How Smart Is A Sheepadoodle?

Sheepadoodles are a mix between a Poodle and an Old English Sheepdogs. Both of these dogs are intelligent, but the Poodle is known as one of the most intelligent dogs in the world. Therefore, this Sheepadoodle mixed breed is likely to inherit some of this intelligence.

Of course, you never know exactly how smart your particular Sheepadoodle is going to be. As a mixed breed, they inherit traits from a large gene pool. This often means that you don’t know exactly what you’re going to end up with. Some Sheepadoodles will be smarter than others, simply depending on the genetics they’re going to inherit.

At the same time, intelligence is also based to an extent on what the dog experiences. If a dog practices a specific behavior or skill over and over again, they are likely to get better at it. This will often seem like higher intelligence, as the dog has been given time to practice. This intelligence will only be contained to one area, though.

Is a Sheepadoodle smart?

Yes. These dogs tend to be quite intelligent. Poodles are extremely intelligent, and they often pass this trait onto their puppies. The extent that a specific Sheepadoodle inherits this trait really depends, though. Some dogs will inherit more intelligence than others.

Because the Sheepadoodle is a mixed breed, they tend to vary quite a bit. Some will be obviously more intelligent than others. It just depends on what traits a puppy will inherit. There is no way to predict this since it is absolutely random.

Furthermore, it is often difficult to pin down a specific dog’s intelligence. Some canines may be able to learn more complicated commands than others, but this often isn’t discovered until years later. Therefore, you won’t be able to tell how intelligent a puppy is upon adoption. You’ll likely need to wait a bit before you find out.

How Do You Keep a Smart Sheepadoodle Busy?

All Sheepadoodles will need some form of mental stimulation. These dogs are often smart enough to get bored easily. When they become bored due to a non-stimulating environment, they will often try to make their fun in other ways.

This usually involves destructive behavior. Chewing on chairs, eating drywall, and getting into cabinets are all popular past times for dogs with significantly high intelligence. Some dogs also engage in obsessive licking of their paws or chase their tail for hours.

Luckily, there are quite a few things you can do to keep your pooch entertained. You’ll likely need to utilize multiple strategies with these dogs, as they can be quite intelligent.

Training

Training often uses a lot of a dog’s brainpower. Therefore, it can be an easy way to keep them entertained. We recommend training your dog during a few short sessions every day. You shouldn’t train a dog for longer than 15 minutes at a time. However, you should plan on doing more than one session. Preferably, you should spread these sessions out.

Of course, what you do matters. You can’t simply go over the sit command continuously. Your dog will get bored, and it will not mentally stimulate them in the least. You need to constantly introduce new commands to your dog.

In the beginning, this will be easy. There are tons of potential commands for your dog to learn. However, these dogs do master commands very quickly. Therefore, you’ll find a time when figuring out new commands to teach them is difficult. You’ll likely have to bridge into less useful commands and tricks. You may want to take up a canine sport as well, such as agility. These can increase the number of commands that your dog has to spend time learning.

Puzzle Toys

Training requires direct and constant input from a person, though. This isn’t always possible. Dogs will often get bored when people are otherwise not available. Puzzle toys are a great option for these situations.

These toys often include some sort of a treat that is hidden. The dog must complete a “puzzle” to get the treat. The treat works as the motivating factor, and the puzzle challenges the dog mentally. Because these puzzles come in lots of different difficulties, you can find one that matches your dog’s intelligence level. Many can be adjusted as well, which prevents you from needing to purchase a new toy all the time.

Puzzle toys can be set up throughout the house before you leave for work, which gives your dog something to do throughout the day. Alternatively, if your dog is bored, you can set up a puzzle toy and then leave it. They don’t require any intervention from you.

Walks

Walking is a great way to challenge a dog mentally as well as get some exercise in. It does depend on how you walk your dog, though. Leisurely walks are the best. We recommend giving your dog plenty of opportunities to sniff, as this is what will stimulate them the most. Sniffing is like reading books for dogs.

Of course, you can’t let your dog sniff for hours. We do recommend letting them sniff as long as you can. The longer you let them sniff, the more mentally stimulated they will be.

Simply seeing new things will also entertain your dog. This likely won’t apply if you walk the same stretch of road every day. However, taking your dog on hikes and similar activities is often another good option for mental stimulation. You may not be able to do this all the time, but it is a good option when you can.

Dog Parks

Anything that involves playing with other dogs is a solid option. When dogs play with other dogs, they are often mentally and physically stimulated. Getting along with other dogs and socializing with them is often mentally stimulating for a lot of dogs. This is true even if they are around dogs a lot. However, it may not necessarily be true for the same dogs.

If your dog is around the same dog at home all the time, they likely won’t be stimulated very much by socializing with that dog. Instead, new, strange dogs are often necessary.

Dog parks are a wonderful option for this since there are often new dogs all the time.

Of course, only choose parks that are frequented by well-behaved, well-trained and social dogs.

Conclusion

Because they are directly descended from Poodles, the Sheepadoodle is often quite intelligent. These dogs are a great option for those who are looking for an intelligent companion, but you should be aware of what goes into taking care of an intelligent dog.

They can learn tricks very quickly, which is often a good thing. This breed often tends to listen to their owners well, so they will actually follow the commands they know when they are asked to. They are very easy to train and often become very disciplined dogs.

However, their intelligence also means that they get bored easier. A bored dog is never a good dog. This often leads to them trying to make their own fun. Typically, this involves something they aren’t supposed to be doing. They may chew on something out of boredom or even get into your cabinets. These dogs can become escape artists when they are bored.

For these reasons, you’ll need to keep these dogs pretty entertained. This often involves more work on your part. While they are easy to train, you will have to spend extra time entertaining them. Be sure you can commit to this before you decide to adopt one of these dogs.

Author: Kristin

Kristin was born in Tennessee and currently lives there with her husband and children. She is passionate about educating pet parents and helping them make the best possible decisions for their pets. She currently owns one dog, two cats, a lizard, and a variety of fish.