Aussiedoodles are a designer dog breed that is super popular for good reasons. Aussiedoodles are adorable, friendly, loving, intelligent, and have tons of energy to play. Furthermore, they inherit a hypoallergenic trait from one of their parents that makes them fantastic for people with allergies or other breathing issues.But when looking for an Aussiedoodle to adopt into your family, you might hear a lot of strange numbers and letters. For example, you could be talking to a breeder, and they might say that they sell F1 Aussiedoodles. And you might be wondering, what is an F1 Aussiedoodle?F1 means first-generation mixed breed, and all F1 breeds are born straight from their purebred parents. So with that said, an F1 Aussiedoodle is a first-generation mixed breed whose parents are a purebred Poodle and a purebred Australian Shepherd. That is simple enough, right? Well, things start to get more complicated further down in generations. F1 refers to first-generation, F2 and F3 refer to second and third generations. However, F2 Aussiedoodles are born from two F1 Aussiedoodles, and F3 are born from two F2 Aussiedoodles. But what happens if you mix an Aussiedoodle with either a Poodle or an Australian Shepherd? When this happens, it’s called a “backcross,” and breeders will add a “b” to the F2 generation, resulting in an F2b Aussiedoodle with more characteristics of the purebred that their Aussiedoodle parent mated with. This whole process sounds complicated, right? As you continue to read this article, we will thoroughly explain how each of the mixed breeds is created and the characteristics they will inherit. Furthermore, we will explain why breeders will choose to produce certain generations of Aussiedoodles.
©Daily Paws
What Does F1, F2, and F3 Mean When It Comes To Aussiedoodles?
When breeding Aussiedoodles, breeders will need a foundation. This foundation will be a purebred Poodle and a purebred Australian Shepherd. These purebred dogs will be assigned the “P” designation on any certificate or bill of health that you will get when you purchase a purebred. However, once the Poodle and The Australian Shepherd mate, they will create Aussiedoodles that will be given the “F1” designation. F1 refers to the first generation, and all mixed breeds that you purchase from breeders will have some variation of this F1 moniker. All F1 breeds will be a 50-50 split of their parents, and in the case of Aussiedoodles, 50% Poodle, 50% Australian Shepherd.If a breeder were to take two F1 Aussiedoodles and have them mate, the puppies they produce would be considered F2, or second generation. Likewise, breeding two F2 Aussiedoodles will produce a litter of F3 Aussiedoodles. However, any generation after F2 will usually be considered “Multi-Generation.” That said, producing anything past F1 Aussiedoodles or other doodle breed is rarely done.Because the purebred parents of the Aussiedoodle have drastically different coats, the Aussiedoodles they produce can have a wide variety of fur types. For example, some Aussiedoodles have short and curly hair, while others have long and wavy and every coat type in between. So, because each F1 Aussiedoodle can be so drastically different from each other, breeding two F1 Aussiedoodles together will produce puppies that will have that same wide range of coat types.However, most people who adopt Aussiedoodles prefer the soft, low-shedding, curly, and hypoallergenic traits that Aussiedoodles inherit from their Poodle lineage. Breeders can target these traits by mating an F1 Aussiedoodle with a purebred Poodle. This process is called backcrossing, and the resulting litter of puppies will be F1b Aussiedoodles. Of course, the Aussiedoodle and the Poodle that are meant to mate together should not be related in any way, or the puppies can have defects. The F1b Aussiedoodles will have a much higher chance of having the desired traits of the Poodle while still looking like Aussiedoodles. F1b Aussiedoodles that are bred in this way will be 75% poodle and 25% Australian Shepherd and will have fluffy or wavy coats. Keep in mind that anytime an F1, F2, or F3 is bred with a purebred that shares the same breed as their parent generation will always result in a backcross litter. These puppies will be F1b, F2b, F3b, and so on.Breeders can also backcross any Fb generation with a purebred, resulting in an Fbb. Fbb generation Aussiedoodles will be more refined and will nearly guarantee that they will have all of the desired traits of the Poodle and will be 87.5% Poodle and 12.5% Australian Shepherd. Fbb Aussiedoodles will almost always have a fluffy or wavy coat.
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Why Do Breeders Target Certain Aussiedoodle Generations?
Being a breeder is very expensive, from purchasing the purebred parents to paying for all medical testing, housing, and feeding. This is why buying Aussiedoodles from a breeder can cost up to $5,000. In addition, the size category, coat type, coat color, and coat pattern of the Aussiedoodle you want can drastically increase the price. Furthermore, if the Aussiedoodle you want to purchase has gone through its medical testing can also increase its price. With that said, people are keen to look for specific traits in their Aussiedoodles. For example, most people want an Aussiedoodle that is low-shedding and hypoallergenic, which helps people with allergies and other breathing issues still enjoy having a pet dog. Both of those traits can be inherited from the Aussiedoodle’s Poodle parent. However, because F1 Aussiedoodles are a 50-50 split between Poodle and Australian Shepherd, it is not guaranteed that all F1 Aussiedoodles will have the desired traits. But, breeders can target those traits by backcrossing F1 Aussiedoodles with a different purebred poodle, which will result in a liter of F1b Aussiedoodles. Doing so will increase the chance of having a litter of Aussiedoodles with hypoallergenic and low-shedding traits. Furthermore, most people who are in the market for Aussiedoodles also prefer them to look a specific way and have a curtain coat style. The most popular coat on an Aussiedoodle is a thick fluffy, or wavy coat. For an Aussiedoodle to have this coat, they have to be more influenced by their poodle DNA while developing. Therefore, Backcrossing F1 Aussiedoodles with a purebred Poodle will result in more puppies having that desirable coat.Breeders can further backcross F1b Aussiedoodles with another purebred Poodle to produce F1bb Aussiedoodles. These F1bb Aussiedoodles are almost guaranteed to have all of the desired traits and characteristics most people want in their Aussiedoodles. So, breeders will go through the complicated process of refining their Aussiedoodles to appease the market. The starting cost of breeding Aussiedoodles can run the breeder $8,000 to $12,000 for their first litter. So if the breeder can refine their breeding process to produce more desirable Aussiedoodle puppies, the breeder will make more money.
©Awesome Doodle
Final Thoughts
In order for breeders to produce F1b Aussiedoodles, they need to have an F1 Aussiedoodle and a purebred poodle mate. F1b Aussiedoodles have a much higher chance of having the low-shedding and hypoallergenic traits of the Poodle. In addition, F1b Aussiedoodles are more refined and have only two coat options rather than a huge variety of coats an F1 Aussiedoodle can have. Furthermore, F1b Aussiedoodles are pretty standard but will usually be more expensive than F1 Aussiedoodles.
