Designer mutts cost big bucks
Thursday, January 22, 2004 Posted: 1:13 PM EST (1813
GMT) by 
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WASHINGTON
(Reuters) -- Move over chocolate lab, the labradoodle has arrived. Why walk a
corgi when you can have a dorgi? Or coddle a poodle when you can cuddle a
yorkipoo?
Mutts, by any
other name, are all the rage.
Mixed-breed
dogs, once the domain of U.S. animal shelters, are being sought by an
increasing number of Americans looking for special pooches. Intentionally bred
and cutely named, today's special-order mixes have newfound status -- and a
purebred price tag.
"When
there were a bunch of them around and a lot of them were in the shelter, you'd
call them mutts," said Stephen Zawistowski, science advisor at the
American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, about the popular
mixes that used to accidentally appear.
Sought-after
mixes, some of which can fetch up to $4,000, are the labradoodle, a cross
between the Labrador and the poodle; the schnoodle, a schnauzer-poodle mix; the
goldendoodle, a golden retriever-poodle mix; the cockapoo, a cocker
spaniel-poodle match; and the yorkipoo, a cross between a Yorkshire terrier and
a poodle.
Even Britain's
Queen Elizabeth is in on the mixing trend. She has owned more than 30 Welsh
corgis since she was 18 years old and has bred several dorgis --
dachshund/corgi mixes.
The bagel, a
mix between a basset hound and a beagle, is typically found in shelters.
"Right
now, there is a stronger interest in crosses than in registered breeds,"
said breeder Jennifer Connell of Breezy Hill Kennel in Hartsburg, Missouri.
'Doodle' dogs'
popularity stems from the combination of the poodle's non-shedding,
allergy-friendly coat with the intelligence, temperament and size of Labradors,
golden retrievers, schnauzers and Yorkshire terriers.
Intentionally bred
The labradoodle
was first intentionally bred in Australia in the 1970s and has its roots there
as a guide dog for allergy sufferers, according to Beverly Manners, founder of
Rutland Manor Labradoodle Breeding and Research Center in Victoria, Australia.
"I have not
met another dog as gentle, intuitive, caring, and intelligent as the
labradoodle," said Caren Cioffi, a labradoodle owner and Stanford
University MBA student who did a business internship with Manners last summer.
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I have not met another dog as gentle,
intuitive, caring and intelligent as the labradoodle. 
Ralph C.
Richardson, dean of the veterinary college at Kansas State University, bought
two schnoodle puppies, including one for his son's family, and has ordered two
more.
"I think
the lack of shedding ... is a great attribute that a lot of people like,"
he said. "In our case, we were looking for a very small dog. For someone
who wanted a larger one, perhaps a labradoodle or the goldendoodle would be
appropriate."
Most allergists
believe that no dog is 100 percent allergy-free, and often as dogs grow older
their coats can change and become more troublesome for allergy sufferers.
Labradoodles,
the most popular mix, can cost between $895 and $2,195, depending on coat and
color, pricier than some of the 150 registered purebred dogs. Schnoodles and
other mixes are considerably less, starting at $350. Shipping ranges between
$375 and $1,690.
Breeders all
over the world report long waiting lists for special mixes. Depending on Mother
Nature and what specific criteria a potential owner wants, the wait can be
anywhere from a few months to more than a year.
Breeding techniques
Mixed-breeding
techniques vary from breeder to breeder. For example, some breeders cross
labradoodles with labradoodles, occasionally adding in a poodle to
"correct" the dog's coat or disposition, while others mix Labradors
with poodles once.
The labradoodle
could be eligible for American Kennel Club recognition if there are at least
300 of them in at least 20 states with three documented generations of
labradoodle to labradoodle mixing. A national breed club is also required.
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"It's
still a developing breed," Rutland Manor's Manners told Reuters in a
telephone interview. She has bred up to eight generations of labradoodles over
15 years and is passionate about breeding the best labradoodle possible.
Some animal
experts believe cross breeding -- either for one generation or for several --
uses the best characteristics of two dogs to create one superdog. Occasionally
purebred dogs inherit negative qualities if in-breeding occurs.
"Mixed-breed
dogs are healthier," Zawistowski said. "They aren't as likely to have
these inherited problems and people have gotten some of that message and so
they're buying mixed-breed dogs."
On the flip
side, purebred advocates relish knowing what to expect from their pup since the
reliability of doodle dogs' looks is not 100 percent.
"The
problem is the lack of predictability," Lainie Cantrell, spokeswoman for
the AKC, said of labradoodles and other popular mixed-breds. "That's the
whole point of a purebred dog and the benefit of a purebred dog is that you
typically know what you're going to get."