Dog of the Day: Greta the Golden Retriever/Toy Poodle Mix

Well, I would never have guessed, looking at her, that she was a toy poodle/golden. Maybe corgi/golden, dachshund/golden, or even basset/golden, but certainly not poodle. But I have to assume that the gentleman walking her knew what he was talking about, so poodle/golden it is.

And as a poodle/golden, that’s one damn smart dog. (In Stanley Coren’s The Intelligence of Dogs, which is at least a credible source, poodles are the second most intelligent, and goldens are fourth.) Given how much she seems to have inherited from her golden parent, I bet she’s a real sweetheart, too.

Two more pictures after the break.

Never seen a dog like her before. She looks just like a slightly shrunken golden retriever with really short legs.

Never seen a dog like her before. She looks just like a slightly shrunken golden retriever with really short legs.

A little shy, maybe? She kinda looked like she was trying to hide behind the flowers.

A little shy, maybe? She kinda looked like she was trying to hide behind the flowers.

Of course, as soon as she got an itch, all shyness, as well as everything but the itch, was forgotten. Also: look at that tail-fluff.

Of course, as soon as she got an itch, all shyness, as well as everything but the itch, was forgotten. Also: look at that tail-fluff. That is ridiculous.

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56 Responses to Dog of the Day: Greta the Golden Retriever/Toy Poodle Mix

  1. Adam Lang says:

    Incidentally, when I made up my first prototype Dogs of SF calendar, Greta was Miss May!

  2. susan waxman says:

    Hi,
    Greta is our”baby” and you met my husband Rich when he was walking her. Thanks for putting her on your site. Is the calendar still in the works?

    -Susan

    • April Thomas says:

      Hello, Susan. I truly hope that you see this message and are able to help me. When I saw this picture tears came to my eyes. The dog that I grew up with was definitely the same mix. We never knew what she was because we rescued her from the pound, but we knew she was part golden. We assumed that she was part terrier because of her shortness but toy poodle!? Never crossed our minds! I am so excited to finally know what she really was. She was the smartest sweetest most amazing dog I have ever known and I had resigned myself to a life without her equal (she died about 5 years ago at a ripe old age). Her name was Jessie. She looked so much like Greta, its just simply shocking. SHOCKING!!! All the way down to that famous tail poof. Each little curl in her coat was the same. I would not be surprised if your baby is somehow directly related to my sweet Jessie.

      Please, if you have any more information about this mix, please share it with me. Is there a breeder who specializes in them? Do you know exactly what the mix is? For example, how do they not look like a golden poodle? Is it a half and half, or maybe a third generation? like golden toy poodle mix with full golden? I dream of one day having this kind of dog as part of my family again. Now that I know that it is a distinct “type” and that she was not just some random but miraculous mut, I am going to search non stop until I find one again. Please, I beg you if you can, help me!

      • April Thomas says:

        So sad that no one has helped me yet. Still waiting in anticipation.

        • Adam Lang says:

          I wish I could help you, but I haven’t run into Greta again since I first saw her. I am a little bit skeptical of the ‘poodle’ part of the lineage myself, but the man walking her was pretty sure, so I can’t say she definitely wasn’t. However, I will say that I am almost certain she was a rescue, probably an accidental breeding, so I don’t think they’d be able to tell you anything about breeders anyway.

          I wish you luck in finding a pup like this again, though. Have you tried petfinder? Sometimes you can find some pretty amazing pups that way, although of course their breed identification tends to be a little… hit or miss.

          • April Thomas says:

            Jessie was a rescue dog. That is why we don’t know what her mix was. She was definitely whatever this dog is though. You would not believe how identical they look. I never thought I would see the same kind of dog again. Anyway thanks for your reply. Maybe someday I will happen upon another one.

          • April says:

            I have found the answer!! This is indeed a dachshund! A Red long haired dachshund. To be exact. They seem to be some mix of Golden retrievers and dachshunds to make this breed, but it is considered a type of dachshund and is a well established variety. There are also Cream Long haired, which Greta seems to be a little closer to in colour. My Jessie looked almost identical to Greta, except that her head and back hair was a bit darker, so she was red.

            Now I just have to find a good breeder!

        • Jazmin says:

          I have a dog that is identical to Greta !! His name is kuno; unfortunately I have no idea what kind of dog he is .. Most likely toy poodle/golden retriever though I thought corgi for sure!! I found him wandering the streets of LA and he’s around 3-4yrs old now. I love him soooo much ! I wondered if there were any out there like him!

          • Nicole says:

            My pup looks almost identical to this dog as well. I found this thread by trying to look up what he might be. He is the best dog!!!

          • Adam Lang says:

            Goldendoodles are awesome. Golden-ANYTHINGs are awesome. 🙂

          • Joanna Cruz says:

            I have a 14 yr old pup who looks identical! I have no clue what breed she is since I got her off the streets of Mexico when she was 4 months old! She is a little sweetheart and I’m glad to know that there are other dogs like her!

          • Adam Lang says:

            Wow, 14! Sounds like you’re a lucky person, to have such an awesome dog for such a long time.

    • Erin says:

      HI Susan!

      You may have solved a mystery for us! My Rosy looks just like Greta!! I was wondering how tall she is. They really could be twins!

      Erin

  3. Adam Lang says:

    It’s not clear right now. I know I couldn’t sell more than a couple dozen through the web site, given the demographics of the site, but I’ve been looking around for bookstores and tourist shops that might be interested in carrying a calendar.

    If there’s any news, I’ll definitely post it on the site.

  4. susan says:

    Hello, Our Greta is a “mini golden doodle” We got her from a breeder in Bakersfield names Jodi Russel. Her email address is missbhavendoodles.com. Greta is sweet, smart, loving and the joy of our lives and she will turn 9 this December. Hope that helps you.

    Susan and Richard

    • Mike Brody says:

      Greta looks nearly identical to our Golden Retriever/dachshund, Daisy. You definitely have a “Golden Weiner” there. We got Daisy from the Humane Society, but they still had the papers from the puppy mill she was rescued from. Definitely not a poodle. That’s a Weiner Retriever all the way. GREAT DOGS!

      • Adam Lang says:

        Apparently Greta was actually gotten from a breeder of ‘miniature golden retrievers’, who would presumably know what breeds he, well, bred. Isn’t it amazing how different mixes can end up looking so similar?

  5. Lauren says:

    Realize this is an old post, but I recently got a dog that looks a lot like Greta. This is his Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/brinkley.brink.5

    For April Thomas, we were told he’s a Corgi/Spaniel Mix. I get the Corgi thing because of the short legs, but he acts a lot like a golden. Not really sure what he is, but he’s a pretty great guy.

    • Adam Lang says:

      Oh man. That is one cute dog!

      I agree, he looks a lot like a golden. And he has the classic signs of a recessive red coat (I bet he doesn’t have a single black hair anywhere, and no black skin except around the mouth/eyes/nose). Some spaniels have the recessive red genes (e.g. some Cavalier King Charles spaniels) but all goldens do. If he acts like a golden, I’d say there’s probably better than even odds that he’s a golden/corgi.

      Greta looks a fair bit different, actually… her legs are significantly longer in relation to her body size. It’s hard to tell because I’m shooting down from above, though you can sort of get a feel for it in the second picture.

    • April says:

      Thanks for helping. That is definitely a different dog you have there but she is cute! I have found the answer. The people who adopted Greta seem to have been misinformed. This is without a doubt a red long haired dachshund. .. Or maybe a cream one. Not far off. Here is an image that looks even more like my old dog. http://www.bennysdachshunds.com/Girls/Selena-RedLongHair.jpg That is my girl to a T except she had longer legs like Greta!

      • Adam Lang says:

        I’m glad you found what you were looking for! Although the person who actually owns Greta commented above, under the name of ‘Susan’, with the name of the breeder that she got the dog from, so if you’re interested you might want to check that out too.

  6. Ben Tsai says:

    Hello April,

    Our dog, Butter, looks just like Greta to us, except that Butter has a pink nose, lip and around eyes. She also has light eye color, clear nails and very soft fur. We got her 5 years ago from a Petco in New Jersey where there was an adoption event from local shelter when she was 5 months old. People told us she is a lab puppy but we found she gradually turns into a miniature golden retriever and stays around 27 lbs, 30 inches long and 20 inches tall after full grown. She has similar temperament as golden or lab retriever that she loves people very much, especially kids (I guess due to similar height?). There are always a lot of people asking us what kind of dog she is but we always don’t know what to answer. To us, her face does look like long-hair cream dachshund and her legs also seems slightly shorter comparing to her body. We love her very much and we are considering to do a DNA test and if we did, we will share the result with you.

    We will post some of Butter’s photo/video later 🙂

    – Ben & Liyo @ NYC

  7. Adilene Sanchez says:

    Holy heck, my dog looks just like this one, only a couple of shades darker (she was dark brown when she was a puppy and seems to have retained some of this now that she’s older).

    It’s a bit blurry, but she’s got the same poofy tail as Greta. My vet said she was a terrier mix, though…

  8. belle says:

    Oh my God! Greta is exactly our Nicol!!!

    We don’t know, who her parents are – we took her from a shelter in Genua 3 and half years ago!
    Now she is 4 Years old – we don’t know her exactly Birthday – she was a Dog from the Street.
    I was looking about what kind of Dog she can be. I found very fast a Website with Golden Retriever. But for a Golden she is a little to small (48cm from the Shoulder).

    And I found Greta and I was surprised! So ubelieveable similar like Nicol – unbelieveable!!!
    The Tail, the Body, the Face and the way she looks!!!
    Nicol is sometimes shy like Greta – she looks back in the same way like Greta!
    I posted this also in my Group in Facebook – I was so surprised to found a Dog like Nicol!
    And sometimes she is afraid, specially on Silvester about the loud Noises! She don’t wanted to go out this time! It was terrible! One “boom” and she wanted to run to Home!!!
    Normaly she go without a leash – without any Problems – but this Time… not possible!
    Nicol is so amazing, so sweet and always friendly and allways she find immediately new friends! AND! Nicol is everytime hungry! Maybe the have this from the Time on the Street – I think so. But we have to take care, that she don’t eat from the Street! One Second don’t looking to her – and she is eating :/
    I don’t know, how we can remove this in her mind, that she allways get her feeding and don’t have to search more in the Streets…

    I thank you to Post the images of Greta and the answers to this Post!
    I was so happy to find this in the Web!

    Here both together!
     

    It is striking how similar the both dogs looks!

    • Adam Lang says:

      That is a beautiful pup! And you’re right, very much like Greta except with longer legs. Thanks for sharing the picture.

      My girlfriend’s family golden retriever was very afraid of loud noises too: thunder, fireworks, hunting guns, anything. If there is a lot of such noises where you live, you might try one of these… it worked excellently on her dog. They put that ‘Thundershirt’ on the dog, and all of a sudden she calmed down and got very happy, even with thunder and lightning everywhere.

      • belle says:

        Ohhh – I was very busy the last Weeks!
        Thank you for your Answer and your Tipp!

        We stayed in Genua this Time – but now we are on Travel with a Campingcar and next Silvester we choose a quite Place <3
        New Pictures always on our Website ♥

  9. Michelle says:

    We just adopted a golden doodle that looks just like the dog in question. Apparently, the previous owners bought her from a breeder thinking she wouldn’t shed, like a poodle, but she got more golden retriever genes and sheds a lot. Most of the golden doodle pictures I’ve seen look more poodle-like, but yours looks just like ours, like a small retriever with a creamy coat and a long-haired tail.

    • Adam Lang says:

      I have seen a surprising number of teensy golden retrievers since I moved to San Francisco. They are so adorable, I wouldn’t even mind the shedding.

  10. Alexis says:

    https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=At8i_bY3wyjWK2C_NSKAePbwX3U6?qid=20140624025841AAFe4di

    My dog looks exactly like greta 🙂
    I know that her mom was a poodle but i never
    Knew who the father was. Maybe a golden retriever?

  11. Vicky says:

    Our family adopted a pup from ARF. She was 11 weeks old and had blck trim on her ears, a black widows peak, black stripe down her back and up her tail. Willow is now 6 months old and almost all the black is one except for some black feathers around her collar area, tail and just a touch of black on the trim of her ears. I’m going bonkers trying to figure out her breed. ARF said she was spaniel and terrier mix. I think she is miniture retriever and something else. Maybe some of you know. Anyhow she looks just like all of your babies. Identical actually. Floppy ears, with messy feathery hair around them. Short legs, a feathery behind and a feathery tail. Same look in her eyes.
    I will post a picture of her tomorrow when she is awake. She is all sprawled out right now sleeping upside down and all my pics are on my phone.

  12. Kathleen says:

    OMG!!! This looks literally just like my dog. He is a poodle mix but I have NO idea what he is mixed with, but this dog looks identical to mine!!

    • Adam Lang says:

      Unless your dog has really short legs, he’s probably a poodle/golden retriever. If he has short legs he could also be a poodle/long-haired dachshund.

  13. Fiona says:

    Hi there! We have a dog exactly like Greta and also never knew what he was. We used to live in Mexico City and got him there – he was abandoned. We have since moved back to the UK and he lives here with us. We gave him a good old Mexican name “Diego”. He has a fantastic personality – brilliant with kids (must be the retriever element) and also lots of personality (must be the Poodle). Thank you for helping us find out about his origins as we have wondered many a time, and people do stop and ask and I was never sure, but now feel convinced he must be Goldendoodle. 🙂
    http://imgur.com/AsaVSwa

    • Fiona says:

      and here’s a different angle as he looks a bit different in every angle, but he sometimes cowers just like the Greta photo and looks so identical and also when he scratches, just looks identical!

      http://imgur.com/GXdVlfq

      • Adam Lang says:

        Could very well be a goldendoodle… but those ears! I wouldn’t be surprised if he had some cocker spaniel in him.

        • Fiona says:

          That’s what we thought initially, but his ears are actually triangular shape – its just the hair on them is long (I don’t get him trimmed). He trots like a poodle, but does snuffle in the undergrowth like a spaniel, but then maybe that behaviour trait is retriever……who knows! Fascinating stuff!

  14. Kellie says:

    This looks just like my Minnie!(: I’ve been trying to find out what mix she was forever!(:

    • Adam Lang says:

      A lot of the miniature-golden-retriever-looking dogs are half poodle. Or, if they have short legs, they might be part dachshund instead.

    • Adilene Sanchez Mejia says:

      …That’s scary. My dog’s name is Minnie too.

      Image.

      Another picture of our Minnie from a while back. Took this a split second before she turned the other way.

      • Adam Lang says:

        Aww! She looks like she has a short muzzle in that picture, but it must be the angle because in your earlier picture it looks longer.

  15. LULU says:

    omg i cant believe we have exactly the same dog. greta and lulu are identical

  16. Yacko says:

    Hi! I have a very similar dog. His name is Scott. His mother is a Poodle, belonging to a neighbor. She had 4 pups: 2 like my Scott , and 2 with long curly hair.
    I have always believed that has Retriever genes, because when he was a puppy was identical to a Golden Retriever. But he has short legs and the long tail. I love him!
    It is a very intelligent and affectionate dog. I can not imagine a better dog.
    I glad to know that there are others dogs like this in the world . Thank you!
    https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpa1/v/t1.0-9/281282_118197261606482_3167928_n.jpg?oh=9741572468509c0b5bb250dd112b7e95&oe=5721EA72&__gda__=1461287471_947494931e8b2649cfc8c812f9116daf

    https://fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xtp1/v/t1.0-9/3728_1056101231078394_7441178385383111106_n.jpg?oh=4c6389b1d4ebb91260ed2e626330d728&oe=56D437AE&__gda__=1461023945_99b77f26eb8115f11d80066cedb55a71

  17. Denise says:

    Hello! I can say it’s poodle + something, beacause I have a dog that looks like as this one on the photo. His history is: I adopted it on a Petshop; there they sayied its owner bought a poodle, but when it grown up, fur was straight. So…The owner gone to the kennel and claimed a real poodle or money back. They gave her a real poodle; but sayied they don’t want the mixed one back. So she put it on a Pet Shop for adoption.
    On the pet shop they told me it was a poodle + shih tzu mix; but looking at poodle + shih tzu photos on the internet, they don’t seems like my dog. So i found this site… And Greta is just like my dog. So… I think Poodle + Gold is correct.

  18. Korinne says:

    I have a dog who looks a lot like Greta. I adopted her and I later did a DNA swab. I was shocked to find that she is ¼ mini poodle, ¼ mini pinscher (what??) And ⅛ pomeranian. That leaves ⅜ of unknown breeds. The first two are from one parent who was half of each and presumably intentionally bred to be min pin/mini poodle. Her legs are short and her feet turn out slightly, which makes me think long haired dachshund might be in the mix too. Her tail is curled in a cute circle.
    Everyone who meets Lacey Pup tells me she looks like a golden. I describe her as a golden who never got big haha. was.
    She looks nearly identical to Greta and I have no doubt that greta is part Mini Poodle, as the owner said.

    • Adam Lang says:

      A pretty good bet, yup!

      Do you have any pictures of your pup online? If so, please leave some links here, I’d love to see ’em!

      • Derek R says:

        Hello ….
        Ive had my Alex for six years …..When I first got him I was told he was a mini golden doodle…. The paperwork was sketchy but, I always believed he was 50 % most definitely Golden …. Ive been trying to solve this mystery for years and years ago I found pictures of Greta claiming she was a mini Golden which she most likely is but , My Alex is an identical match . I just got his Dan results back today and to my surprise he has NO GOLDEN whatsoever…. One of his parents was or is a mix of Toy poodle and Pomeranian and the other is a mix of toy poodle and pekinese…. The percentages are mostly poodle and pom there’s also a little cocker spaniel in the mix …. NO golden though . I think it goes to show that there may be no definite match for any of these dogs and maybe there’s a lot of look alikes that aren’t the same breed .. Anyways I’ve got beautiful picsof my baby if your interested oh and he is ABSOLUTELY the “Best dog in the world”

        • Adam Lang says:

          Aww! I’d love to see them! And I agree… no matter how good a guess I think I have, if I don’t know both the parents, I’m never 100% sure what breed a pup is.

          Best way to show off some pictures is to post them on a photo sharing site (like imgur.com for example) and then paste links to the images in your comment here.

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