What’s the difference between an F1 and an F1b or F2 Doodle? What does that mean for an Irish Doodle? We are here to help answer that.
A perfect F1b Irish Doodle Puppy
There are more doodle puppies out there now than anyone can keep track of, and the differences are nebulous, to say the least. Here I’ll try to help you sort out the differences, but also I’m going to try to shed the light on why you want an F1b (like ours at Giggle Tails) versus an F1 when it comes to the Irish Doodle. Read on for more!
Keep in mind that this is an intentional cross and benefits from the health of “Hybrid Vigor”. We are starting at an F1, crossing two different pure bred parent breeds. (Whenever one of the parent breeds is a Poodle, a “doodle” is the result.) Here we outline our opinion of each cross:
The risks of F1
The major risks of F1 crosses are that they are so wildly unpredictable. Their puppy’s adult sizes vary even within the same litter, sometimes by 10 or 20 pounds or more.
Their coats also vary wildly, as they can favor one parent’s coat genes more than the other. This is a significant issue because people seeking a doodle often have allergies or sensitivities. The unpredictability of their adult coat (and resulting allergy factors) is a major deterrent for adopting an F1 cross.
Their dispositions also vary wildly. In the case of an Irish Doodle, a hypoallergenic coat is not the only reason this cross is beneficial for most homes. Irish Setters are amazing dogs: loyal, caring, affectionate. But they also suffer from separation anxiety and have significant exercise needs. The F1 cross may end up with significant traces of their Setter parent, and you will find little balance from the poodle side.
Moving on to F1b - what we breed for our Irish Doodles
We chose to breed and raise F1b Irish Doodles because we believe it is truly the very best mix for the Irish Setter and Poodle. Their sizes and coats are most reliably allergy friendly and the high mix of poodle genetics make them more stable, mature and trainable than their F1 or F2 counterparts. When you read online people discussing their Irish Doodles high energy and destructive natures, or their separation anxiety, they are 90% of the time referring to F1’s. Every F1b we have encountered has had the beauty, playfulness and loyalty of the Irish Setter, with the intelligence and remarkable maturity of the poodle. For this intentional cross-breed, an F1b is without a doubt the safest choice.
F2 Irish Doodles
An F2, or “multi-gen”, is a puppy whose parents are BOTH F1 mixes. These are exceedingly rare and pose their own list of threats. The main reasons are that the puppy could end up favoring one parent far more than the other in the mix.
Our F1b strongly favors the poodle, so what’s the problem?
Again, as noted in our F1 section, an Irish Doodle who takes on 75% of the Irish Setter lineage is going to end up with:
a less allergy-friendly coat
a higher level of exercise needs
more separation anxiety
Whether for beauty, brains, ease or health, the F1b is the obvious choice for Irish Doodles.
Here’s a handy little chart for our Visual Learners:
