Shedding. Usually that word refers to dogs loosing their hair. At Timberidge Goldendoodles our dogs don’t shed quite like that. Around here, “shedding” has a totally different meaning. Moses, Abria & Junie hopped in the car this afternoon and drove down to New Richmond with us to some family land in search of whitetail deer antlers. Each winter male deer (bucks) shed their antlers in preparation for growing a new larger set in the spring. They leave their old rack lying in the woods, waiting for a lucky person (or dog) to happen upon them. We enjoy traversing through the woods, relishing in the beauty of nature and enjoying the treasure hunt activity of seeking sheds. Today we found both antlers from a 7 point buck! At the end of deer hunting season a lot of hunters walk through the woods very slowly looking for where their elusive bucks lost their antlers that year. Finding shedded antlers gives hunters information about the type and number of bucks traveling through the area. For dog owners like us, shed hunting is great because it provides our dogs with an all-natural, preservative-free chew toy. Our dogs love chewing on deer antlers! Like bones, antlers are high in certain minerals like calcium. Since they are very hard (hard enough for bucks to use when fighting each other), they last a long time and the chances of one splitting are slim. The points of the antlers are sharp though so blunting them is beneficial. Like any bone, there is always the chance of a dog injuring a tooth while chewing on an antler and the ends can become sharp as a dog gnaws on it. Because of this, we only allow our dogs to chew on them while we’re home and keeping an eye on them. Chewing on an antler is always an exciting treat for them.
Category: Blog
English Goldendoodles
American Goldendoodle Vs. English Goldendoodle
The golden retriever breed originated from gun dogs in Scotland. While all golden retrievers descend from the same distant ancestors, the breed took on different characteristics from country to country. English golden retrievers, which come from European bloodlines, tend to have a stockier, more muscular build than American golden retrievers and are also generally lighter in color (more of a light cream color rather than gold or red). While there are some cream colored American golden retrievers, physical appearance alone doesn’t make a dog “English.” The European bloodline is what truly makes a golden retriever English. Both the American and English golden retrievers exhibit the same wonderful temperament, they just look a little different. Many people prefer the cute teddy bear look of the English goldendoodle. In addition to that adorable teddy bear face, the most desirable aspect of using English golden retrievers verses American golden retrievers is their health. Cancer is the number one killer of American golden retrievers, causing many to die before 9 years of age. Some research suggests that cancer is less prevalent in English golden retrievers than American golden retrievers. Pictured here is Junie’s mom, Star, an English golden retriever owned by Doodle Creek. As you can see, her stocky appearance varies slightly from the American golden retrievers you might run into around the park.
Goldendoodle Generations
An F1 goldendoodle (first generation) is created by crossing a pure bred golden retriever and with a pure bred poodle. An F1b goldendoodle puppy is born when an F1 goldendoodle is then crossed back to a poodle. The advantage of an F1b goldendoodle is her very minimal to non shedding coat. Because of this, the F1b goldendoodle is usually the better choice for people with allergies.
If you’re considering a puppy that is an F1bb, F2, F3 or multi-gen goldendoodle, ask about the percent poodle and golden retriever the resulting puppies will be.
Goldendoodle Sizes
What about sizes? Mini goldendoodles have an estimated adult weight of 15-35lbs. Medium goldendoodles have an estimated adult weight of 30-45lbs. Because goldendoodles are a hybrid breed, the exact size of each puppies varies and pups may even vary in weight by 25lbs in the same litter. Sometimes hybrid puppies can even be larger than either of their parents.
Buy A Dog; It’s Good For Your Health!
Each little flower that opens, Each little bird that sings, He made their glowing colors, He made their tiny wings.
– C. Alexander
One great thing you can do for your health is to buy a dog. It’s true. Many research studies have found that pets improve the health of their owners. One study conducted in China even suggests that the impact on owner health is so profound that it’s actually economically beneficial to own a dog. We’ve certainly found that owning dogs gets us out of the house. One of the favorite activities at our house is going for long walks at the Cincinnati Nature Center (CNC). As soon as the dogs see us lacing our shoes and reaching for the leashes, their tails start wagging in eager anticipation. The excitement boils over when our car approaches the guard station – they know tasty biscuits will be passed their way when hand over our membership card. The CNC has over 16 miles of wonderful hiking trails that lead you up and down hills, around ponds, through fields of flowers, and across creeks. Moses & Abria love being out in the woods and so do we! Both dogs love all of the smells found there, especially the smell of deer. It’s not uncommon for us to encounter deer on our walks and usually the dogs spot them before we do. Today when we hiked, the dogs were excited by the active squirrels and the honking of Canadian geese. Your goldendoodle puppy is sure to love hiking at the Cincinnati Nature Center, too – and so will you!
DNA Health Testing
If you can remember back to high school biology class, you may recall learning about a monk who studied pea plants – Gregor Mendel, often considered the father of modern genetics. Mendel discovered through selective breeding of pea plants that two pea plants could pass on traits to their offspring that they themselves didn’t express. He found that some genes are dominant over other recessive genes. In his experiments some yellow podded pea plants produced green podded pea plant offspring. This sounds simple, yet it is actually quite profound. When a plant, or animal, mates each parent gives a “package of genes” to the offspring, some of these genes are dominant and some are recessive. Recessive genes can cause hidden traits. When each parent gives the same recessive gene to the offspring, the hidden trait appears. If, on the other hand, one parent plant gives a dominate gene and the other gives a recessive, only the dominate trait will appear, but the recessive can still be passed onto future generations. These same principles apply to dogs.
Here’s a basic Punnett square showing two parent dogs: both are carriers (have a dominate normal retina gene and a silent recessive PRA (progressive retinal atrophy) gene). Because both parents have a dominate gene for normal retinas, they themselves will have normal retinas. When these dogs are bred statistically 3⁄4 of the puppies will have normal eyes since they will each receive at least one dominate gene for normal retinas, however, the other 1⁄4 of their puppies will receive two copies of the recessive gene for PRA and will likely become blind sometime during their adult lives. Basically, if at least one parent tests clear (has two copies of the dominate good gene), all of the puppies will have normal vision. By DNA testing our parent dogs, we ensure that no goldendoodle puppy will receive two copies of a recessive gene that could result in an unwanted health problem.
DNA testing doesn’t hurt our goldendoodles. We collect DNA via a buccal swab (cheek swab) and then send the swab to Spokane, Washington. Paw Print Genetics conducts tests on the DNA samples and notifies us of the results. You can visit our page on Paw Print Genetics’ website to view our dogs’ results for yourself. They also have lots of information about genetic testing if you want to learn more about it.
Eye Health: The CERF Exam & prcd-PRA DNA Testing
Today we drove to Norwood, Ohio to visit Dr. Haeussler at the Animal Eye Institute. After receiving drops to dilate their eyes, Moses & Abria hopped up on Dr. Haeussler’s examination table, and he checked their eye health. The CERF (Canine Eye Research Foundation) exam looks at the lens, cornea, optic nerves, and other parts of the eye to ensure that everything looks normal and healthy and that no hereditary eye conditions are present. Happily, Moses & Abria received passing CERF scores!
In addition to receiving passing CERF scores to ensure current eye health, we also DNA test our parent dogs for prcd-PRA to make sure they won’t develop this disease later in future years. Progressive retinal atrophy (PRA), an inherited disease, is a condition where the retina slowly dies eventually causing blindness. prcd-PRA (which stands for progressive rod-cone degeneration PRA) is the type of PRA sometimes carried by poodles. Consequently, Moses was tested to ensure that he is “clear.” This means he won’t develop prcd-PRA as he ages and it eliminates any possibility that he could be a silent carrier, passing the disease onto his puppies. Since Abria is a goldendoodle (making her half poodle), she also runs the risk of carrying prcd-PRA. Fortunately her dad was DNA tested for it and was clear, so we know she is too (this is known as clear by parentage). We are pleased to have parent dogs with healthy eyes so you can be confident that your goldendoodle puppy has healthy eyes as well.
Check out our blog post about DNA health testing for more information about the importance of testing parent dogs for prcd-PRA.
OFA Hips Testing
We’re not surprised by the results but it’s certainly a relief to have the official reading: Moses & Abria both have normal hips per OFA! Genetic and environmental factors play a role in your goldendoodle’s risk for developing hip dysplasia. Because we want to set your goldendoodle puppy up for success, we test the parent dogs before breeding them to decrease the possibility of a genetic predisposition. To test for hip dysplasia, an experienced veterinarian takes x-rays of the dog’s hips and those x-rays are then sent to OFA where three specialized veterinarians examine them to determine the official reading.
We’re happy to report that your puppy comes from health-tested parents so fortunately the hereditary aspect is minimized. Even so, because puppy bones and joint are immature, many environmental factors influence hip health, especially during the first 6 months of your puppy’s life. There are a few things you can do during to help ensure that your puppy doesn’t develop hip dysplasia. First, don’t over exercise your puppy or encourage her to exercise when she’s tired. General puppy gallivanting around your backyard is important for muscle development, but do not take your puppy on walks longer than a mile and never take your young puppy on a run. If your puppy lies down on a walk, it’s her way of saying she’s had enough. Allow her to rest and don’t push her to go any further. Second, stairs and any jumping should be avoided until at least 6 months of age. At 6 months old, a goldendoodle puppy can jump over something about 4″ in height. Also be careful not to let your goldendoodle puppy jump off of an elevated surface like a couch or out of a car, as injuries can easily happen. Lastly, weight is important throughout your goldendoodle’s life because obese dogs of any age are more likely to develop hip dysplasia. By being careful not to over exercise your goldendoodle puppy, not allowing her to jump or use stairs, and helping her maintain a healthy weight throughout her life you are playing your part in helping prevent her from developing hip dysplasia. If you are interested in learning more about hip dysplasia, check out this article from the United States Dog Agility Association (USDAA).
Rally Obedience
Timberidge Goldendoodles brought home a handful of rosettes this weekend after traveling to Columbus to compete in a World Cynosport Rally Obedience show. Abria qualified and placed in all four trials earning her Rally Level 1 (RL1) title, an Award of Excellence, and a first place to boot! Moses also received his RL1 title and placed in all of his qualifying legs, even taking first in one trial. We’re excited about their accomplishments and already have our sights set on earning Rally Level 2 titles in the future.
Rally obedience is a team sport in which the handler and dog navigate through an obstacle course, completing a series of exercises in order before the time runs out. Rally Level 1 emphasizes on-lead heeling and employs basic obedience commands such as sit, down, stand, and stay. The obedience course is mapped out through a series of signs that the team follows. World Cynosport (literally “canine sports”) is an organization that sponsors rally obedience and agility shows for both pure and hybrid dogs. Positive reinforcement is key to training a dog, and it’s important to keep training sessions fun. One of our favorite aspects of Cynosport is that the organization understands and emphasizes that. Handlers are encouraged to praise their dogs not just in training but also while in the show ring! Since rally level 1 encompasses basic obedience commands while on a leash, RL1 a great goal for your mini goldendoodle puppy after passing the CGC test. You will find that Cynosport events are friendly and fun to compete in, even for the novice.
Click here for the RL1 exercise signs and more for information visit World Cynosport.
AKC Canine Good Citizen
Timberidge Goldendoodles is excited to announce that both Moses & Abria have earned their AKC Canine Good Citizen (CGC) titles at only 10 months old! The CGC is our first step in obedience training and passing shows that our dogs exhibit basic manners. It also qualifies us to take our dogs on therapy visits with the Cincinnati chapter of Canines for Christ.
The AKC CGC test consists of 10 parts:
- Accepting a friendly stranger
- Sitting politely for petting
- Allowing gentle grooming
- Walking on a loose leash
- Walking nicely through a crowd
- Sitting, downing & staying on command
- Coming when called (10’)
- Walk politely past another dog
- Reaction to distraction & loud noise
- Supervised separation (handler out of sight for 3 minutes)
Your English mini goldendoodle puppy from Timberidge Goldendoodles can earn a Canine Good Citizen title too! Any well-mannered dog may take the CGC test (no AKC number required). We recommend using the test as a guideline and goal for your puppy’s basic obedience training. Like Moses & Abria, your puppy should be able to successfully perform these exercises by 10 months of age. It is important to practice with your puppy daily and to always make training fun. For more information about the CGC, visit AKC. When you & your goldendoodle puppy earn your CGC, be sure to send us a picture so we can include it on our brag wall!
Canoeing Is For The Dogs
I can’t think of a better way to celebrate Independence Day than with a family canoe trip down the Little Miami River! Here at Timberidge Goldendoodles, the dogs are a part of the family so naturally they came too. Abria (our English cream goldendoodle puppy) took to the water like a fish! She’s a natural swimmer and thought it was great fun to jump out of our canoe and swim to another to hitch a ride. Moses (our apricot poodle puppy) didn’t think jumping out of a moving canoe into the river was such a great idea but he was all for getting into the water from the shoreline. When we stopped for a picnic lunch, Moses & Abria both had a blast retrieving sticks from the water and splashing around with everyone. We have two natural water dogs! I see many more canoe trips in our future!
