You may be wondering when do Goldendoodles stop growing? It seems like they are only cute little puppies for such a short time. Before you know it, the puppy breath is gone. So, how long do you have left of these puppy years? When will your Goldendoodle stop growing? And is a full-size Goldendoodle considered mature? To answer this question, we first have to look at the parent breeds.
When Do Golden Retrievers Stop Growing?
The average Golden Retriever gets 21-24 inches tall from the shoulder and 45-70 pounds. Female Golden Retrievers are usually slightly smaller than males. When puppies get older, they go through a similar awkward phase, just like teenagers. They get tall and lanky and start to get a little clumsy. This phase is where their skeletal system becomes fully mature, around one year of age. Then it will take a Golden Retriever another year before they fill out and become fully grown. So by two years of age, a Golden Retriever is done growing.
When Do Poodles Stop Growing
Poodles come in three sizes standard, miniature, and toy. And each of these sizes grows at different rates. These different sizes of Poodle are what makes the different sizes of Goldendoodles. So let’s look at each one a little more closely.
Standard Poodles
The Standard Poodle grows 18-24 inches tall and 45-70 pounds. And they grow at an almost identical rate as the Golden Retriever. For the first year, a Poodle will grow tall quickly but will seem thin and scrawny. By a year old, they are as tall as they are going to get, and it takes another year to add weight to their bones. So by a year old, the Standard Poodle is as tall as they will ever get, and by two, they will stop gaining weight as well.
Mini Poodles
Smaller dogs grow at a faster rate than larger breeds. A Mini Poodle will get only 15 inches tall and up to 20 pounds. But unlike the standard, this is all accomplished in under a year. A Mini Poodle will become as tall as they will ever get by 6-7 months old. For the rest of their first year, they will gain weight at a steady pace. But most Mini Poodles seem to finish most of their growing by ten months old.
Toy Poodles
The smallest of all the Poodles also becomes fully grown within a year. Toy Poodles are only 10 inches tall and 6-9 pounds. Most toy breeds are entirely developed within the first 6-7 months, including weight. They very seldom keep growing weight-wise for the last few months of their first year like larger breeds.
So When Do Goldendoodles Stop Growing?
Goldendoodles are a mixed breed, so estimating their growth rate is not an exact science. We can take the average of these purebred parental lines to make a good guess of their growth. But this method isn’t always accurate because there is no way to guarantee that the genetics is distributed evenly by the parents. Your Goldendoodle might take after the larger parent more, or the smaller. And there is no way to determine that until they are a few months old.
Like the Poodle, the Goldendoodles size comes in three variations. Each size will grow at a different rate, with the largest growing up the slowest. Let’s take a closer look together with F1 generations in mind.
Standard Goldendoodles
A Standard Goldendoodle gets 20-24 inches tall and 50-90 pounds. They are a mix using a Standard Poodle and a Golden Retriever. Since both the Standard Poodle and Golden Retriever grow at the same rates, a Standard Goldendoodle will as well. Since the Standard Goldendoodle doesn’t have any conflicting genetic factors, these results are standard across the board. You can expect for them to reach their maximum height by a year old, and maximum weight by two.
Mini Goldendoodles
Mini Goldendoodles are also called Medium size Goldendoodles. They typically get 17-20 inches tall and weigh 40-50 pounds. The mini size comes from crossing either a mini or toy-sized Poodle with the Golden Retriever. You will notice that the Mini Goldendoodle will reach his full height within a year, but will not stop growing until two years old to fill in.
Toy Goldendoodles
The last size is the Toy Goldendoodle that grows to only 13-20 inches and 15-30 pounds. The Toy size grows at a much faster rate, though. The Toy Goldendoodle is usually a mix of either one of two combinations, which can make growth rates hard to predict.
- The first combination and the most common is a Toy Poodle father crossed with a Goldendoodle mother. But this Goldendoodle is a complex mix. They are actually combinations of Golden Retriever, Mini Poodle, and Cocker Spaniel to make them smaller than a Mini Goldendoodle.
- The second combination is a Toy Poodle and Mini Goldendoodle. The second combination is not as common as the first and can yield some unpredictable results for growth rates and size. So it is generally not used by reputable breeders. They typically reach their maximum height by 6-7 months and weight by one year.
What About Multigenerational Goldendoodles?
For anyone looking at a multigenerational Goldendoodle, you might wonder when do those Goldendoodles stop growing? And the answer to this question is never exact. Multigenerational Goldendoodles are crosses between Goldendoodles instead of the pure breeds. Since they have so many variables, it can be hard to guarantee anything with them.
An F2 generation full-size Goldendoodle will look different than an F1 generation. Everything from hair type to size is a wild card because there are too many genetic factors at play. Your medium size Goldendoodles might carry the recessive gene to make them smaller than average. If that happens, they grow at faster rates.
For this reason, most reputable breeders do not breed F2 generations often. But if you are interested in them, you should view previous litters. Seeing how the previous litters have grown can give you a better idea of what to expect.
Do Males And Females Grow At The Same Rates?
Researchers found that males grew slightly ahead of females. Some research may connect sexual maturity in male dogs might contribute to faster growth rates. Male dogs tend to become sexually mature by six months of age compared to females that can take as long as 8-18 months, depending on the breed. The female size of Goldendoodle is also just slightly smaller than males, so any growth delay is noticeable.
According to the same study, there is a slight delay depending on if the dog is fixed or not. For most breeds, if they are neutered or spayed before nine months old, they grow slightly faster. And if fixed after nine months, their growth rate slows. But does this change when do Goldendoodles stop growing? Not enough that most people or vets would notice.
Does This Mean They Are Mentally Mature?
If you are wondering if a Goldendoodles full size means that they are mentally mature, the answer is yes. Most Goldendoodles reach full mental maturity by 12-18 months. But that doesn’t mean that your dog won’t have puppy-like behavior. Your Goldendoodle will still love to play and have a puppy’s energy for some time to come. Being mentally mature means that your dog is fully trainable and able to learn everything that you teach them.
Do Puppies Go Through Growth Spurts
Before Goldendoodles stop growing, you may notice that they go through growth spurts. From birth to six months of age, a puppy will do it’s most dramatic growth. If you have a standard or medium-size Goldendoodle, these growth spurts will be the most noticeable. Smaller toy sizes still go through a growth spurt, but it’s not as prominent.
During these growth spurts, your puppy will not only seem to triple in size, but they also go through other changes too. You will notice that your dog will appear to be hungry all the time. They will need the extra calories to help keep their bones and joints healthy, so you shouldn’t limit them. And you might notice that they become clumsy and can’t keep up with their feet. This phase seems to go by quickly because then come the teenage years.
Your Goldendoodle’s next developmental milestone is puberty. They will start to become sexually mature, and the raging hormones come along with it. Your puppy might start to protest or disobey in training sessions. If they are not fixed, you might begin to see other behavioral issues related to that. But this phase passes too, and within a few months, your puppy will calm down. By 9 months for smaller dogs and 15 months for larger dogs, they are developed and almost finished maturing.
Our Conclusion
When do Goldendoodles stop growing? Too soon if you ask us. Take in those sweet puppy years while you can because it will disappear in a flash. But don’t worry, you will still have plenty of years for new and amazing adventures. Just because the puppy years have passed doesn’t mean that your Goldendoodle isn’t down for a good time.
Below is a Pinterest friendly photo…. so you can pin it to your Doodle Board!!
