# Any advice welcme



## Tony777 (Jan 20, 2014)

Hi everybody,
My wife and I are thinking about getting a dog. We have been thinking about either a Cockapoo or a Cavapoo. Could I now pick all of your brains and expertize. Should I buy 50% poodle, 50% King Charles 1st generation or one thats been bred again with a poodle. Does that make sense?
Also, I know that poodles can have eye problems and I know that there is a DNA test for this. Can this eye problem be transferred to Cockapoo's and Cavapoo's? 
I want to get the best dog. Would you recommend a Cockapoo or a Cavapoo?
Thank you all so much for reading this and I hope that I have made myself clear?
Tony


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## kendal (Jul 16, 2009)

All three breeds have their own health problems along with shard health problems, so you need to find a breeder whe has health tested both parent. Poodles and cockers share an eye condition, caves as far as I know have a heart condition. Both tests are fairly simple I think. 

The generation is up to you. I only know F1b (back bred to the poodle). In labradoodals and they have a very curly fuzzy/frizzy coat that is very hard to manège and generally needs to be kept in a short cut. 

But I know their are a couple of back bred cockapoos on the forum so they may be able to help. 


Cavapoos tend to be smaller than the cockapoo but that also depends on the size of the caviller and then ultimately the size of the poodle. How big a dog are you wanting.


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## Tony777 (Jan 20, 2014)

We are thinking about a dog thats not too big, about 12" or so


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## kendal (Jul 16, 2009)

Well you are looking at the size of the parents definitely a toy poodle and either a very small cocker of a small caviller. But you can't always guarantee the size. Some cockapoos on hear had top poodle parent and still reached 16 +inches


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## DB1 (Jan 20, 2012)

Well done for starting your research, if you want a smaller dog I guess a cavapoo maybe better for you (ensure its a toy poodle), otherwise an American cocker crossed with a toy poodle is likely to be the smallest cockapoo. But do research health problems in all the breeds - yes any problems are still hereditary and can appear in the cross puppy, it is generally thought that crossbreeds will be healthier as they have a much wider gene pool, but specific conditions like PRA do not disappear. Ensure the Poodle has been DNA tested for PRA, other tests may show that they do not have it but that does not mean they won't get it in the future or pass it on to pups, DNA clear means they will never get it and pups won't either, although they could still be carriers if the other parent had it. As Kendall says the Cav's have their own health problems too.


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## Tony777 (Jan 20, 2014)

What health checks should I ask for?


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## Marzi (Sep 17, 2012)

Hi Welcome!
Obvious answer would be get one of each 
But first, check you know what you are getting yourself into.
On the left hand side of the screen check out the different forums and click into The Puppy Place. There are some excellent threads about health testing and their importance.
Also google My Dog's Life and check out Jojo's website for lots of quality information about cockapoos.
I have an F1b cavapoo, cavapoo mum mated back to a miniature poodle (don't forget in poodles Toy is the smallest - although there is not necessarily much difference in size between a small mini and a large toy). Kiki my cavapoodliepoo at 19 months has probably reached her full size. She is about 13-14" to the shoulder and weighs 8.2 kilos. She is very poodlie - lithe athletic, very smart - a real thinker. I do obedience and agility training with her and she loves both. She was quite a nervous puppy - but she is incredibly friendly and loves everybody and is generally a happy and outgoing dog. She prefers people to other dogs.
Dot is six months old and is a cockapoo (Toy poodle crossed with a show cocker). She has not yet finished growing but currently weighs in at 6.5 kilos and is a couple of inches smaller than Kiki in height and lenght. I hope that she will end up about the same size as Kiki. Kiki was 6.8 kilos at the same age. Dot is a much calmer individual that Kiki was at this age, and prefers playing with other dogs to socialising with their owners! She is clever and opinionated and also inclined to chew anything and everything she can.
The pics are of them with my 10 year old daughter for size comparison.


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## Tinman (Apr 23, 2013)

Fab pics marzi, your the best to give advice on this one x
Ps loving Lizzie's onesie


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## Critterluvr (Dec 8, 2013)

Before we got our Goldendoodle I was seriously considering a Cavapoo...they were such cute little dogs with sweet sounding personalities. So I researched them a lot and found out that the Cavalier breed suffers from some pretty serious health problems. The main health problem is heart defects and the other (rather scarey) health problem is a neurological disorder. I know almost all dog breeds have some sort of health problems but apparently these defects are very prevalent in the Cavalier breed. This scared me enough that I decided not to get one. I just didn't want to chance it.
Do your own research, maybe there's breeders in your area that do genetic testing on their Cavapoos to make sure the parents don't carry these defects?
Here in Canada it's just the occasional backyard breeder that has them so I just didn't trust them which is what changed my mind.
Good luck!


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## Cockerpoo (Dec 21, 2013)

CKCS have many health problems sadly 

Finding a breeder that does the many health tests needed for peace of mind IMO are few and far between. So many BYB have jumped on the 'designer dog' tag line and are breeding indiscriminately.

Be very careful, choose your breeder with care. CKCS as a breed or a cross are delightful, it's just such a shame there are the possibility of the health problems


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## Marzi (Sep 17, 2012)

When I was looking for a cavapoo, having met and fallen in love with one I asks for breeder suggestions amongst my agility contacts. There are a number of wonderful CKCS who compete in agility. 

In the end the breeder I found was recommended, which I think is always best  plus I met her vet who absolutely put my mind at rest.


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## Cockerpoo (Dec 21, 2013)

Recommended breeders are the best  truly can't beat word of mouth. 

Still searching for my cockapoo breeder, but hard when I am not able to take a puppy till later this year. So end up on a list of potential puppies just hoping the timing works out! 

I keep telling myself that when the time is right, puppy and person find each other


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## Tinman (Apr 23, 2013)

There is a gorgeous cavapoo looking for a new home on here... It's on dawn (Dudley's) post - gorgeous one year old called Toby???
https://scontent-b-lhr.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn2/1528542_10202966189544126_445111683_n.jpg


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## Cockerpoo (Dec 21, 2013)

Tinman said:


> There is a gorgeous cavapoo looking for a new home on here... It's on dawn (Dudley's) post - gorgeous one year old called Toby???
> https://scontent-b-lhr.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn2/1528542_10202966189544126_445111683_n.jpg


What a sweetheart! :love-eyes:


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