Expression of Behavioural Traits in Goldendoodles and Labradoodles

Abstract

As crossbred dogs gain in popularity, how they express inherited behaviour traits in comparison to their purebred constituent breeds is of interest. We investigated behaviours exhibited by crossbred dogs by focusing on the popular Goldendoodle and Labradoodle crossbreds and comparing them to their corresponding constituent breeds: Standard and Miniature Poodle, Golden Retriever or Labrador Retriever. The data for this study was provided by 5141 volunteer dog owners who filled out the Canine Behavioural Assessment and Research Questionnaire (C-BARQ) online survey. The survey results were used to analyse breed differences in fourteen representative behavioural trait scores: trainability, stranger-directed aggression, owner-directed aggression, dog-directed aggression, dog rivalry, dog-directed fear, stranger-directed fear, non-social fear, touch sensitivity, separation-related problems, excitability, attachment/attention-seeking behaviours, energy and chasing. As expected from a first-generation crossbred (F1), the crossbreds in our study tend to fall between the two constituent parent breeds with some exceptions. Our results suggest that the F1 Labradoodle differed significantly from one of the pure constituent breeds only in dog rivalry, whereas the F1 Goldendoodle behaviour varied from one or more pure constituent breeds in dog rivalry, dog-directed aggression, dog-directed fear, and stranger-directed fear. These results can help advise future dog owners on behavioural trends for particular crossbreds.