Australian vs. U.S. bred labradoodles

[heeby89]

As I've researched for the past few months about labradoodles it seems many breeders tout that their lines are from Tegan or Rutland manor. Tegan is now defunct, but Rutland appears to still be going strong. In fact, they say that they have just finished infusing the Wheaten Terrier into their lines and that they feel the Australian Service Dog (ASD) Labradoodle is now complete in terms of completing the breed. For the members of this board, how important do you think it is to have Rutland and Tegan lines vs. just creating the lines yourselves, i.e. F1 and F1Bs. I'm not asking anyone to bash Rutland, I'm just curious about why some feel it is critical that their lines come from Australia, while others are content with creating their own.

[KingstonTodd]

Hi, and welcome to the forum. Which fruit do you like better, apples or oranges? Its the same type of thing. They are different dogs. They have a lot of similarities, but a lot of differences too. The breeders of Australian labradoodles seem to brag a bit more about their lineage to justify their higher prices, but American (just Lab and Poodle) breeders are starting to do the same thing for their lines as well. Everyone you ask is going to have a different opinion, and very logical reasons why they like a particular line and they are entitled to what they believe. They are both great dogs, and the more important thing is the quality of the breeding stock.

[Napathedoodle]

Napa is Australian. I think the infusions are only good to a point. Rutland and Tegan both infused back in Australian, but once they come over here, very few Australian breeder bred anything but another Australian together, or if they do, they breed back to the poodle. Unless the imported breeder is within the last few years, then the Wheaton would not be involved (unless you get it directly). For a long time I believed that it was important to mix other breeds into the Labradoodle (which is the fundamental difference between some American lines and Australian). No breed has ever been created with just two breeds. However, that being said, I do understand why some breeders want to keep Labradoodles strictly Lab and Poodle. My only fear is that they will become too much of one or the other. There is no right or wrong answer to this fundamental question. It's more what you're looking for, and what you're comfortable with. Napa's 100% poodle and labradoodle for something like 7 or 8 generations when his ancestor was the PWD, or whichever one she infused. His temperament and coat were exactly what we were looking for. He's got the GREAT lab temperament we were dying for, and the tightest wool coat I've seen making him VERY allergy friendly!!!

At this point, the statement about Rutland and Tegan heritage is nothing more than to explain a) why their prices are the way they are, and b) to distinguish easier the difference between American and Australian. The more important thing (to me) is what they're breeding now. What their goal is as a breeder (meaning what standard- whether its written down or personal- is the person hoping to come to)? What do they hope that the breeding will do for the pups? etc.

I was also looking for a size range that was consistent. I'm apartment hopping and a college student so to know what size the pup was going to be was important. Plus, I didn't feel comfortable placing a HUGE dog into a SMALL apartment. I also wanted it done safely, which wasn't possible since I wanted a 30-ish lb dog. I know a lot more now than I did when I made my decision. I didn't know that the American lines had come along so far. I thought my only options were an F1B or an Australian. I chose the Australian for personal reasons, and would do it again, again for personal reasons that have no place in this entry.

The last thing is that the reason people stress the origin is because of the price those dogs originally cost. They are, in essence, two different breeds which is why its important to distinguish when marketing. Because people will proudly state that certain dogs have American lines and they are creating new lines by combining American with Australian. So, its a matter of preference.

I wish you luck on your Labradoodle journey!

[heeby89]

Someone pointed me to a previous post (which I didn't find when I first searched the forum on this topic) called American Labradoodle vs Australian Labradoodle. As this post seems to have answered my questions I'm hoping the moderator can shut this post down.