How big does a Mini Goldendoodle get full grown?

The Goldendoodle Association of North America describes a Mini Goldendoodle as over 14 and under 17 inches at the shoulder, typically weighing 26 to 35 pounds, but any one puppy's adult size comes from its own parents and the dogs behind them.

The Goldendoodle is a cross, and AKC does not list it as a breed. That leaves the association's size bands and the parents' own measurements as the two guides worth using.

What size bands does the Goldendoodle Association use?

The Goldendoodle Association of North America sorts adult Goldendoodles by height at the withers. A Petite Mini is under 14 inches and typically 25 pounds or less. A Mini is over 14 inches and under 17, typically 26 to 35 pounds. A Medium is over 17 and under 21 inches, typically 36 to 50 pounds, and a Standard is over 21 inches, typically 51 pounds or more.

The association says height decides the size, because weight can move up and down, so when a listing says Mini, ask how tall the parents stand as well as what they weigh, and compare that with the 14 to 17 inch band.

What does F1b mean for a Mini Goldendoodle's size?

The association defines an F1 Goldendoodle as a Poodle crossed with a Golden Retriever, and an F1b as a Goldendoodle backcrossed to either a Golden Retriever or a Poodle. The label tells you how the cross was made, and the size of the dogs used tells you how big the puppy may get.

Which way the backcross went matters for size. A Golden Retriever stands 21½ to 24 inches and weighs 55 to 75 pounds under the AKC standard, while AKC lists a Miniature Poodle at 10 to 15 inches and 10 to 15 pounds. An F1b bred back to a Miniature Poodle has one parent from the small end of that gap, and one bred back to a Golden has one parent from the large end. Ask the breeder which breed the backcross parent is, and if it is a Poodle, which variety.

Is an F1b smaller than an F1?

Not by definition, because the association's definitions of F1 and F1b say nothing about size. What sets a puppy's size is the dogs in the pairing, so the parents' heights and weights tell you more than the generation label does.

How can you estimate a Mini Goldendoodle puppy's adult size?

Ask for both parents' adult heights and weights, and ask whether either is still growing. With an F1b, ask about the grandparents too, since the Goldendoodle parent carries a mix of both breeds. Treat the smaller and larger parent as rough bookends, and expect some spread between littermates. If the same pair has had a litter before, the adult size of those puppies is direct evidence for this pairing.

When does a Mini Goldendoodle stop growing?

VCA Animal Hospitals says small-breed dogs usually reach adult size between 6 and 12 months, and medium-sized dogs at around a year. A Mini Goldendoodle at 26 to 35 pounds falls toward the medium end of that range, so plan for growth through most of the first year.

What health testing should the parents have?

Each parent breed's national club recommends exams for breeding dogs. For the Golden Retriever that is hip and elbow evaluations, a cardiac exam, an eye exam by a veterinary ophthalmologist and a DNA test for the Golden form of neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis. For the Miniature Poodle it is a patella evaluation, a hip evaluation, an eye exam and the PRA-prcd DNA test. Ask which of these the parents have had.

See F1b Mini Goldendoodle puppies

F1b Mini Goldendoodle litters on Puppy Connection are each posted by the breeder, and the listing is where to start asking how tall the parents stand and which breed the backcross parent is.