How a Poodle Changed My Life: 5 Reasons You Should Get a Poodle

With Christmas of 2018 over and the New Year right around the bend, one of the things I’m thinking about is when I brought my dog Sheba home. It was a few weeks before Christmas in 2015.

She was 2.5 pounds, wild and spunky. She was very different from the 3-week old puppy I met a few weeks ago whose eyes were barely open and who couldn’t even walk. She was one of 2 girls in her parent’s 4th litter. Her dad was a maltipoo and her mom was a pure bred miniature poodle. And she was the only one whose coat was as dark as it was (she was a light but rich brown when I first saw her. Now she’s a nice Apricot color). Her sister’s coat was white so I gravitated to Sheba because I’d wanted a brown puppy. Little did I know that I’d be telling anyone how a poodle changed my life and why you should get a poodle.

That night I brought her home, I called my mother. “I don’t think we’re going to make it” I was dead serious while my mother laughed. Sheba cried ALL night. It’s a good thing I’d taken off work. But I found out shortly after that night that I needed to put a large stuffed animal in the crate with her so she wouldn’t feel alone – since she was used to being in a crate with other dogs. I bought one and it worked like a charm. Everything from the first bath to the first walk together kept me on my toes. I was constantly moving around, but this little puppy kept up. She “barked back” at me when I told her to do something. She stamped her paw! It was never a dull moment in our house.

In our first two years together, there were some things that I learned about why poodles were such great dogs. First is that they have high emotional intelligence.

The reality of that time in my life, is that I was in a slump and was burned out. I think somehow she knew. Because we would get up early in the morning, sit in my chair in the bedroom and she would look at me with this expression in those beady little eyes that said “Yeah…I know…but it’s going to be alright”. And as soon as I moved, she moved. One of the things that I also remember was how one winter I pulled a muscle near my groin muscle. I was limping throughout the day, so when I got home I was bent over. When I walked through the door, Sheba looked at me sideways (literally), sat down and then followed me around until I sat down. Then she put her head right near the muscle I pulled and fell asleep when I did. It was the sweetest thing. This dog that loved to play and insisted on playing even when she saw I wasn’t in the mood, put that aside and felt my pain and discomfort and did what she could to bring me comfort.

Second is that poodles are extremely athletic, even the small ones.

Like all puppies, Sheba loved to play and it didn’t matter to her if it came at an inopportune time or not. So I would get frustrated and fuss and yell, until I realized that she needed the proper outlet – exercise. I don’t enjoy and have never enjoyed physical activity but it’s a necessary practice for me now. And having a dog who enjoys being outside and who can keep up when I’m on foot for longer than 10 minutes, helps to keep me accountable. I taught her how to run alongside my bicycle. As long as I go at a slower pace, she can keep up for 30 minutes to an hour. She loves long walks, runs and wide open spaces where she can run back and forth.

The third reason you’ll enjoy poodles is that they come in different sizes and coat colors

They come in toy, miniature, and standard sizes. If you like big dogs, get the standard size. If you want a medium size dog, get a miniature poodle. If you like small dogs, get a toy poodle. Each have different temperaments and athletic abilities, but they are all smart. The variety in their coats are amazing too: white, black, gray, red, apricot, brown, blue and apricot.

Four: they are extremely intelligent

Intelligence in dogs is usually rated in working intelligence – meaning the number of repetitions it takes a dog to learn a task. Border collies rank 1st in intelligence and poodles rank #2. And I quickly found out why. Most tasks only take her 2-3 repetitions to learn. Sometimes she catches on the first time. And even though she’s 3 now, she still picks up on new tasks quickly. This year we’re going to learn agility training because of her natural athleticism but because I also think it will challenge her mentally. I also taught her how to move my hands when I scratch (due to resolving eczema I am still training myself not to scratch). Potty training was much harder than it should have been for a dog with her intelligence, but I think it’s more because of how I trained her (I made some mistakes). The only downside to her intelligence is that she had and still has a strong will for such a small dog.

The fifth reason poodles make good pets is that their coats are better for people with allergies.

Their coats are made of hair instead of fur. And so they really don’t shed until you brush their coat out because their hair just grows instead of breaking off. And they have lower dander in their hair and saliva. She’s never caused me to itch or break out, and that’s saying a lot for someone who has a significant reaction to animal fur and dander.

The biggest way my poodle has changed me, though, is that I have way more patience. I’ve had friends and family tell me that Sheba is my preparation for a child or children. I receive that. Because she has tested my patience and resolve, but ultimately she’s made me step my game up to stay one step ahead of her. She’s feisty and can be quite spastic. But she’s my sweet girl who keeps me company at home. She’s happy to see me any time I come back home. She’s my fellow adventurer who’s always up to going somewhere new or meeting new people. She takes her guard dog job very seriously. And she’s shown me what unconditional love is. I never thought I would be a dog person – let alone one who had a small, feisty poodle. But God knows exactly who and what you need… and that 6-pound maltipoo has changed my life for the better.

Are you considering a dog? Does this make you want to consider a poodle?