Hypoallergenic: Marketing Scheme or Truth?
By Ashton Kent

This is the constant debate among breeders and the general public. Are Doodles hypoallergenic or it is just a big marketing scheme to sell more dogs? Let’s start with the definition of Hypoallergenic. Hypoallergenic simply means it is less likely to cause an allergic reaction. Hypo meaning less or lower than. This is the place to start because many people are under the false idea that hypoallergenic means will not cause allergic reactions, when in fact it just means less likely to cause allergic reactions.
When comparing a Goldendoodle to a Golden Retriever for instance, the Goldendoodle is absolutely hypoallergenic because it is less likely to cause an allergic reaction. There is a big problem with this though. We as breeders need to make sure that we are doing our very best to use terminology that is not only correct but is also understandable and widely known by the general public, so as to not mislead people whether it is intentional or not.

Predicting for allergies

Allergies are one of those things that we as breeders cannot at all guarantee. Every person is individual in how their allergies work and even if we use every resource we have we still cannot guarantee that someone will not react to a dog. It is important that everyone understands that. That being said we do have wonderful resources to help in directing people to puppies that will be better for allergies. Knowing each dogs furnishing and shedding results paired with the actual shedding we see in the parents of puppies, can give us very good indications as to what puppies will be best suited for each family. Our parents are genetically tested for coat traits to help choose the right puppy for your families needs.

It is important to also note that this is all referring to people that have a dander allergy, not a saliva allergy. Saliva allergies are not affected by the coats of a dog, but instead every breed will cause allergy issues with someone allergic to saliva.

Generations

F1 - Poodle bred to another purebred dog
F1b - F1 bred back to a poodle
​F1bb - F1b bred back to a poodle
F2 - F1 bred to an F1
​F2b - F2 bred back to a poodle
F2bb - F2b bred pack to a poodle
F3 - F2 bred to a F2
F3b - F3 bred back to a poodle
​F4 - F3 bred to an F3