Goldendoodle

Goldendoodles are one of the better choices for a family with children. Expect a big dog that is high-energy, barely sheds and needs professional grooming on a cycle. The big catch is company: this breed genuinely struggles when the house is empty all day.

Goldendoodle is a cross, not a standardised breed, so there is no official standard for it. The figures above are the American Kennel Club standards for its two parent breeds — Golden Retriever and Poodle (Standard) — and an individual dog lands somewhere between them, varying by generation.

A Goldendoodle is a Golden Retriever crossed with a Poodle, and it has no breed standard, no registry and no guaranteed anything — which is the most important fact about it. A first-generation cross gets half its genes from each parent; an F1b is bred back to a Poodle for a curlier, lower-shedding coat. Those two dogs can differ substantially in size, coat and how much they shed, and no breeder can promise you which you will get. The temperament is usually lovely: friendly, clever, people-focused, and a genuinely good family dog. The cost that catches people out is grooming. A doodle coat is not self-maintaining, and skipping appointments leads to a matted coat that has to be shaved off entirely.

Day to day. High-energy — this is a dog that needs a real outlet every single day, not a stroll. Skip that and you get chewing, barking and digging, which is not naughtiness, it is boredom. On noise, it is about average for noise.

The coat, honestly. This breed barely sheds and needs professional grooming on a cycle. That is the trade every low-shedding dog asks for: you are not vacuuming hair, you are booking and paying for a groom every few weeks, and brushing between visits or the coat mats down to the skin.

Being left alone. Struggles on its own. If your house is empty from the school run until the evening, this is the breed most likely to be unhappy about it — and separation problems are one of the top reasons dogs end up back in rescue.

Training. Eager and easy to train. That makes it a forgiving choice for a family training their first dog, as long as everyone is consistent.

• You want a dog with a reputation for putting up with children
• Someone in the house genuinely wants to run, hike or train most days
• You would rather brush and pay a groomer than vacuum every day
• You have room for a big dog and a car it actually fits in
• This is your first dog and you want one that makes training feel possible

• Your daily walk is really a quick trip round the block
• Your house is empty from the morning drop-off until the evening
• Nobody has budgeted for a groomer every few weeks
• A surprise vet bill would be a real problem this year
• You are in a flat, or nobody can physically hold this dog on a lead

Rough running cost: $$$ (one of the pricier dogs on our list) — because it is a big dog, so food, medicines and anaesthetics all cost more, and the coat needs a professional groom on a cycle, and that is the bill people forget.

Those are relative bands, not live prices. For real numbers across every pet we cover, see the pet cost study and the cost calculator.

Goldendoodle is a cross, not a standardised breed — two from different litters can differ in size, coat and shedding. Everything on this page is the typical middle of that range.

Rescues do have Goldendoodles and Goldendoodle crosses, usually adults whose size, coat and temperament you can see rather than guess at.