Amy and Amanda have trained hundreds of dogs over the years and have had experience with almost every breed and have titled various breeds in nearly every dog sport. As trainers and handlers, both saw the best – and worst – in every breed they met. After having children, they saw the need to move towards owning child-friendly dogs that were easy to live with. Neither enjoyed having their babies crawl through the shedding dog hair, and both were disappointed that some of their beloved show dogs’ temperaments were not suitable for children. They set out on a quest to find the perfect breed for their families.
Like many moms, the Retriever breeds came to mind when looking for a new breed of dog. Labradors and Goldens are popular because they are extremely stable, loving, happy-go-lucky dogs. They are safe and loving with children and other animals. But, these breeds have their flaws. First of all, they shed… a lot. People with allergies, or who simply don’t like dirty, hairy houses, couldn’t enjoy having this happy-go-lucky companion. Their second major flaw is their lack of social graces. They will plow right into people and not even notice. Small children often get knocked down by these breeds’ rambunctiousness. Finally, these breeds often lack focus, self-control, and what can be affectionately called “the calm gene.”
The first Doodles that Amy and Amanda trained in the early 2000’s were such improvements on the Labs and Goldens that they were extremely impressed. The quiet and polite Poodle added to the mix is a perfect compliment to Labs and Goldens. The Poodle improves the coat, making the Doodle low-to non-shedding. The mixture improves the dog’s focus during training, it makes them more loyal to their families, and seems to give them an intuitiveness that the Retrievers are missing. Doodles can make spectacular hunting/working/service dogs and family companions. Amanda and Amy decided that the Doodle was the right direction for them.
When Amy and Amanda set out to find their first Doodle, they found out very quickly it was difficult to find a Doodle that met the strict breeding standards they held for their previous show dogs. Poodles and Retrievers both have a long list of common genetic disorders that need to be tested for. Unfortunately, there are many misguided and misinformed breeders who believe that because the Doodle is an outcross, the genetic problems can not surface. While Doodles are an outcross of breeds, meaning that the prevalence of genetic abnormalities is lessened, it does not take the risk away from the problems that both breeds share, such as hip dysplaysia and eye diseases. All breeding stock should be tested for the diseases that are prevalent.
The next challenge became to find a breeder who used quality dogs with temperaments that were suitable for being family companions or working dogs. Both ladies come from a working dog background and firmly believe that most temperament traits are inherited. Therefore the quality of temperament of the parents is of prime importance. Retrievers and Poodles should have working ability and be natural retrievers. They were both bred to be hunting dogs and water retrievers. After being disappointed with the overall quality of other Doodles being produced, Amanda and Amy decided to breed their own Doodles. They believe that all dogs should be bred for health, structure, temperament, and working ability.
Safari Doodles breed a variety of Doodles types:
LabraDoodles: Labrador Retriever bred to a Poodle
GoldenDoodles: Golden Retriever bred to a Poodle
F1b of both breeds: A first generation Doodle bred back to a Poodle
Multi-Generation Doodles of both Labradoodle and Goldendoodle
Plus, the unique cross of a Labradoodle to a Goldendoodle, otherwise known as North American Retrievers or Double Doodles
Sizes of Safari Doodle’s crosses range from 15 pounds to 60 pounds with our focus on producing puppies who are 20-40 pound dogs as adults.
Many of the Safari Doodle breeding dogs live in Guardian Homes. This allows all the dogs to live as pets in homes. If you come to Amy or Amanda’s homes you may only meet a few doodles. To help people meet many of the dogs at once, we do regular Safari Doodle romps at local dog parks in the Dallas area of Texas.