Mixed breed puppies are a testament to the wonders of nature, they defy all descriptions and expectations and come in different quirky colors, sizes, shapes, and patterns. While all puppies are good puppies, a mixed breed may excel where a purebred lacks.
Drawing from a more diverse gene pool, mutts are typically less intense than their purebred cousins. Raising a mixed breed is fairly similar to raising a purebred but there are some slight differences that you should be aware of, here’s what you need to know.
Personality
Mixed breeds’ personalities can be as unpredictable and varied as those of their human owners but if you can identify the different breeds of the puppy, you’re more likely to find those breed’s traits carried through.
This can sometimes work in your favor. A puppy that appears to be a german shepherd husky mix is likely to be strong, protective, obedient, and intelligent while a pug beagle mix may be friendly, playful, energetic, and affectionate. There’s no assurance with any mix that you’ll get the best traits of the contributing breeds but the one thing you can count on is that whatever you end up with is something unique.
Grooming
The grooming needs of mixed breeds depends on the type of coat they have. Some blends such as Yorkie white terriers mixes have long, low-shedding hair while others like golden retriever spaniel mixes tend to have long, shedding fur.
If your puppy has a long, low-shedding coat, the hair will continue to grow unless you cut it. You’ll typically need to brush it a few times a week and trim it every 5-8 weeks but if your puppy has a long, shedding coat, you’ll only need to brush them weekly or as needed.
Other mixes such as bulldog dalmatian blends have short coats that only need to be brushed weekly in the direction that the fur grows while blends such as spaniel poodle mixes have curly coats that must be clipped regularly. Curly coats can be relatively high maintenance because of their fine texture.
Feeding
When it comes to keeping your mutt in good shape, measure their food and set specific feeding times on an average of 3 times a day, instead of leaving food out all the time. The amount of food your puppy needs depends on their age, size, build, metabolism, and activity level. If you’re not sure how much to be feeding your mutt, consult with your vet.
The most important thing to remember when it comes to feeding your mutt is that the quality of dog food you buy makes a huge difference; the better the dog food, the further it will go toward nourishing your puppy.
Raising a mutt is a lot like blind dating, you don’t quite know what you’re going to get. When you raise a mixed breed you learn to think in terms of personality, rather than breed which can make you appreciate even more deeply the surprises and joys that come from living with a dog. Shower your mutt with lots of love and you’ll get a lifetime of loyalty in return.
