Chocolate Labradoodles a Very Popular Color
The original Labradoodles were a cross between a pure bred Labrador Retriever and a Poodle. These two breeds have colors of white, cream and black, with gray colors appearing within the Poodle breed. So, when these two breeds were crossed, the possible colors that could be produced were restricted to those of the parents.
Australian Labradoodles have both the labrador and the poodle in their ancestry but also may have an infusion of other breeds like cocker spaniel, Irish water spaniel and curly coat retriever. Breeders used these breeds to give a softer coat and to bring into the breed more of the retriever characteristics of calmness and reliability of temperament.
A surprise result of using some of these other breeds the chocolate color that appeared in the labradoodle litters; the curly coat retriever has this color as part of its breed standard and so it is believed that it is this breed that was responsible for the chocolate color. Interestingly, the curly coat retriever is no longer used in the development of the labradoodle breed because it has a clean face (very short hair) and this was coming through in the labradoodle litters. However, it had already given its unique liver color to some labradoodle breed lines, so that breeders have been able to perpetuate the chocolate labradoodle.
This chocolate color has proven to be very popular amongst labradoodle buyers and so breeders are purposely using breeding stock that carries the brown gene. To find a chocolate labradoodle, you will need to locate a breeder who has this color in their breeding stick. The best source for this sort of information is your local Labradoodle Association or the International Australian Labradoodle Association, the IALA. These associations can be found on the internet simply by searching for labradoodle associations. The breeders who are members of these associations are the best place to go to buy a quality chocolate labradoodle.
In a puppy, the chocolate color is a deep, rich chocolate brown, almost black. As the pup ages the coat lightens to the milk chocolate color; time and exposure to sunshine gives the coat bronze or gold highlights. The ends of the hair can become quite blonde in some dogs, in some climates. The nose, foot pads and rims of the mouth and eyes are all 'rose', which is a liver color which matches the color of the coat. Some mature chocolate labradoodles get a sprinkling of grey, called silver, through the coat.
In every other way, the chocolate labradoodle is the same as other colors in the breed. They come in the three sizes – standard, medium and miniature which roughly correspond to the three sizes in the poodle breed. They can have the curly wool coat or the longer, wavy fleece coat, both of which are exceptionally soft. The wool coat is considered the more hypoallergenic of the two; however, the degree to which this applies differs with different people.
All labradoodles, regardless of color, are wonderful companions and family
pets. They are sociable and friendly, intuitive and intelligent and just
want to be considered a member of the family. They are renowned for their
ease of trainability and for their ability to be taught all manner of
fancy tricks. Labradoodles love to learn and to please their human friends,
which is why they are a popular choice as Companion Dogs.