Breed & History of the Australian Labradoodle

The History of the Labradoodle began with Wally Conron.

The first litter of Australian Labradoodle puppies was bred in Australia in the 1980's by Wally Conron. Wally was a well known trainer of guide dogs in Australia for over 25 years. He usually worked with Labradors and Golden Retrievers, until one day when he received a special request.

The request came from a blind Hawaiian woman who was in need of a service dog, but her husband had an allergy to dogs. For three years, Wally worked with 33 large poodles to find a suitable candidate that showed the necessary aptitudes to become a guide dog. Not one of these poodles suited his work to fulfill the women's request.

With the encouragement of his boss, he decided to breed a purebred poodle and a purebred labrador together. Out of this breeding, Wally found a puppy that was hypoallergenic and had the necessary aptitudes to become a guide dog. This became the official beginning of the Labradoodle breed.

Wally faced a continuous fight against purebred breeders who formed a large part of the dog world in Australia and were against this new designer dog breed. Wally later retired before being able to register his breed with the Kennel Club.

After a slow start, the new breed became very popular with the public.

Doodles After Wally

Following Wally, new breeders emerged delighted with the look of the dogs and started mass production without concentrating on the best feature the breed had to offer - its hypoallergenic potential as well as its service dog abilities. Because of this, the breed soon became undermined. It was perceived to be too nervous and slow to learn commands, thus incapable of becoming assistance dogs.

In the late 1980's, Rutland Manor and Victoria Tegan Park Breeding and Research Centers in Australia both were created with a plan and purpose devoted to establishing breed characteristics for what is now the Austrian Labradoodle. Each of these centers used only dogs with the correct temperament and those that had passed strict health tests to detect genetic disease.

Years of conscious selection by the two centers have led to a dog that is predictable and does NOT have a hyperactive temper. Today we recognize that dog as a multigenerational Australian Labradoodle – service dog, companion, non shedding, hypoallergenic with a great temperament. A dog that is perfect for the role of family member, assistant or service dog.

Classification & Pedigree

While Labradoodles are a cross between a purebred Labrador Retriever and a purebred Poodle, most people don't realize the Australian Labradoodle has a lineage of several purebred breeds including the Labrador Retriever, the Poodle, Irish Water Spaniel, and the English or American Cocker Spaniel.

To be classified as an Australian Labradoodle the dog's pedigree must include a combination of these breeds, and it's helpful if it can be traced back to the kennels in Australia where the breed first originated.

At Majestic Labradoodles we only raise multigenerational Australian Labradoodles that's lineage originated from Rutland Manor and Tegan Park. These dogs produce the finest coats, qualities, size, temperament, appearance, and have the very best characteristics that these breeds have to offer.

Did You Know...

There are three basic sizes of Labradoodles?

At Majestic Labradoodles we raise miniatures and mediums

Miniature:

14”-16” tall and weigh 15-30lbs

Medium:

17”-20” tall and weigh 30-45lbs

Standard:

21”-24" and weigh 45-65lbs

Explanation of Generations of Labradoodles

F1 or First Cross is a puppy from a Poodle parent and a Labrador Retriever parent. Because these dogs do not resemble each other they often have coats that vary in length, thickness, texture, and can range from completely non-shedding to shedding. Temperament and consistent characters are hard to determine. For these reasons Majestic Labradoodles do not breed F1 dogs.

F1B or Backcrossed is a puppy with F1 parent and a purebred Poodle parent which can lead to mixed results with a variety of hair or wool coats. Temperament and hypoallergenic is also often undetermined until the dog is an adult. Due to these factors Majestic Labradoodles does not breed F1B dogs

Multigenerational or Multigen is a puppy whose parents are both Labradoodles. A multigenerational Australian Labradoodle is a puppy with both parents are Australian Labradoodles with a lineage originating from the Rutland Manor and Tegan Park Centers with consistent quality of the puppies coats, appearance, and temperaments. The puppies coming from these parents are generally loving, affectionate, sociable, gentle, non-aggressive, intuitive, and highly intelligent. Making the Australian Labradoddle a puppy you will just fall in love with.

Labradoodle Coats

Multi-generational Labradoodles have 2 coat types: wavy or wool fleece.

Wavy
The soft and silky wavy fleece coat has waves and curls, although the number of waves and curls can vary. The fur on a wavy fleece coat will flow and ripple when the dog moves around.

Wavy fleece hair can grow 4” to 6” long. The wavy fleece coat texture should be light and silky quite similar to that of an Angora goat. Appearing to contain silky lanolin, the wavy fleece coat can range from loosely waved giving an almost straight appearance to deeply waved.

Because these dogs don’t shed, the hair must be clipped or cut.

Wool
This coat, if not trimmed, will become thick and dense with tight, soft round curls. The Wool coat of an Australian Labradoodle has curls that form a full circle and grow tighter as they lengthen.

Unlike the fleece coat, this fur does not move around with the dog’s movement. Labradoodles with wool coats should be trimmed a few times a year.

Color:

When it comes to colors the Labradoodle has something for everyone! Coats come in various colors white, chalk, cream, gold, apricot, caramel, buff, parchment, red, cafe, chocolate, lavender, pewter, and black.