Introducing Mini-Cooper, the Mighty GoldenDoodle

Many of you have followed us for a while and enjoyed Sadie's (our PitBoxer pup) tales. When we moved to Ecuador, she moved in with Stu's oldest and her family. She is now a well loved and well spoiled member of their family. We see her when we visit them in Delaware.

But being without a pup since 2013 was wearing on us. While we love Sadie, we knew we didn't want another pit mix and we didn't want a female this time around. We both fell in love with the Poodle mixes we ran into while traveling - LabraDoodle, NeufyDoodle, GoldenDoodle and of course the ever popular YorkiePoo.

So, we promised ourselves if we gave in, it would be to get a Doodle mix. Looking for a medium sized pup that wouldn't struggle with space when we are in the RV, we initially watched for a rescue of an older dog. We soon realized many of these were troubled dogs, a product of poor breeding or owners who didn't understand what they were getting into. At this stage of our life, we opted for a puppy over an adult rescue. (We may rescue a second dog once Cooper is about a year old).

I ran across an ad for GoldenDoodle pups for sale in the Crossville, TN area. We started talking to the breeder and before we knew it, we had put a deposit on a puppy. Fast forward two months and yesterday we brought home our own little Mini Cooper, GoldenDoodle extraordinaire. Here are a couple of photos of his trip home...in my lap.

First stop was Tractor Supply to get a halter so he could ride in the back seat, strapped in. He did well for his first time ever with a leash. We lucked out and got the harness at 50% off, we also picked up a water dish for outside.

Once home, he's been a jewel - almost too quiet. Weighs about 20# according to our scale. No accidents, slept in the crate all night with only 10 minutes of protest, eating, peeing & pooping all good. Even lets me brush & comb him and behaves on the leash most of the time.

But he doesn't play much. I'm used to puppies wanting to play all the time. Thinking it's just an adjustment period. Also, unless he is really hungry, he ignores treats including peanut butter, bananas and even a tiny bit of cheese. Definitely not food motivated...

While Sadie had her own blog (now merged into this one), Cooper will only have a Facebook page and an Instagram account [@Mighty_Mini_Cooper]. I hope you will follow him there.

His first 24 hours and 1) he slept all night, okay 11-5:30, 2) his first nap in the crate he cried for 20 minutes, the next two times it was 10 minutes, 3) he is eating and free feeding is working well, downside is he isn't food oriented, not even cheese or peanut butter, 4) he whimpers when he wants to go out, we're still working on the bell training. He's not a fan of his worm medicine and other than magazines, hasn't tried to chew on anything.

Ciao for now!