can only be a good thing. Why not pop along to Hearing Dogs and read the receipients own stories about how these dogs change their lives.

Jesse

In this case John I stand corrected!! I was not sure what the handler said but thought she had said the charity had bred them deliberately.Maybe they obtained them from someone who had bred them deliberately

Jude

:D Oh joy!!

We have at 2 chocolate springadors on our shoot and they are exactly as you describe!!

which dog was the bitch in these matings? the chihuahua or the lab? seems a funny combination to me just for some ears

I only hope the bitch was not the Chihuahua or the chances of it living through the birth would be 1000 to 1 against! I just could not see Tony Blunt doing a stupid thing like this mating! I thought him and his wife would have had far to much sense. I know since their move to Saunderton they have far more room than they used to have and wonder who is responsible for their breeding program?

John

Th ebitch was the Labrador, as I said before the dog had to stand on a bag of food! Surely the combination is irrelevant, it's what it achieves that is important and in this case it resulted in an entire litter passing their training and are now out there assisting people.
Astounds me with all the anti dog stuff that goes on that the dog world itself helps fuel those fires.

Jesse

This is not anti dog, it's anti silly people doing such stupid things to the dogs they have in their care. Why a Labrador and a Chihuahua. If they have managed for so long without doing such a ridiculous thing why start now? And what is wrong with something like a Sheltie.

Perhaps as you know them John you would ask, would be nice to know first hand why this was done, if it was. As I for one will stop support if it is true and there is not a very good reason forthcoming.

I've not seen Tony or his wife for quite some time Jackie. Tony was ill some time ago and his wife came to the funeral of a friend of mine and sat with me in church. I first met Tony when he came to my club around 30 years ago shortly after the Hearing dogs started. He did a demo with his old dog Favour. I do see one of their trainers from time to time at gundog training and will be asking Jane whats going on when I next see her.

Regards, John

Really the 2 breeds are irrelevant, it's the traits they possess that is important, what does it matter or are you saying they should only produce pure bred dogs? Even Guide Dogs have more success rate with first crosses, although they don't seem to breed on. I've made it clear that the reason they are having to start breeding dogs is because there aren't enough either in rescue or being donated. I know there are Havenese breeders who donate pups regularly but how many people on this board have even considered donating one of their pups (if they are suitable) to Hearing Dogs? If only a tiny percentage of breeders of suitable breeds offered one puppy from a litter then the demand would be fulfilled. Sadly though rather than having the feel good factor of actually helping someone, breeders would rather sell (money) than donate. After all everyone keeps saying they don't breed for the money.

Jesse

Even you must be able to see the difference between mating two similar sized dogs and this stupid mating! And yes, the Guide dogs people only use first crosses. They tried breeding on but found that the advantages gained form the first cross were not carried through to the next generation. The fact that you keep using the same silly arguments seems to point to the fact that you know it was wrong but are just arguing for the sake of it!

John

No John I think you seem to be fixated on the fact that a lab was involved, no-one seems to take issue with them producing 'cockerpoos'. Why is it, in your eyes, such a stupid mating? The mating produced the desired effect i.e. a litter of puppies that all went on to become hearing dogs, that was the aim and that was achieved. Why do you see that as wrong? You may believe that my arguments are 'silly' but that's because you clearly can't see further than the end of your nose. Eight deaf people benefitted from this mating clearly you'd rather they didn't.

Jesse

What traits!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So you think a dog suitable for a Hearing Dog doesn't require any particular traits is that what you are saying? That's clearly ridiculous. All dogs have traits that were selectively bred for, that is how your particular breed came into being. They weren't bred in the past like they are today where too much emphasis is given on what the animal looks like rather than it's abilities which is why you have dogs that may look like x breed in the ring but have totally untypical temperaments and breed characteristics.

Jesse

Actually we've just (last week) donated one of our litter of lab puppies to Hearing Dogs. They were delighted, and we're very pleased to have the opportunity of helping in this very practical way. The only sad thing was that he left us at 6 weeks and 2 days....:(...but we're looking forward to hearing how he gets on. :) :) :)

Cathy.

Congratulations and well done! Yes it is hard to let them go so young but I do like the fact that you get updates as to how they are developing!

Jesse

I'm not fixated on the fact that Labradors are involved and no, I'm not happy with people deliberately crossing any breed! I don't happen to subscribe to the Poodles with everything philosophy! I don't find them that wonderful even if you might think them so! The excuse with most of the crossing is that it is done by inexperienced people (I would hope) just looking at money but in this case it was done by people who should know better. If this sounds as if I'm prejudiced then too right! I am! I have spent a lifetime trying to improve my breed.

That was very nice of you Fortis - how kind. :)

Sorta backs up what I believe and  what I have said above - why bother mating two totally different sized dogs when a lab is excellent as it is.

Gina

Don't they ever have dogs of the same breed with everything that they want and breed from them?  why do they have to cross.   There are so many different breeds around that can do many things why start to cross breeds?  I'm not against crosses, just can't see why people purposely (can't spell) cross breeds.

Well, I have to jump in here. Norwegian Buhunds have been used by HDFD almost since they began. They are a perfect size (not too big, not too small), are very um, don't know how to put this - reactive to sound, reasonably easily trained as well as being sociable and friendly. Go here if you're not sure what they look like. As a matter of interest - they were in the working group (now pastoral) & are bred to work, so having a job to do suits them fine. All the Buhunds have been donated by breeders, but unfortunately there simply aren't enough of them to fulfil the requirements.  Like many other breeds, Buhunds also have hereditary problems & with such a restricted gene pool, HDFD could waste a lot of resources in trying to breed. They are also not that easy to find homes for, so what would they do with their failures? Those that are donated are always taken back by their breeders.