Adorable, fun but greedy (Poodle)

Member Name: Lady_Alys

Product:	Poodle
Date:	30/10/09 (18 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Spends a lot of time lazing about so little effort is needed

Disadvantages: Not for a busy house and can be greedy with food

This is by far the best breed of dog we have had to date.
We have a Toy Poodle, which my brother named Scampy, he is an Apricot coloured male with a fantastic personality.

Size
In all the books it says toys should only grow to 11inch but ours has grown a little beyond that so he does look a bit gangly. My nan has his sister, named Bonnie, and she is a third of the size. So, if you want a really small poodle a girl is your best bet.

Temperament
Scampy has been very easy to train with basic comands, he sits, lies down, gives his paw etc almost instantly (especially if he knows there is a treat at the end of the act) but he does have his moments where he acts like he can't hear you, especially when he is in the garden.
I don't know if it specific to the breed or gender of breed but Scampy loves to be outside, he lays out on the grass in the sun and runs around in the rain.
Both Scampy and Bonnie are very loving dogs who like a lot of cuddles, fuss and attention. They don't like to be left alone for too long so this breed would not suit a household that is very busy.
They are fantastic with children, always wanting to join in with playing.
However, they sometimes can be quite demanding with wanting attention. When my cousin was round Scampy didn't like him being given all the attention so kept stealing his toy cars and hiding them under the table!
Scampy has never bitten or nipped anyone but Bonnie has very sharp teeth so can catch when playing a little rougher.
Scampy is a lot calmer than Bonnie, he never barks unless there is a sudden loud banging (although fireworks have never bothered him) whereas Bonnie yaps quite a lot. Both these dogs live in seperate houses though and we have been a bit stricter with Scampy.
SO for a calmer dog who is easier to train I would stick with the boys on this one.

Grooming
Poodles do not moult like other dogs but instead it is more like a human growing hair, they do need to be cut or their fur becomes matted and dirties easier. We take both dogs every six weeks to be trimmed down but we have to get Scampy shorter as his hair seems to grow quicker. It costs about £22 per dog at our local pet store so other places shouldn't charge too much more.

Food
We feed Scampy twice a day with some dry mixer food and wet dog food from a can. Poodles are notoriously greedy so you have to be strict with giving treats. We have Milk Bones from tesco, which are 98p a box. You can feed a small dog upto 6 a day and they are 5% fat and have added Omega 3 so are great for this breed.
We also have to be careful about what is in our garden as Scampy has eaten wild mushrooms, which made him sick, and we have caught him licking a slug at nighttime, which also made him sick.

This is the first time we have had any type of poodle and all this information is based on the experiences I have had so far with ours. Every dog is different but we have found our dog lovable, adorable, fun and energetic.
I hope this review helps in anyone deciding what dog to get as I think a toy poodle is great for a household where there are people with more time on their hands.

Summary: Great little breed, perfect for us