From 'labradoodles' to 'taco terriers,' demand for canine hybrids is sharply rising

01:00 AM EST on Sunday, February 26, 2006

BY LAURA MEADE KIRK
Journal Staff Writer

She has her mother's personality and golden hair. But the curls definitely come from her dad.

Cinnamon is a "goldendoodle," a hybrid mix of golden retriever and standard poodle -- one of the more popular designer dog breeds that are joining an increasing number of local families these days.

Lisa and Joe Friedman of Barrington were smitten by Cinnamon the moment they laid eyes on her at a local pet shop. "She's hard not to love," Joe said, as the year-old puppy frolicked in the family's front yard.

Cinnamon has the energy and intensity of a golden retriever pup, but the springy prance and regal bearing of a poodle -- all buried beneath a thick mop of golden curls.

She's a bit unusual to look at, but that's much of the appeal. People buy hybrid dogs because they "want something different, something that their neighbor doesn't have," said Garry Garner, president of the American Canine Hybrid Club, which has been tracking hybrid dogs for nearly 15 years.

Or they're looking for the kinds of pets popularized by celebrities like Brokeback Mountain's Jake Gyllenhaal, whose latest pet is a "puggle," a pug and beagle mix that's one of the hottest designer pets around.

"It's the thing right now," Garner said of puggles, noting that they're selling for as much as $2,000 apiece.

But hundreds of other variations are out there, including "bullmatians" (a bulldog and dalmatian mix) and "cock-a-poos" (a cocker spaniel and poodle mix) and "taco terriers" (a Chihuahua and toy fox terrier mix).

"If they're cute, they sell," said Bonnie Rivers, owner of Pets' World in Warwick.

IT'S NOT ONLY APPEARANCE that's driving sales. Many hybrids were specifically designed to eliminate shedding, a major consideration for people with allergies. That's why there are so many variations of the poodle, a full-size dog that doesn't shed, Garner said.

Some people also cross breeds for other characteristics, such as size and temperament, or to help reduce health problems that plague many purebred lines, he said.

"When you mix two dogs, you get the best of both worlds. They're usually better health-wise and temperament-wise," said Noel Gonsalves, staff supervisor at the Rumford Pet Center in East Providence.

It's that notion that irks people like Stephanie Shain, director of outreach for the Humane Society of the United States, an organization devoted to the protection of animals. "You're just as likely to get a dog that has all the genetic problems of both breeds as you are to get a dog that has none of those problems."

Niki Marshall, a spokeswoman for the American Kennel Club, the largest registry of purebred dogs in the country, agreed. Because there are no rules or standards for breeding designer dogs, she said, there's no guarantee that a hybrid pup will have the best attributes of its parent breeds. In fact, she said, there's no way of knowing whether it will even have the same looks, temperament or other characteristics as its litter mates, let alone other hybrids of a similar mix.

Most hybrid breeders also don't do the kind of genetic testing required of purebred lines, which helps screen out potential genetic defects, Marshall said. The hybrids ultimately could have unforeseen health problems created by the mixed breeding.

"So buyer beware," Marshall said. "These dogs may look cute, but you really don't know what you're getting."

That's why many professional breeders look down their noses at hybrids, and one of the reasons they're not acknowledged by most major pet registries, such as the AKC. The Humane Society also opposes these mixes, saying they're being fueled by a fad instead of responsible breeding.

Critics also say the hybrids ultimately aren't much different than the average mutt, except for cost: Designer dogs don't come cheap.

Local pet stores and breeders charge from $500 to $2,000 or more for the hottest hybrids, and there are often waiting lists as well.

Wendy Smith of Barrington said her family spent $900 for Riley, their nine-month-old "labradoodle," a cross between a Labrador retriever and a poodle. "We paid for a fancy mutt," she said.

But it's worth it, said Joe Friedman, who spent $950 for Cinnamon. "You've got to have one to really appreciate it."

NO ONE YET TRACKS the number of designer dogs out there. But Garner said his organization is registering more than 500 new litters of hybrid dogs a month -- up from about 100 litters a month a couple of years ago.

That's still a pittance, he acknowledged, considering that the American Pet Products Manufacturers Association estimates there are nearly 74 million dogs of all types nationwide. About 42.5 million are purebred and 31 million are mutts. The association plans to include the hybrid category in its next survey, a spokeswoman said.

"Most people still want purebreds," said Bob Fink of Laughlin Kennels in Oxford, Mass. "They're mostly looking for dogs similar to one they had as a child, or one they've had before, or one their neighbors have."

But he and other local pet dealers say they've seen a sharp increase in demand for hybrid dogs in the past year or so, especially with the publicity given to celebrities and their dogs, said Rivers of Pets' World. "We have a lot of people asking for "maltipoos" (maltese-poodles) because that's what Jessica Simpson has."

Gonsalves estimates that 20 percent of the 85 to 100 dogs sold each month at Rumford Pet Center are hybrids. Puggles, labradoodles and cock-a-poos are among the most popular, he said, but virtually any combination will sell.

"If they're cute, we bring them in," he said.

PEOPLE HAVE BEEN breeding hybrids for generations, Garner said. He and his wife crossbred their Samoyed and husky nearly 40 years ago. They later crossbred other purebred dogs, "just to have something different to offer" local pet stores that sold on their behalf.

Eventually, they launched America's Pet Registry, an international organization of people dedicated to the breeding and ownership of dogs and cats, and began tracking hybrids through the American Canine Hybrid Club formed in 1992.

By then, crossbreeding was already serious business. It started in earnest about 30 years ago, when Australian breeders began concentrating on labradoodles, combining Labrador retrievers with poodles to come up with a hypoallergenic house pet, Garner said. The goal was a full-size dog that was as friendly and easy to train as a lab, but with the smarts and non-shedding hair of a poodle.

The Australian breeders have since standardized this breeding process to come up with a consistent line of dogs that is screened for genetics and health, like any purebred line, Garner said. "They're now technically the same as a purebred," he said.

But few hybrid breeders in this country have invested the time or commitment to come up with uniform standards and controls for other mixed breeds, Garner said.

In fact, there are no standards or controls for most of the breeders who are popping up in increasing numbers, trying to feed the growing demand for designer dogs. And the designs change daily, he said, noting that his registry has about 200 registered hybrid breeds on file right now and new ones are added every week. (The breeder gets to pick the name for the dog they create, or Garner's staff will do it for them.)

The breeders usually advertise in local newspapers or on the Internet, or sell through pet stores who get their collections of puppies from any of a number of breeders nationwide.

Garner is among those who caution people to buy from reputable breeders or pet stores, to help ensure the puppy's health and safety.

But there really are no guarantees when it comes to hybrids, the AKC's Marshall noted. No one can predict how the hybrids eventually will turn out.

Marshall said many would-be pet owners would be just as well off looking for a dog at local shelters. "You don't have to pay $1,500 (for a designer dog) when you can go to a shelter. There are a lot of dogs that need homes and a lot of them turn out to be these designer breeds."

But Jean McGroarty, executive director of the Animal Rescue League in Providence, said she hasn't seen any designer dogs abandoned there yet. Still, she has seen some pretty strange combinations over the years, including a cross between a German shepherd and a pit bull.

When it comes to choosing a dog, McGroarty said she believes people should go for temperament instead of looks or lineage. "To compare (a purebred or hybrid) to one that's a wonderful, loving dog that doesn't have clear lineage, I would rather have the mutt."

WENDY SMITH SAID she and her husband, Jim Hummel, first turned to the local shelter when they decided to get a dog for their twins, Alex and Cam, age 8. But her main concern was finding a dog that didn't shed -- and the shelters couldn't guarantee that.

A neighbor who was also researching dogs convinced her that a "doodle" -- a poodle combination -- would be the best bet for a non-shedding dog with a good temperament that would be good with kids.

So she put her family's name on a waiting list for a goldendoodle from a local pet store. But after waiting for months, and with no puppies in sight, they saw an advertisement for labradoodles from a breeder in Rehoboth. And when they saw the litter -- two black and three golden labradoodles -- they fell in love with a black one and named her Riley.

Smith said the dog does indeed seem to have the personality of a lab and the intelligence of a poodle. The kids absolutely adore their new pup.

That's how the Friedmans feel about their goldendoodle, Cinnamon.

"She's the best dog," Lisa Friedman said. "I wouldn't get anything else."

They got Cinnamon last February, days after their last dog, Freckles, a cocker spaniel, died unexpectedly at age 6. Friedman said the entire family -- she, husband Joe, and their children, Danielle, 11, Jonathan, 8, and Grant, 6 -- was heartbroken by the dog's death, so they went to the Rumford Pet Center one night, "just to look."

Only a handful of puppies were there, but the Friedmans instantly fell in love with Cinnamon, one of six puppies brought in from a breeder in Missouri. They brought her home that night.

"She's my pal," Lisa Friedman said. "She's a really nice dog."

THE D'AMBRA FAMILY of North Attleboro wasn't even in the market for a puppy when they wound up with Ollie, an adorable Pomeranian-Chihuahua mix (the American Canine Hybrid Club calls this a chiranian).

Cindy D'Ambra said her friend had bought Ollie for $500 as a Christmas gift for her brother, whose dog had recently died. But the brother didn't want the dog, and D'Ambra thought it was so cute that she agreed to buy it from her friend.

"I have four kids and we all fell in love with it," said D'Ambra, who carries the tiny puppy in her arms.

Ollie, who weighs about six pounds at 12 weeks old, won't grow much bigger, D'Ambra said. That's fine with her: Their last dog -- a yellow lab -- was known to knock over her kids, Philip, 12, Savannah, 10, Brian, 8, and Felicia, 6.

"I'm not a dog lover," D'Ambra said, but but it's hard not to love Ollie. "He's just so damned cute."

Garner said he enjoys seeing the new mixes like Ollie being reported to his club every week. But he won't even try to predict the next hot dog, or the most unusual mix. "I'm waiting on a St. Bernard-Yorkie cross, but I haven't seen it yet."

lkirk@projo.com / (401) 277-7379

Dogs by the numbers

Of the 73 million pet dogs in the United States, 42.5 million are purebreds and 31 million are mutts.

Americans spend at least $14 billion a year on dogs, while purebred dog lovers spend $330 million at American Kennel Club dog shows each year.

A Morkie pet (Maltese/Yorkshire terrier) on divapup.com just sold for $5,000, at least twice as much as either of its purebred parents.