The answers to the below FAQ’s are my own views, if you have anything to add or want answering please fill out the contact form on the home page and I will add it to the list below with my response.

Which is best a boy or girl puppy?

By far the most common question I get asked. With regard to size females tend to be smaller, but its not a huge amount, 1 to 2 inches maybe.  This is a general rule by population, of course you will get individual differences.

I have had both male and female dogs and I can find no noticeable difference between the two if they are Neutered or Spayed.  There is however a huge difference if the dogs are left in tact.

Females come in to season 2 times a year, for around 3 weeks.  During this time it can be very messy, blood will constantly drop out the back end. She will become very interested in male dogs, teasing them, calling to them.  You will need to be very careful if you take them out for a walk, she will try just as hard to get to the male as the male does to her.  Just prior to her being ready to mate which is around half way through the season although she will tease the male, if he tries to go too far with her she will turn on him aggressively, as she isn’t quite ready. When she has gone passed her mating time and the male still tries to mount she will behave aggressively towards him again.  So there is a lot of the teasing behaviour in the beginning which can turn to being aggressive towards the end.  The male will try to mate with her right up until the end of the season. Females in season can be a very testing time and you will need to keep a bucket and mop handy.  If you have carpets, expect them to get them professionally cleaned.

Males when they sense a female in the area that is in season will go crazy, constantly whining, and will do everything they can to get at the female, so watch out for open doors.  They’ll be off!  If you out on a walk, forget about the recall.  Another thing they do is cock there leg up at every corner they come across.  Furniture, door ways etc, they will spray everything. This is a constant behaviour throughout the year.  Its  like they don’t even know they are doing it.  Quick leg up spray and then on with whatever they were doing.

If you leave it too late for neutering with the male you do run the risk that the constant leg cocking doesn’t stop after neutering, its like its become muscle memory, so be aware of this.  With the female it all goes after spaying no matter what age.

Now both of these will be in varying degrees as each dog is an individual.  If you want to keep your dog intact, pick the one that you can most live with.  I don’t understand why anyone who has no intention of breeding would want to keep a dog intact.  Why put yourself and your dog through it.  

You will get people saying to you that their dog doesn’t do or display any of this, my answer to that is that they are lucky their dog is just on the lower end of the spectrum.  If your dog ends up being at the higher end, then you will find it very hard to live with, don’t risk it !

Should I vaccinate?

In a nutshell “yes”.  Now I know there is now a big movement towards not vaccinating and this must be gaining momentum as I have noticed a lot of vet practices offering lifetime vaccinations for £99.  The vaccine is a mixture of vaccines for various diseases, now when it comes to the end of that vaccine you get yearly boosters.  This is where the problem lies, many say why should it be necessary as you may be immune.  The trouble here is cost.  You would need to do individual tests for each disease to see which ones are still covered and therefore still giving the dog immunity.  Then those that are not covered get individual injections for those diseases. This would be extremely expensive and would need a lot of vet visits.  So its all just grouped together and given yearly.  

Some people have reported illness in there dogs after having the boosters.  Whilst I appreciate this may be the case for some dogs, I personally would still get the booster done.  If you have ever seen a dog with Parvovirus you will understand why I say this.

So this is a personal decision, so you need to do your own research, but my view is yes.

Below are the Vaccines my vet uses on our puppies.

1st INJECTION (done by our vet)

Nobivac Lepto 2    **Update this has now changed to Lepto 4**

This has changed to DHP and Lepto 4 for both sets.  The only difference between Lepto 2 and Lepto 4 is that the latter immunises against 2 extra leptospirosis strains.  The reason they changed was because my vets noticed a high number of Leptospirosis cases coming through that were for the strains that would be covered in Lepto 4.  Infact they had a few deaths, the last being a beautiful Malmamute Puppy and not one case was from the two strains within Lepto 2 so they made the decision to change Lepto 2 in the first injection to Lepto 4 so that all strains were covered from the beginning.

Vaccination will give your dog protection against Canine leptospirosis which is caused by bacteria spread in the urine of infected animals. Two main forms of the disease exist including one contracted from rats and wildlife and the other is contracted from the infected urine of other dogs. Leptospirosis is a zoonotic disease and can be spread to humans, causing a disease known as Weil’s Disease.

Nobivac DHP

Vaccination will give your dog protection against distemper, hepatitis, parvovirus infection. Your puppy should be vaccinated at the earliest opportunity and boosters should be maintained throughout the dog’s lifetime. Just like human vaccines, the immunity provided by each vaccine will wane and we recommend your dog is boosted every three years to maintain optimum protection against distemper, hepatitis and parvovirus infection. Although the health check and annual vaccination against leptospirosis and parainfluenza infection will still be required.

2nd  INJECTION (done by your vet)

Nobivac DHP

Description as above.

Nobivac L4

Another version of the Lepto 2 vaccine, giving protection against Canine Leptospirosis, sometime you get a third injection of this 2-4 weeks later which is a free injection.  Your vet will advise.

Should I get my puppy spayed/neutered?

If you have no intention of breeding then yes, yes, yes.  See “which is best a boy or girl” question.  In the US they have been neutering/spaying 6-8 week old puppies for at least the last 30 years.  Its even done in this country.  Whilst I personally think this is far too young, there is a lot of research on the affects.  From what I found the only difference they could find was that spaying/neutering dogs very young made them slightly taller than average for the breed.  There is a lot of people that say hormones etc are there for a reason and stopping them being produced is not good for the dog.  Now this does sound logical, however in my own personal experience I have never noted any problems apart from stopping behavioural and physical problems that we have to live with when living with your dog.  So at present I’m still in the Neuter/Spaying corner.

Isn’t it better to let my dog have one litter before spaying?

I’ve heard this said so many times and I’m not sure where it has come from.  With any breeding you need to be very aware of what you are doing, you need to understand the pedigree of your mating dogs, line breeding, inbreeding etc and then health issues.  The background of the dogs you are mating is very very important. To do it responsibly there is a lot of learning to do before you even attempt it.  You also need to be aware that it can all go wrong.  You try insuring a dog that you have mated during its pregnancy, very hard to find and you need to really read the small print.  A lot can go wrong. It isn’t always plain sailing.

I can’t find any reason why you need to do this, so my answer to this is firmly “No”.

How do I house train my puppy?

There are lots of different methods, I personally used this book to train all mine and I never looked back.  It worked……

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B000SEGM6Y/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

You can buy on amazon by clicking on it.  This is the book I used to train all mine.  If the link doesn’t work its called “How to housebreak your dog in 7 days (Revised)” by Shirlee Kalstone.

Definitely worth a read.

Are Cockapoo’s Hypoallergenic?

First we need to understand the meaning of all the words associated with allergies…..

Hypoallergenic = Less likely to cause an allergic reaction

Allergen = something that causes an allergic reaction

Allergy = a reaction the body has to a particular substance

Dander = microscopic dead skin

Can f1 and Can f2 are the two major allergens found on the dog. These two allergens by far outweigh any other allergen from the dog and Can f1 being the most prevalent cause of reactions.  These are proteins that the body produces to which some people have a reaction to.  I have seen various reports that they are secreted from the body and found in saliva, sebaceous oils from the skin, dander, urine and faeces all to varying degrees.

A Cockapoo is no more Hypoallergenic than any other breed, even hairless dogs, the reason some people believe they are is probably down to a few factors, one being that a Cockapoo is a low moulting dog.  Any dog that is low moulting has been said to be Hypoallergenic at some point by someone. The first reason is probably because all of the secretions mentioned end up on the hair/fur of the dog but as they don’t shed so much the allergens stay on the dog for longer and don’t tend to fly around in the air so much as dogs that shed. Hair/fur in itself is not considered to be an allergen, so hairless dogs are just as likely to cause an allergy. These low moulting dogs tend to be clipped, therefore cutting out the allergen or washed more to keep matting at bay and therefore washing the allergen out.  So there is a chance when allergy sufferers are in contact with a dog they may not exhibit the allergy, but at some point they probably will as they will come into contact with it to the degree that you need to physically get that allergy.  Each person is different. Its a ticking time bomb.

To suggest that a Cockapoo is Hypoallergenic in my opinion is irresponsible as it leads sufferers to believe they will not get there particular allergy.  I am disappointed that organisations such as the Kennel Club actually have a page on their website listing Hypoallergenic dogs.  How many dogs will end up in rehoming centres as a result of that?

There are also many many adverts that actually state that Cockapoos are Hypoallergenic and as a result you will not get an allergic reaction.  This just shows that they do not know what the word Hypoallergenic means and that they no nothing on the subject and in my opinion should not be breeding.   That statement sounds harsh but its what I believe all the research is out there, you just need to find it and if you are blindly following what others are saying then you do not understand your breed.

Too many dogs are ending up in rehoming centres as a result of this Allergy myth surrounding the Cockapoo and other low moulting breeds.

If you are allergic to dogs, as am I, you need to understand your symptoms, how serious they get and wether you can live with them.  If they are too severe then I’m afraid you should not get a dog as he/she will end up being rehomed at some point.  My reaction is not severe, I get a blocked nose and sound like I have a cold, a quick squirt of my medication relieves my symptoms, I am also allergic to grass so not having a dog would not stop my symptoms anyway.

Allergies are so specific to each individual and can happen at anytime throughout your life, mine didn’t appear until later in life, I was perfectly ok as a kid and young adult.

If you are a sufferer then you really need to understand your allergy and it’s severity before you consider buying a puppy.

Why do I only produce 1st Cross Cockapoo’s?

When breeding dogs, the lower the inbreeding coefficient percentage the better.  This calculation is based on historical data about all the dogs in both the mother and fathers pedigree for at least 10 generations.  The kennel club has a coefficient calculator on its site to help breeders work out what a particular mating’s percentage would be.  The lower the number the better as that informs them that there is not as much inbreeding within the pedigree for that particular mating.

When you do a 1st cross you are breeding from completely unrelated animals, they are different breeds, so the coefficient percentage is 0%, now you can’t get any better than that.

As soon as you start breeding Cockapoo to Cockapoo or Cockapoo to Poodle you are now introducing the likelihood of inbreeding at some point within the pedigree, so now there is a coefficient percentage to work out.  The trouble is that the Kennel Clubs calculator only does pedigrees. Now if you have a degree in Mathematics you may be able to pour through generations and generations of pedigrees to get to a percentage, but being realistic do you think the average breeder has that knowledge and is going to do that. So now you are on that slippery slope to get to where we are now with Pedigree dogs.  The risk of more unhealthy genes pairing up and causing more diseases etc.

Believe me, when someone produces a Cockapoo of a certain look, height, colour etc that becomes popular, the way to freeze that is to inbreed, and someone will do it. This happened to all pedigree dogs at some point to cement the looks (type).  This is why I am against the Cockapoos becoming a breed.  As soon as you get that status the breed type gets put into a category, Hound, Pastoral etc then its look is documented.  Now breeders will want to get to that look and so inbreeding commences and more problems start.

If you are viewing puppies from F2, F1B’s, F3 and the like, ask the breeder about the COI percentage now that they have introduced the same breed on both lines and see what they say.  I would be very interested in those statements!

Now with 1st crosses you at least know what diseases are being reported in both breeds as we have lots of historical data on this and now the dog genome has been mapped out more and more genetic tests becoming available. So we can test for them and therefore produce healthier dogs.

I love the 1st cross, its healthier if bred correctly, and you really cannot guarantee what you are going to get as an adult, so its a pleasant surprise.  We can get a good idea if the same dogs used and have previous litter information, but you can’t guarantee it.

Do I recommend a puppy food.

This is a question I am asked a lot and I am no expert on puppy food.  Personally I feed all my dogs raw after I did a lot of research.  My dogs have been fed raw all their lives.  Now I know this is not for everyone and most prefer to feed their dogs with a dry food.  As I am no expert I needed to find a company that provided a good backup system should any of my puppy owners have any questions.  

Last year 2016, I completed my research and the company I chose was ARDEN GRANGE, so I would happily feed all my puppies with their feeds.  For me they ticked all the boxes, I was very impressed with their customer service and the backup they gave their customers if they had any questions or worries.  I trialled their adult food on my dogs for 6 months as well and was again very impressed with the outcome.

Feeding your pet is a personal thing, I now feed my puppies on Arden Grange Puppy Junior dry feed.  You will receive a bag of this food when you collect your puppy.

Now if you want to feed your puppy onto another dry feed you need to introduce that feed gradually.  You do this over a 7 day period for best results.

Day 1 & 2   Feed 75% Arden Grange Puppy Food mixed with 25% new feed.
Day 3 & 4   Feed 50% Arden Grange Puppy Food mixed with 50% new feed.
Day 5 & 6   Feed 25% Arden Grange Puppy Food mixed with 75% new feed
Day 7        Feed 100% new feed.

Tips when feeding your puppy ARDEN GRANGE PUPPY FEED

1. Soak the Arden Grange Puppy food with warm water to soften it for about ½ hr before serving.  However when puppies leave here they are eating it dry, the choice is yours

2. Arden Grange is quite concentrated, so be careful not to over-feed (it’s a good idea to weigh the food rather than use cups to begin with)

3. Reduce all volumes of the Arden Grange accordingly if your dogs enjoy any treats or extras

4. Keep a close eye on stool volume and consistency; if they are becoming looser, larger or are passed more frequently (especially later in the day then this can be a sign that a little too much food is being given)

If you have any questions regarding Food please contact the ARDEN GRANGE website, they have a lot of information on there website, or call their customer service helpline.

Current Feeding Schedule

By the time the puppies leave me, they are fed 100 grams a day per puppy split into 4 feeds.  When you take puppy home, you change feeding times, quantities and schedule based on the recommendations printed on the packs.  Any issues, contact Arden Grange direct they are the best to advise.

07:00am 25 grams Puppy/Junior feed Chicken flavour
10.30am 25 grams Puppy/Junior feed Chicken flavour
13.30pm 25 grams Puppy/Junior feed Chicken flavour
16.30pm 25 grams Puppy/Junior feed Chicken flavour

Please take note of point 4 above in the Tips section.

When your puppy reaches 4 months of age reduce to 3 meals a day and adjust volume based on the chart on the side of the food bag.  Then reduce to 2 meals a day at 6 months of age.  Most then continue with the 2 meals a day feeding regime for life.

What is a Heart Murmur and should I be worried?

A heart mumur is a sound, usually a wooshing sound heard through a stethoscope when placed over the heart area of your dog.  This sound is graded…..

Grade One – Incredibly soft and barely noticeable.
Grade Two – Very soft but easily diagnosed when listening through a stethoscope.
Grade Three – Moderate dog heart murmur that is easily heard but lacks any vibration when the vet’s hand is placed on the dog’s chest.
Grade Four – Loud with no noticeable vibration.
Grade Five – Loud with some vibration but cannot be heard without the stethoscope.
Grade Six – Loud with severe vibration and the veterinarian can hear it without a stethoscope.

The sound in itself is not a diagnosis, it is just an indication that something may be wrong.  The only way the vet can get an exact diagnosis is by further testing and examination by a specialist Vetinary Cardiologist.  However most vets do nothing when low grade murmurs are heard (1 and 2), they just monitor the murmur as the puppy develops during its first year. Most murmurs in puppies simply disappear.  

If however the murmur gets louder or there are other symptons presenting like breathing difficulties, fainting, exercise induced difficulties then further testing would be started immediately.   I should point out as well that murmurs can be detected at any time in a dogs life, with it being quite common to detect them when dogs are entering older age.  Most dogs that have murmurs detected just go on to lead normal lives with no symptons at all.

The reason this subject is here as an FAQ is because one of my puppies was reported back to me at 5 months old that a heart murmur was detected by their vet when the puppy was 9 weeks old.  This was obviously a worrying time for the owner and I do wish it was reported back to me at 9 weeks as I could have written this FAQ earlier and perhaps relieved the owners worry.  It has been confirmed by the owner that upon future examinations the murmur has as I have said above disappeared.

No puppy leaves me without a thorough physical examination by my vet, if anything is detected then it would be discussed with the owners, however fingers crossed I have never had anything serious reported back to me after these examinations, all my Cockapoo puppies have always passed all checks.  The only thing ever noted is sometimes males testicles may not have descended which is common when they are only 6 weeks old.

It is part of the contract that all puppies sold are to be presented to their own vets for examination 72 hours after collection and if anything detected reported back to me so I can respond with my vet whilst all examinations are fresh in mind and not just going by inspection notes.  Having a new puppy can be a worrying time, if you are ever worried by what your vet tells you please always let me know I may be able to give you more information.

How tall will my puppy be and final weight?

When buying a Cockapoo, nothing is guaranteed, as a first cross you can end up with your puppy being just like Mum, just like Dad, Mum’s Height, Dad’s Height, their weights and anything in between.  I always say even when mating with a Toy Poodle, to look at the tallest and your puppy could got up to that height and maybe even taller.  Males tend to be taller than females.

Even within the litter there can be differences when adult.  Personally I think this is the beauty of the Cockapoo, watching your puppy grow into whatever he ends up being.

What will my puppies coat end up being?

Just like above you cannot predict with any guarantee, however all the pictures on this website are puppies that I have bred and they are all from Stanley.  So you can see for yourself he does throw out gorgeous dense choppy coats.  If I let Stanley’s coat grow out, he himself has a very dense shaggy coat.  All the mums are Poodles so all have the normal poodle type coat.

How can I tell if my puppy is under/over weight?

This has always been a hard one to explain as you do want to feel a bit of rib but explaining how much is difficult.  One of my lovely puppy owners told me about a tip she heard which explained it.  It was perfect!  She has now sent me the link so I have copied it and put it here.  It seems to be official as well as its signed from the University of Minnesota, Veterinary Medical Centre.  Thank you Zoe, this is really useful.

What payment methods do you accept?

The preferred method is Bank transfer direct to our business account, most people have this setup on their phones.  You will be given bank details when its time to pay.  The only other method I accept is cash.

Why do you not responded to MMS messages I’ve sent?

Some of you have sent me MMS messages over the years to my mobile phone.  When I receive them I dont actually get the message I get a message from O2 telling me to go to a certain page on their website and type in my mobile number and a code they give me.  When I go to that page it says the page doesnt exsist.  I just thought it was a scam someone was trying to get me to do something so I have always ignored the message (MMS).  Today 18/9/19 a friend showed me that if I scrolled down, in amongst all the strange text on the screen is a couple of boxes, if I put the required information in I can then download what was sent to my PC.  I was horrified to find today that these were mostly messages and photos of owners showing me their beautiful puppies.  Everyone that has sent me an MMS must think I am really rude as I’ve never replied.  Very sorry, I just didnt realise what they were, and O2 website is rubbish!  I’ve never seen your photos.

So if you have sent me something via MMS prior to 18/9/2019 I’ve never seen it as they are only held on the O2 server for 30 days. Sorry for being so rubbish at all this technology malarky!!

If its sent as a text message and not an MMS message I’m ok, I’ve always seen those and replied, this is just MMS type messages.  I will be ok from now on as I now know what they are and how to deal with them.

Why do some of your dogs look different in photos even different colours on your website?

Sometimes I change the photos on the website to keep it interesting.  I also like to play around with my dogs coats, sometimes grooming them short, sometimes long, and also different styles.  So depending upon the time the photo was taken the dogs could look completely different.  Ranging from a Whippet look (poodles are skinny under all that fur) to the most fabulous Poodle cut.

With regard to the colours of the dogs, that is dependant upon the lighting and wether I’ve taken the photo indoors or outside.  It is also dependant upon the device you are viewing my site from.  All screens are different and depends also on the brightness setting you have them set to.  I can look at a photo on this website on my PC and it can look washed out but on my Samsung mobile it looks really vibrant.

The photos I use are direct from my mobile phone camera, they are not doctored at all, I dont even know how to do that.  Some of the photos are from you, pictures of  your beautiful puppies you have sent me.

One day I will take my dogs to a professional photographer and get loads of pics, that will at least get some consistancy across my website.

In real life my dogs are a vibrant red.  When the sun shines their colour really pops.  Its beautiful and really stunning.100