Even among dogs, not all breeds are born equal when it comes to being a family pet. Cuteness notwithstanding, family dogs are more than just a pretty face.
As a general rule, Goldendoodles are excellent family dogs. Given their traits, disposition, and social skills, the reputation of being a family pet is not only well-deserved but well-earned. In addition, Goldendoodles are great with kids, and they get along with other cats and dogs in the family really well. As we find out, though, cuteness is not everything
Despite the concept of a family pet has undergone tremendous expansion, dogs still happen to be the most favored species, and for more reasons than one.
Some of the usual reasons include security, companionship, and occasionally, therapy for individual family members, like the elderly.
Goldendoodles meet all these requirements to their credit and can even add a few more ingredients to the mix. Needless to say, when they do become a part of the family, they are objects of immense affection.
How to Identify a Good Family Dog
Assuming that there are children and other pets in your family, the importance of identifying a suitable dog breed should not be overlooked. This draws from the fact that not all breeds qualify as family pets – while some are a great fit, others need not be as endearing and serve a different purpose instead, like hunting, detecting strangers, etc.
To help you find the perfect family pet, the following are some characteristics that set these apart as a breed from the rest –
Sturdiness – If there are children in the family, they will most likely treat the pet as they treat a toy. What ensues will probably be rough play to some extent, and this is reason enough as to why family pets need to be sturdy.
Equally important, it is for the adults in the family to supervise the child-pet play and ensure that children do not hurt the fur-ball, causing them to feel fearful and retaliate.
Acceptable energy levels – Whichever pet you choose, make sure that it is compatible with your family’s energy levels. This does not imply that the pet should be hyper or sedentary, but that it should match the family’s daily activities, for example, keeping up with the outdoor jogs/walks and slowing down after being back at home.
High IQ – How well a dog responds to training in terms of commands and ability to grasp determines its IQ. In this context, some, like Goldendoodles, are relatively quick to follow a specific command, recognize them on repetition, and endear themselves to their owners.
Brilliant dogs also possess good hunting skills, so training them to channel their acumen towards more constructive activities is imperative.
Social Skills – Being a family pet implies co-existing with the human family members and other family pets, even if they happen to be cats and other humans who are friends of the family.
Therefore, it is crucial for the dog breed to have good social skills and not react or become restless in strangers’ presence.
Why Goldendoodles Qualify As Great Family Pets
As an outcome of intentional and experimental cross-breeding of Golden Retrievers and Poodles, Goldendoodles possess more or less all the traits people look for in family pets. They are eligible for such a purpose owing to –
Being hypoallergenic – One of the reasons they are coveted as family pets is because they are allergy-friendly. Courtesy of all the genetic testing and designing, Doodles are mostly the non-shedding types, or even if they shed, it is minimal to the point of being ignored.
This has proved to be a great plus for families with allergies or asthma because it implies that now they can have a pet in the family without fear of health issues.
Ease of training – Doodles are easy to train. They are smart enough to learn random tricks quickly and are very cooperative. So they can pick and grasp commands that, in the odd case wherein the Doodle is somehow unable to follow, it is the training method subjected to scrutiny.
Therefore, when you adopt one, identify a suitable training method, and use positive reinforcement to get the best results. Rewards would soon manifest in the form of a groodle that responds to just about everything you say.
Not exactly high-maintenance – Adorable and cute that Goldendoodles are, their curly coat requires regular brushing and combing. The breed does not shed much, and for the owner, this implies less cleaning.
Their coat is something that you need to be attentive towards, but frequent trimming is one way that can prove to help prevent the mats, tangles, and debris from ruining it.
Emotionally Doodles can be entirely independent if adequately trained and evolve into balanced and matured pets if the atmosphere at home is sufficiently encouraging and secure.
Are Goldendoodles Good Therapy Dogs?
Suitable for therapy – Adding upon that is that Goldendoodles have a particular situational focus, which renders them perfectly ideal as therapy dogs for the service of blind, disabled, or chronically ill members of the family.
Usually, an individual who suffers from physical, mental, or emotional problems lacks friends, where Doodles comes in.
Given their lively and balanced temperament, they soon develop a bond with the patient and provide the much-needed social connection, not to mention a lifelong friendship.
Good social skills – Have you ever come across a dog and cat being companions? Goldendoodles are probably one of the few species that can get along with cats and other pets. So if you are an animal lover who likes having more than one pet in the house, the Doodles can indeed be a perfect choice.
Final Thoughts
Dogs have traditionally been by man’s best friends since the beginning of time, and even though Goldendoodles are a relatively recent lineage, they have corroborated this fact more than ever.
In fact, with Doodles, it would not be an exaggeration to claim that they are the family’s best friends. This is because they improve the owner’s quality of life in every way possible – physically, mentally, and emotionally.
Thanks to their various traits, it is no mystery why Goldendoodles are preferred as family pets. After all, who can resist a cute four-legged bundle of fur which is adorable, sensitive, loyal, and just as protective when the situation calls for it?
