Aussiedoodles
An Aussiedoodle is an Australian Shepherds and Poodle mix, and one of the most popular Doodles in American. Both are extremely intelligent and eager to please making an Aussiedoodle a dandy of a doodle!
History of Australian Shepherds
Australian Shepherds, lovingly called Aussies, are intelligent working dogs. They are great guard dogs and they have strong herding instincts.
The history surrounding the breed is complicated and tied directly to the importation of sheep. Australian Shepherds’ earliest roots are tied to the Conquistadors who arrived in the New World in the 1500’s. The Spaniards imported Churras sheep and their herding dogs. These dogs populated New Mexico and the Californian territories.
Gold Rush
The Californian Gold Rush created a demand for sheep to feed and clothe the massive influx of miners. American farmers sent their flocks West. Accompanying the sheep were the British derived sheepdogs that had been tending them for generations. Many of the dogs originated from Collies and often times where merle, tricolor or black or tan with white. They would occasionally produce a dog with half-tails or no tails at all.
Furthermore, many of the sheep imported were from Spain and Germany. An emigree brought an improved Merino-Saxon breed of sheep to Australia where they flourished. They would then travel to the American West, with their “Australian Shepherds.” The name was given to these “little blue dogs” by an American who knew that the dogs came from Australia. Soon every merle sheepdog earned the name “Australian Shepherd.”
There is now evidence that the Australian Shepherd of today derives form British Herding dogs. A canine genome study in 2017 that examined how dog breeds are related, and developed. Aussie belongs to the same United Kingdom family as the Collie, Shetland Sheepdog as well as a Border Collie. https://www.cell.com/cell-reports/pdf/S2211-1247(17)30456-4.pdf
Aussiedoodle Sizes
The American Kennel Club recognizes three poodle sizes: Standard, Miniature and Toy Poodles. However, in European kennel clubs, the “moyen” or “klien” poodle is a size. Moyen means “medium.” The AKC recognizes Australian Shepherds in one size averaging between 40-65lbs. The size of your Aussiedoodle will most likely be determined by the breeding poodle or the use of smaller Aussiedoodles.
Aussiedoodle Traits and Temperaments
Australian Shepherd
Affectionate with Family 3
Good with Young Children 5
Good with other Dogs 3
Drooling Level 1
Openness to Strangers 3
Playfulness Level 4
Watchdog/Protective Nature 3
Adaptability Level 3
Trainability Level 5
Barking Level 3
Energy Level 5
Mental Stimulation Needs 5
Poodle
Affectionate with family 5 Lovey Dovey
Good with youg children 5 Good with children
Good with other dogs 3 Average
Shedding level 1 No shedding
Coat Grooming Frequency 4 Several times per week
Drooling Level 1 Less likely to drool
Coat Type Curly
Coat Length Long
Openness to Strangers 5 Everyone is my best friend
Playfulness 5 Non-Stop
Watchdog/Protective Nature 5 Vigilant
Adaptability Level 4 Very Adaptable
Trainability Level 5 Eager to please
Energy Level 4 Energetic
Barking Level 4 Vocal
Mental Stimulation Needs 5 Needs a Job or activity
Aussie Doodle Colors
There is no end to the colors and coat patterns of Aussiedoodles.
Poodles come in their own range of colors and coat patterns. AKC recognized colors include Black, Blue, Gray , Silver, Cream, Silver Beige, Red, Apricot, Brown, Café Au Lait and White.
Parti
or Piedbald coats can have any poodle color and the other 50% is white. If it is less than 50% it is called an abstract.
Tuxedo
These coats are controlled by the same genes as a Parti but has less white. Tuxedos usually have white chest, bellies and often white socks. Sometimes it will look like their tails is dipped in white paint.
Ticking
Flecks of color all over the dog is ticking. The ticking will appear to have tiny white holes in the dogs base color.
Phantom
Phantom is a recessive gene, both parents need to carry the gene for it to be expressed in a pup. It is a combination of Black and Tan or Brown and Tan. The “tan” portion can vary in color to a pale cream, warm brown, or a reddish brown.
Brindle
coats are striped. The size and intensity can vary.
Sable
comes in a variety of colors. A sable coat will have black tipped ends to each strand of hair.
Abstract
This can be any color of coat with a splash of white. Often times it appears as a chest blaze or “socks” on the feet.
Merle
genes occur naturally in Australian Shepherds. The patterning is a beautiful, mottled coat which can be accompanied by blue or odd colored eyes. If both parents carry the Merle gene, the pup could be deaf, blind or have ocular defects. Responsible breeders health test dogs so breeding a double merle, with disastrous results will not happen.
Roaning
is a pattern that will produce heavily mottled white areas. This is to be confused with ticking, ticking is spots of color on white. Roan coats are never present in purebred poodles.
Some of these coat patterns can occur together. Such as a Brindle Parti, Sable Parti or a Merle Parti.
Australian Shepherds coat colors recognized by the AKC are Black, Blue Merle, Red, Red Merle. Once you mix both breeds colors and coat patterns, you get some super cute Doodles!
Health and Lifespan
Most poodles will live a long and healthy life, ranging from 10-18 years of life. It is important that your breeder tests for hereditary genetic conditions. Some frequent poodle health issues are:
- Hip Dysplasia
- Eye Disorders
- Idiopathic epilepsy
- Sebaceous adenitis (Standard)
- von Willebrand’s Disease
- Legg-Calve-Perthes (Toy & Miniatures)
- Luxating Patellas (Toy & Miniatures)
- Gastric dilation with volvulus (bloat)
Exercise
Aussiedoodle are active dogs and need daily exercise. Whether that is going for a walk or a marathon session of catch in your backyard, they need a venue to unleash that energy in a positively. They also love to swim, since they were bred to hunt water fowl. The Australian Shepherd in your Aussiedoodle will want to herd you, your children, and other pets. Research the herding behavior, it ranges from gentle nips, nose prodding to giving “the eye.” Additional information on herding characteristics can be found https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/advice/why-does-my-dog-herd-my-kids/
Training
Aussiedoodles are highly intelligent and eager to please. This makes training a bit easier than other breeds. They enjoy canine sports such as agility training, obedience or tracking and dock diving.
Potty Training
Aussiedoodle puppies from Show Me Doodles will arrive Potty Pad & Crate Conditioned. We use both washable and disposable potty pads. By 8 weeks and 4 days, when they are ready to come home, they will be using potty pads only. We confine the pups in a puppy play pen. We will open the pen and let them walk to the door to go outside and potty (only after their 1st vaccination and only in our backyards.) They then come inside and play. Potty pads are available to them in designated areas, however, by this time they only need the pad that is in their pen for overnight.
Have a look at some of our darling Aussiedoodle Puppies