Can A Goldendoodle Be A Hunting Dog?

Hi all, Jennifer again! A friend of mine recently asked me if Goldendoodles make good hunting dogs. As an avid hunter who happens to LOVE my two beautiful babies Sasha and Max, he is curious. Although I am not a hunter, I do love my Goldendoodles and thought I would do a little research into their background and discover if they would make good hunting dogs. Please take a peek into what I dug up about this breed for those of you who are hunting whether they would make good hunting dogs. Can a Goldendoodle be a hunting dog? Can aGoldendoodle be ahunting dog? Yes, the Goldendoodle can be a hunting dog if they are correctly bred. Their breed background from two distinct pure breeds offers qualities that can create success in this area. Characteristics relating to their physical, emotional, and mental abilities lend them to be excellent hunting dogs with the right training. The environment in which they are raised and live also factor into how successful the Goldendoodle will be at hunting. Training should begin as early on as possible for the best possible outcome and success. The Goldendoodle possesses the necessary skill from their breed's parental background and the energy level required to be a hunting dog. They also have the resilience and intelligence to learn and execute the necessary tasks. Goldendoodle's size will factor into whether they are suitable for hunting; certain Goldendoodles such as the miniature or small may not be the best choice. The type of hunting sport they will be participating in will also determine success. Each dog is unique regardless of breed, and many factors can decide if they can be a hunting dog. The temperament and personality will determine interest, skill, and success, also concerning this sport. For those seeking a smart, skilled dog with the right breed background as a companion for hunting, the Goldendoodle has the potential to make a great hunting dog. The Goldendoodle is a hybrid dog crossed between two purebred dogs. Goldendoodle's background is a combination of these two breeds; therefore, no two Goldendoodles will be exactly alike in personality, temperament, and physical, mental, or emotional attributes. The Goldendoodle breed background from their parents proves ability and skill in this area. They also have many redeeming qualities that would make them excellent hunting dogs, such as resilience, energy, high intelligence, loyalty, the proper type of fur coat, and swimming. Their hybrid background and these traits can make them excellent hunting dogs depending on the type of hunting sport chosen. What are the qualities that can make a Goldendoodle a good hunting dog? A hunting dog requires many physical, emotional, and mental strengths to be successful at its task. These include: StaminaThe proper fur coatPhysical strengthGood HealthHigh intelligenceLoyaltyResilienceGood personality and temperamentPrey driveStrong bonding abilityA love of being outdoorsOpenness to trainingFocus These are just some of the qualities that a hunting dog should have to succeed in its task. Physically the Goldendoodle must be in good health with stamina, strength, and resilience as well as enjoy being outdoors and have the right coat of fur and body to spend long hours outdoors and successfully execute the hunting tasks. They must also be highly prey driven to be of use in the area of hunting. Mentally they must have high intelligence and ability to focus and the right mindset, personality, and temperament to accept the necessary skills for hunting. Emotionally, they can form a close bond with their hunting companion that is based on a foundation of love and loyalty. The Goldendoodle dog breed has all these qualities from their hybrid background and their unique traits, making them a good choice as a hunting dog. Is there anything that would make a Goldendoodle not suited for hunting? Yes, there are quite a few things that would make a Goldendoodle not suited for hunting. The primary reason not to use a Goldendoodle for hunting is their fur. Doodles coats get matted when wet. They also pick up a lot of burs when hunting in the woods. Goldendoodles fur is higher maintenance than a labrador or other popular hunting dogs. There are other reasons you may not want to hunt with a Goldendoodle. Physically if the individual Goldendoodle was in poor health, had existing health conditions they would be a poor choice for hunting. Poor physical health creates the potential for injury and illness, when this is combined with a physical sport that requires a lot physically it can be a recipe for disaster, especially if the sport involves spending great lengths of time outdoors. These adorable pups can find other tasks and jobs to perform and make great companion dogs. Age also plays a role in whether a Goldendoodle would be a good hunting dog. Puppies are not properly developed physically, mentally or emotionally to be taking on such a task, while senior or older Goldendoodles may not be able to maintain the stamina necessary on all levels to perform such a task. Goldendoodles that have other issues relating to personality, temperment, mental and emotional capacities wouldn’t make a great choice either. These dogs can be wonderful at performing other tasks but if they suffer from an inability to focus or lack the desire to perform at hunting, they of course would make a poor choice for the task. These situations are directly related to individuality and each unique dog and not directly related to this breed as a whole. The best course of action for anyone wishing to train a Goldendoodle to be a hunting dog is to consider the dog as a whole, physically, mentally and emotionally. Considering every aspect of the dog, from behavior to personality and environment as well as age, skill, and desire to perform can offer the best possible outcome for success in the hunting or any sporting area chosen. This breed makes an excellent hunting dog and companion but as each dog is individual like humans, unique qualities must always be considered. What size Goldendoodle should be a hunting dog? The standard and large-sized Goldendoodles may be best suited to hunting. This isn’t to say that a small or miniature Goldendoodle couldn't perform the tasks, but their size might prove a bit more challenging in this sporting area. The drawback is their size. When hunting any game, it is often required that the Goldendoodle cover vast amounts of terrain in brief periods. On top of that, they can require a more significant deal of strength than perhaps the smaller sized Goldendoodles can offer. The particular hunting sport and the terrain will determine a miniature or small Goldendoodles success. All Goldendoodles possess the breeding and ability to make excellent hunters; some however, may be better suited than others to certain types of hunting. What is the best home environment for a Goldendoodle to live in to be a good hunting dog? To be a good hunting dog, Goldendoodle or otherwise, the dog should be raised in a healthy, safe, and loving environment. Their home life should foster a strong connection between them and their human hunting companion from as early on as possible. This bond should be based on love, loyalty, trust, and patience from both sides for training and skills to be taught and successful. If a dog is to be used as a hunting dog, they will bond closer with the human companion that they will be hunting with than the other people in the family. This is normal and expected due to what their task, job, and skills will be used for. This situation doesn't mean that they won't be loving to the rest of the family. Goldendoodle’s are very caring and will share the love with everyone. The home environment should also offer training and teaching skills necessary for their hunting task at an early age. The sooner they begin to receive training and skills for hunting, the higher the success. This training and teaching of skills should be done regularly in the early stages to ensure they learn. As time passes and the Goldendoodles' skills and hunting knowledge are utilized and proven, they can periodically receive review along with the hunting itself, to hone skills. A loving, nourishing home environment that is positive and fulfilling is best for every dog regardless of breed or what their occupation or tasks in life are. Is one type of hunting sport better than another for a Goldendoodle? Yes, there is one hunting sport that is better than another for a Goldendoodle, hunting waterfowl. Due to the hybrid background of the Goldendoodle, they have a strong ability to hunt waterfowl. Their ancestors were successful in this form of hunting; therefore, they will be as well. There are many types of hunting, and the Goldendoodle may be good at any or all of these hunting sports, but hunting and retrieving waterfowl may well end up being their area of expertise. Final Thoughts A Goldendoodle can be many things, companion, newspaper retriever, sleeping buddy, cat chaser, houseguest greeter, and hunting companion. Their breed background, skills, and attributes lend them to this task. While for many of us dog lovers, this might not be the first choice for this breed, they have what is needed to be successful. Those who enjoy the sport don't overlook this "teddy bear" breed; they will definitely surprise you!