Bordoodle

The bordoodle is an adorable Doodle dog that is a cross between a poodle and a border collie. These sweet and loving pups are hypoallergenic, attentive, and perfect for an active family. They’re known for their unique faces and their coats of soft, wavy fur.

If you adopt a bordoodle, you’ll be pleasantly surprised to realize that your dog is quiet and easy to train. Breeders have been working hard to get the bordoodle registered as an official breed; with a few more healthy generations, that dream might be close to coming true.

The Border Collie was originally developed in the Anglo-Scottish border county of Northumberland as a hunting dog as well as a dog for herding sheep and other livestock. Traits that the bordoodle might inherit are that the dog is affectionate, obedient, and intelligent and has good health, long life, speed, and agility.

The Poodle is an older breed that traces its roots to the 1400s in Germany. It is assumed that their main purpose was to help hunt ducks, which requires good intelligence and awareness to bite gently while fetching felled birds. The French continued developing the early poodle into was called the Caniche, literally translated to “duck dog.” Traits that the bordoodle might inherit from its poodle parent are that it is very intelligent and easy to train, ensuring that it is well-behaved for its owner, but it will need to be kept busy to stay out of mischief.

3 Pros and Cons of Ownership

Size and Weight

Bordoodles are medium-large dogs with floppy ears and a coat of soft and fluffy poodle-style hair. A bordoodle’s coat can be either short or long and can come in any combination of white, gray, black, and brown. These dogs typically weigh between 30 to 60 pounds, and they usually stand between 12 to 24 inches tall. Although females are smaller in size than their male counterparts on average, the difference is not significant. Prospective owners should also be aware that some breeders are attempting to make mini bordoodles, which will be significantly smaller.

Common Health Issues

Bordoodles are a relatively new breed, which means that any breed-specific health issues have yet to be documented. Many mixed-breeds share the genetics of their parent breeds, including health problems; however, because the two types of blood have intermingled, there is a chance that some standard health defects will disappear.

With that said, bordoodles are relatively healthy dogs that have no immediately apparent health issues. Like most bred canines, they have a chance of suffering from problems like joint dysplasia, retinal atrophy, and epilepsy. These health problems are typically more apparent in mini versions of the breed. Luckily, your vet can catch and treat these conditions with regular vet visits. In short, the main health problems your bordoodle might suffer from include:

• Hip and elbow dysplasia
• Retinal atrophy
• Canine dysplasia

Temperament

Bordoodles are sweet, loving, and loyal dogs with incredibly intelligent personalities. You can expect a bordoodle to have the same quick-witted temperament that border collies are normally known for. In addition, they display calmer behavior patterns than both of their parent breeds. The average bordoodle is incredibly involved with their family but doesn’t need nearly as much exercise.

Because bordoodles love to pay attention to their owners, you should have no problems include your dog in family activities. Bordoodles are incredibly susceptible to separation anxiety, so try not to leave them alone for more than a few hours at a time. As long as you give them plenty of attention and separate them from tense social situations when they get tired, you and your new bordoodle should have a wonderful time together.

Care

Whether they’re a purebred or a rescue, bordoodles are intelligent, loyal, and easy to work with. As a new Doodle owner, you’ll need to put a little extra effort into training and grooming. However, once you’ve established good habits, you’ll love your bordoodle’s sweet and playful personality.

Bordoodles are descended from two anxious and high-energy breeds. Border collies, in particular, are used to being working or rescue dogs, which means that they expect to have something to do during the day. Although bordoodles are usually calmer than their parents, you can help prevent anxiety issues by making sure that they burn off all of the calories they consume. Consult your vet to see how much food your bordoodle needs to maintain a healthy weight, and remember to give it plenty of exercise.

Best Dog Food

Like most dogs, bordoodles thrive when they’re fed a balanced diet that’s full of protein and healthy fats. High-quality kibble is always a good choice, as are many of the premade wet dog foods on the market. You can also cook homemade dog foot with meat, vegetables, and a small amount of whole grains like barley or rice.

The A-Z Animals favorite of the best dog food for Bordoodles is Stella & Chewy’s Wild Red Classic Kibble Dry Dog Food.

This is an unconventional but nutrient-dense kibble with turkey, duck, and chicken. The animal protein delivers vital glucosamine and chondroitin to protect the joints from problems like dysplasia. Since Bordoodles can deal with eye conditions, they’ll benefit from the taurine content as well.

Think about adding Stella and Chewy’s Wild Red Classic Kibble to your Chewy or Amazon cart.

Best Overall

Stella & Chewy's Classic Kibble

• Packed full of protein with beef, pork, and lamb
• Crafted without legumes or poultry
• 81% of protein is from actual animal sources
• "Whole prey” ingredients including muscle meat, organ meat, and cartilage
• No fillers, artificial colors, artificial flavors, or preservatives.

Check Chewy

Maintenance and Grooming

All Doodle dogs have curly coats of hair that need to be brushed or combed on a semi-daily basis. In addition, you will want to take your bordoodle to the groomer at least once a month. Because of the way their coat grows, you’ll have a variety of styling options to choose from. Remember not to let your dog’s hair grow over the front of its eyes; even if you can’t make it to the groomer, you can still gently trim this area at home.

Training

Bordoodles are intelligent and responsive, which makes them incredibly easy to train. Start working with your dog as early as possible to help make sure that your dog knows how to spend its extra mental energy. After you’ve mastered basic commands, you may want to teach your bordoodle some of the more complicated tricks that are normally reserved for border collies.

Exercise

Bordoodles need less exercise than most Doodle dogs, but they still need to go for at least an hour-long walk every day. In addition, you may want to get into the habit of playing fetch with your bordoodle or letting it run around in the back yard. To prevent anxiety, be sure to provide plenty of toys and space to move around.

Puppies

When you’re raising bordoodle puppies, remember that they have a strong herding instinct. Your dog will naturally try to work, which for a border collie means keeping the herd in line. Expect to see small amounts of ankle nipping and pushing, especially when your dog is still young. You can curb these behaviors with training, patience, and a positive attitude.

Children

Bordoodles are playful and energetic dogs that love to spend time with older children. If you’re looking for a dog to play fetch with your kids and accompany them on long walks, the bordoodle is a fairly good choice. They love socialization, don’t usually bark or pull, and only need about an hour of regular exercise every day.

With that said, bordoodle puppies are actually a bad choice for families with small children. This is because these dogs have a strong herding instinct and a long attention span. The result is a tendency to nip at and push young children into line, combined with a persistence that can be very annoying at a family gathering. For best results, don’t leave a bordoodle alone with small animals or young kids who don’t know how to be around dogs.

Similar Dogs

Due to their hypoallergenic hair, poodles are an incredibly popular choice for creating mixed breeds. If a bordoodle doesn’t quite meet your specifications, consider getting a different Doodle dog for your family. Some of your choices include the sheepadoodle, the labradoodle, and the saint berdoodle.

• Sheepadoodles – When you combine the sweet face of an old English sheepdog with the curly hair of a poodle, it’s hard not to fall in love. These dogs are even-tempered and intelligent, and they make a great low-energy alternative to the bordoodle.
• Labradoodles – The labradoodle is one of the most popular Doodle breeds. Because they were bred to be hypoallergenic guide dogs, labradoodles are intelligent and easy to train.
• Saint Berdoodles – As the largest of the Doodles, saint berdoodles are known for being tall, loving, and relaxed. Although they don’t live as long, saint berdoodles will still have an amazingly positive impact on your family.

Popular Names

Bordoodles are very similar in personality to their border collie ancestors, so many new owners decide to give them the same style of name. Popular names for bordoodles include:

• Riley
• Shadow
• Koda
• Bandit
• Bailey
• Luna
• Stella
• Sasha
• Ranger
• Sammy