Photo: Getty
A monster of FLOOF!
By Bernadette Giacomazzo — Written on Oct 01, 2019
Let's start this post by stating the following obvious thing: dogs are the best. If you don't like dogs, there's something wrong with you. This is not up for discussion. One of the cutest dogs out there is, of course, the Labradoodle, a cross between a Labrador retriever and a poodle. But the creator of this "mixed breed" designer dog says that he's created a "monster." He obviously misspoke, because he meant a MONSTER OF FLOOF AND SNOOZLES. Who is Wally Conron, and what's his damage?
Before we go any further, let's see what PetPlan has to say about what to expect from owning a Labradoodle: "With a cross of two of the most intelligent breeds, the Labrador and the Poodle, the Labradoodle was originally used as an assistance dog. With a double dose of intelligence and friendly genes to boot, the Labradoodle can make a great companion. With a deep intuitive nature, they love to be in an active environment with lots going on to constantly stimulate their inquisitive minds. Labradoodles are perfect family pets as their gentle, friendly natures work well with children and can cope well in busy environments. They do however become easily restless, and as with all dogs shouldn’t be left home alone for long periods."
Like we said, FLOOF AND SNOOZLES.
So let's see what's wrong with our boy Wally Conron here.
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1. He made this statement on an Australian podcast.
According to The New York Times, Wally Conron said that the Labradoodle is "Frankenstein's Monster" on an Australian podcast called The Sum of All Things. The outlet reports that Conron also said that creating the dog was "his life's biggest regret." Well damn, sir! Don't hold back now! Let us know how you really feel!
2. But Wally Conron said that he has his reasons for saying it's a "monster."
"I released the reason for these unethical, ruthless people to breed these dogs and sell them for big bucks — that’s my big regret," he said to USA Today, while adding that he originally bred the dog to help a blind woman in Hawaii who's husband was allergic to dogs get a guide dog. When he crossed a poodle and a labrador and sent fur and saliva samples to Hawaii, there was only one puppy that the woman's husband wasn't allergic to.
3. There's some concern about the quality of breeding.
As we all know, there are many homeless pets currently in shelters that will be euthanized if something isn't done to find them good homes. And, according to WSYX, there's a growing concern that improper breeding practices of Labradoodles aren't just creating "non-designer" dogs — they're creating unadoptable dogs that, ultimately, have to be put down.
4. Wally Conron said that unethical breeders make "crazy" Labradoodles.
"I find that the biggest majority are either crazy or have a hereditary problem. But I do see some damn nice Labradoodles that are steady, just like I’d breed, but they are few and far between,” he said to People Magazine. After the guide dog was sent to Hawaii, Conron had trouble adopting out the other puppies since no one had ever heard of a Labradoodle. That's actually when he came up with the Labradoodle name and people went nuts. The era of the designer dog was born.
5. Labradoodles that are unethically bred have a lot of medical problems.
CNN reports that unethical breeders "blindly breed" the dogs, meaning that they don't look at the genetics of a dog before they breed it with another. As a result of the "blind breed," today's Labradoodles have a variety of medical problems, like blindness and hip dysplasia. What they don't lack, however, is sheer adorableness.
6. The owner of Wally Conron's first Labradoodle has no regrets about getting the dog.
Lara Blum is the daughter of Patricia Blum, who was the first woman to get a Labradoodle directly from Wally Conron. She named the dog Sultan, and she told KHON2 that the dog was a blessing to her mother. "Sultan was wonderful, he was highly trainable, he was very personable, he was very mellow, everybody liked him, he’d go everywhere and people just gravitated toward him even though he was a guide dog. My mom would love going places with him because she loved talking about him and loved talking about the Guide Dogs in Hawaii. She was able to be free, she was able to go and do things again,” she said. “She couldn’t drive anymore so she was able to go places again, she could be on the bus, be on the HandiVan and not have to worry about traffic lights and people,” she said.
Bernadette Giacomazzo is an editor, writer, and photographer whose work has appeared in People, Teen Vogue, Us Weekly, The Source, XXL, HipHopDX, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Post, and more. She is also the author of The Uprising series. For more information about Bernadette Giacomazzo, click here.