Beyond the ordinary
When advertising our first litter I realised that people are not sure what sizes, colours and markings the Bernedoodle can come in.
Here I aim to try explain, Starting with colours, Generations and traits.
Tricolour
Tricolour means a coat of three distinct shades, Traditionally The Black Tricolour of the Beautiful Bernese Mountain Dog.
A black base coat with white on the chest, face and paws, Tan points on the face, eyes and lower legs.
Tricolour can also come in Sable, Brown and Merle.
Sable
Example of a sable colour.
Sable is a brown/red colour with lighter hair at the base of the hair shaft.
Sable can be clear, shaded or Agouti
Red
Red often appears apricot and darkens over the first year, A true red will have black nose and lips.
Red can be solid or with white.
Brown
Brown is stunning, A dilute of two recessive gene carriers.
Brown is unpredictable, Unless heritage of both parents is known via a DNA Panel, Either dog could carry the fade gene, Therefore It can fade to any lighter shade of brown to as light as Cafe au Lait.
Cafe au Lait
The dog started very dark brown and rust, Another pup in the litter stayed those beautiful rich colours, Our girl faded to Cafe au Lait, She is still stunning to us.
Chocolate Tricolour
As mentioned above, This is a chocolate variant of the traditional Tricolour.
Stunning.
Phantom Marked
Phantom
Phantom marked means a base coat of one darker colour and distinct markings of one lighter colour.
Here is brown and rust the pup version of the Cafe au lait above who has the fade gene.
Without the fade gene the colour would stay rich and distinct.
Tuxedo Marked & Pie Bald
Tuxedo is the appearance of a white bib and sleeves, White belly and can have White on the face or not.
A Tuxedo is NO MORE THAN 50% white.
A Dog with MORE THAN 50% is called Pie bald.
Bernedoodle Rainbow
The more Bernedoodles are bred back to the poodle the more colours we see appear, Poodles coat colours are so vast it's an entire rainbow spectrum.
There is a large demand for the tradition tricolour, However beauty is in the eye of the beholder, Personally I think browns and sables are stunning.
All these beautiful dogs are Bernedoodles, 6 are F1's, The others F1b's or Multi gens, Can you tell the difference?
Bernedoodle Size
Ultra Is a Bernedoodle bred back to a Bernese Mountain Dog, They tend to be heavier in bone, straighter in hair and have a higher chance of hair fall.
Typically They can grow 25-28 inch to Withers and weigh up to 60kg.
They often have a stubborn streak, Are very loyal, very child orientated but more aloof with strangers.
They like the water, cooler sleeping spots and because they have a bigger Chest, pant more.
F1 Is a first time cross between the Standard poodle and the Bernese Mountain dog, They offer variation in terms of coat, Some being straight, some wavy, loose curled or full curl.
Typically they grow to around 26 inch at Withers and weigh in the 40kg region.
They are the most likely to have hair fall but some do not, They will likely have a mix of the softer teddy fur of a Bernese and the more normal feeling coat of a poodle, Depending on the poodle used you may also see guard hairs.
F1b This is the most common cross we see for sale in the UK, A Bernedoodle bred back to the Poodle, Mostly this is done to achieve very minimal to no shedding, The dogs tend to have a tighter curl coat, An its very common to see umbilical hernias, These are common in both the breeds, almost always self close before they leave the mum and have no impact on the dogs.
If I am completely honest, I think this generation are easier to train but also a little more nuts, Zoomies are very common.
Coat Care is important but more so with this generation, The coat knots from the bottom, closest to their skin, They can go unnoticed and very quickly cause fleecing and require a full clip off.
This generation see a greater increase in the fade gene which can lighten a coat up to 10 shades.
Typically 22-26 Inch to withers and weighing in the 30kg region.
F2 Multi Gen Is a Bernedoodle to Bernedoodle.
Some have an increased chance of being unfurnished (short hair), This is likely because either parent carries the gene from the Bernese and the breeder either did not know or was wanting a short haired variant.
Most are loose curly coats, very minimal to non shedding, compact, robust and stunning.
Its not uncommon for them to be polydactyl on their hind legs, Some remove the extra dew claw but its not necessary, They once served for traction on cornering/pivoting but as they became domesticated they no longer have that purpose.
Although Tricolour reins as the most popular colour again they can come in a rainbow spectrum of colours.
Typically around 24-26 inch to withers and weigh approximately 35-40kg.
Mini Bernedoodle I won't pretend to be a font of knowledge, I have done little research in to the Mini, I understand the breeding process but in my opinion, Type would take many generations for consistency, Of those I have seen available their construction has been questionable and not fitting with the two breeds from which they originated, I would advice anyone to DNA test, Ethically AI must be used with a Bernese Bitch and would require this numerous times, A small poodle can not turn to tie with a Bernese, An if repeatedly bred to just smaller poodles, all trace of the Bernese would be extensively diluted and not a true Hybrid.
I don't imagine pet breeder taking on the expense and time to properly create a true Miniature Bernedoodle.