Breeds 101: The underestimated Poodle

As part of the “Breeds 101” introduction series, Dog O’Day looks at the highly intelligent, popular and underestimated Poodle.

Poodles are incredibly intelligent, though they are often underestimated.

Public perception of dog breeds is a little like middle/high school – appearances matter a lot, and a bad haircut can shape public opinion about your character.

Poodles are known for having really terrible haircuts. But at least they stand out.

They ranked No. 7 in the most popular breeds of 2017, according to the American Kennel Club.

The miniature variety stands 10-15 inches at the withers (shoulders) and weighs about 10-15 pounds, while the standard-sized variety stands over 15 inches at the withers. Standard males weigh about 60-70 pounds, while standard females weigh around 40-50 pounds.

They are classified in the Non-Sporting Group for AKC dog shows, and have fairly long lifespans, averaging around 10 to 18 years.

The AKC Breed Standard states that in appearance, the ideal Poodle is “a very active, intelligent and elegant-appearing dog, squarely built, well proportioned, moving soundly and carrying himself proudly, and that when ‘properly clipped in the traditional fashion and carefully groomed, the Poodle has about him an air of distinction and dignity peculiar to himself.'”

There is some dispute over the origins of the breed – FCI, the worldwide organization of kennel clubs, states that the Poodle is French, while the AKC and several other organizations claim it descended from a group of German water dogs used for duck hunting.

The etymology comes from a German word that means “to splash in water,” which comes to English as “puddle.”

Their coat is one layer of wooly, non-shedding hypoallergenic fur, which gets matted up, which accounts for the breed’s distinctive haircut (technically referred to as a “show cut”). The coloring can vary tremendously, from white to black to gray to various reddish shades, and may be solid-colored or patchy.

Healthwise, the breed is more likely to be susceptible to Addison’s disease, and a stomach problem known as GDV.

Poodles are often crossbred with Labradors or Golden Retrievers, among other breeds, to make so-called “designer dogs,” though none of these are technically accepted as an official breed of their own.

In literature and film, a pair of trash-talking Poodles are the primary antagonists in Bill Wallace’s middle-grade novel Upchuck and the Rotten Willy, and Juliet the Poodle has a key minor role in the 2009 film Hotel for Dogs.

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