I still can’t believe that Cardigan is one already! It seems like we were just waiting for him to be born (you can read about his birth and gotcha day here) and now he’s the most adorable and energetic one year old! And what better way to celebrate than with a cake smash! Cardigan’s cake smash was so much fun! We didn’t use actual cake, but a little decorated cake treat from one of our favorite stores, The Pet People! He absolutely loved it!

Our first year with Cardigan has been AMAZING! We’ve learned so much about having a doodle and a bigger dog (more about that later) over the past year! So just in case you’re like we were and thinking how adorable doodles are but not knowing a whole lot about them, here’s what we’ve learned!

Sweet and Fun Personalities

I know all goldendoodles don’t have the same personality, but Cardigan has really surprised us with his sweetness! I’ve always had a fear of dogs! Especially bigger dogs! So bringing home this adorable little pup who will one day be a big dog made me a little nervous! But he is seriously the sweetest boy! He loves to run and play! Cuddles are his jam! He loves to play fetch with his toys! Car rides are his absolute favorite! He just has the sweetest, chill personality! Our 4lb Morkie is definitely more feisty than Cardigan!

Training is a MUST

We’ve had our little morkie, Pixie for almost 8 years! She’s such a baby and so easy to handle that we never really trained her! We potty trained her and taught her a few commands but nothing major! But with Cardigan, I quickly realized that we’d need to hire a trainer! We would go for walks and he’d pull so hard on the leash! He’d try to jump on everyone that walked by! He’d nip at the kids (I know some of this was just puppy biting but it still needed correcting). It got to a point where I knew we needed a trainer or we wouldn’t be able to handle him!

One of past couples told me about this team of trainers before we ever got Cardigan! Then one of our neighbors mentioned them to me when I asked about her dog during a walk one day! And OMG! Morgan and Cierra at K9 Off Leash Training were a God send! After our first class, I didn’t know if this would actually work for Cardigan, but 4 weeks later, we had a totally different dog! You definitely have to continue the training at home and various places. It’s not a one time fix, but we learned so much from these ladies! We can actually go on long walks in our neighborhood and he doesn’t pull on the leash! He knows how to get in the car and “place” on the seat!

House training is also a must! I’m not sure if Cardigan is completely house trained but he doesn’t have many accidents anymore! At first, that wasn’t the case! We’d have to take him outside constantly! As he got older, we started to cut back on that time! Now thankfully, he goes out before bed and sleeps through the night! We definitely had to create a schedule for him!

Grooming

Doodles need a lot of grooming! Almost daily brushings, haircuts every few weeks! Our little Pixie has a lot of hair, but it’s not as mat prone as Cardigans! Finding a good routine and sticking with it helps a lot!

You’ll Want Another One

Would we get another doodle? The answer is YES! We’d love to get another doodle one day! Maybe in a few years, we’d love to add another doodle to our family! Give our boy a friend to play and romp around with! Pixie and Cardigan don’t play at all! I’m not sure if it’s the age difference or size difference! If I had to guess, Pixie will probably say it’s the size difference! She’s 4lbs and Cardigan is 35lbs!