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Man’s Best Friend? Well, what about women? How about being not only a best friend, but a soul guardian? Men can have their caves and craft beer, but when it comes to the relationship between a dog and a woman? The bond goes deeper than dips, chips and hits!
What do you think of when you think of a guard dog? Probably a sleek, war machine like Doberman Pinscher? Or is it a salivating German Shepherd? An intimidating pit bull, chow, or other breed? What about a … poodle?
A what?
That’s right. A poodle. One of the most loyal and brightest breeds. Hollywood sure has misrepresented poodles, from Bugs Bunny cartoons to sitcoms, they’ve been portrayed as small, overtly styled and fashioned accessories. They’ve even often been portrayed as being ‘French’ but they actually originate from Germany. There’s so much more to them when you dig deep.
Try this on for size: They can get big!
Poodles come in three usual sizes. The smallest, and most-often portrayed, are the little toy-sized and small-sized poodles made fashionable once again by everyone from Elle Woods in Legally Blonde to the Beverly Hills ubiquitous Paris Hilton and Kardashians. More common taking home numerous awards at dog shows worldwide are the ‘standard’-sized poodles. This size can rival and even surpass well known family breeds such as labrador and golden retrievers.
Speaking of retrieving …
Did you know that poodles were originally hunting dogs trained to retrieve fowl and other critters? That’s even where their famous haircuts came into being. How so?
Poodles don’t have fur … they have hair! That’s right. Like other mammals with hair, it continues to grow and needs regular tending. Fur only grows to a certain length and then stops, if you’re curious as to the difference. But all that hair would often weigh down an animal constantly diving in and out of ponds and streams. On the flip side, going totally hairless wasn’t a great option as they’d soon freeze. So, a compromise was born where tufts of hair were kept in key spots, such as joints, to keep them warm.
Of course, poodles have many elegant haircuts. Some just keep their hair trimmed all over evenly, which is another striking and award-worthy look.
They’re smart! Without a doubt, poodles are often at the top of many canine and association lists as one of the smartest breeds. It makes sense, as to be a hunting dog, they need to be able to distinguish between many complex commands quickly. This breeding has also transitioned it into the many signals and corresponding actions seen so often at high end dog shows.
They’re loyalists. In fact, they are very prone to separation anxiety. Don’t even think about leaving your baby behind in say, Seattle, while you try to restart your life in a little Colorado time due to an even clingier (and creepier!) ex-boyfriend!
The most important aspect of poodles is that they make one of the best companion dogs. Although they’re not normally aggressive, they’ll guard your heart most of all. And when push comes to shove? Well, you never know? They might surprise you! If you’d like to meet a great example of a poodle, may we introduce you to Rambo? His caregiver is Jasmine––Jaz!––and you can read his story in Virginia Fox’s cozy Rocky Mountain Yogabook numero uno in author Virginia Fox’s Rocky Mountain Romances series.
