We will be in touch soon to confirm.
Breed guide · Dogs
Half of him is a gundog. I hide his dinner round the flat so he can find it.
Last updated 14 October 2026
We will be in touch soon to confirm.
What they brought with them.
Tap a card to see what is going on.
At home
Busy and nose down one day, quick and watchful the next.
What's going onA Cockapoo is two breeds in one, and every puppy gets a different share. Watch what they do when they are bored, and you will see which parent is in charge that day.
At home
A sock from the laundry basket, paraded round the room until someone notices.
What's going onThe Poodle brought birds back from water, and the Cocker brought them back from cover. They still want something in their mouth, and your reaction is the prize. Give them their own toy to carry, and swap, never chase.
At home
Every lamppost between the lift and the car gets a long sniff.
What's going onCocker Spaniels were bred to work with their nose on the ground. Let them sniff on walks, and hide food for them to find at home. That tires a Cockapoo faster than a run.
At home
Hardly a hair on the sofa, and a knot behind the ears by the end of the week.
What's going onThe coat sheds less because the loose hair stays in it, which is why it mats. No dog is guaranteed to be allergy-free: a 2012 study found no less dog allergen in homes with Poodles and Labradoodles than with other breeds.
At home
A shake of the head after every bath, and a back foot at one ear.
What's going onThey have the Cocker's long, heavy ear with the Poodle's hair growing inside it, and that holds warmth and damp. Look inside every week, and dry their ears after every bath.
At home
Learns a trick in an afternoon, then works out the cupboard where the treats live.
What's going onA bright dog with nothing to think about invents their own work. Ten minutes of training a day tires them more than a longer walk.
The bit nobody tells you.
Their day
Built for: Working outdoors, next to a person.
In Dubai: Often a long day in a flat.
Their work
Built for: Finding birds and bringing them back.
In Dubai: No birds to find, and not much water they are allowed into.
Their coat and ears
Built for: Outdoor work, in the undergrowth and the water.
In Dubai: A coat that mats if nobody brushes it, and ears that stay warm and damp.
The stolen socks, the pulling on walks, the boredom and the ear trouble mostly come from that gap.
You cannot give them a wood full of birds. You can give them things to find and carry, and the ten things below are how.
Your plan is built around their breed: the health risks for a Cockapoo at every age, and the care that goes with each one.
Join the founding families. AED 1,999 of essential care for AED 199.
Ten things that make their life better.
An English working Cocker parent and an American Cocker parent make different dogs.
Before they come home, and again from 6 months
Why
An English working Cocker parent and an American Cocker parent make different dogs.
What to do
Ask the breeder which type of Cocker and which size of Poodle the parents were, and what health tests they had. Keep the answers. Then watch them for a few weeks: a busy, nose-down dog needs more to do than a calm one.
They have a spaniel's nose and a Poodle's brain, and both need work.
Every age, most of all 6 months to 2 years
Why
They have a spaniel's nose and a Poodle's brain, and both need work.
What to do
Hide part of their dinner around the flat and let them find it. Teach one new trick a week. Five minutes, twice a day, paid from their daily food.
Both of their parents were bred to work next to a person.
Every age, hardest from 6 months to 2 years
Why
Both of their parents were bred to work next to a person.
What to do
If you are out for more than a few hours, arrange a walk, a visit or daycare. Leave a stuffed chew when you go, and keep leaving and coming home low-key. If they are distressed when you leave, contact your vet rather than trying to fix it at home.
A curly coat and a spaniel's stamina, in 45°C heat.
Every age, most of all puppies and from 7 years
Why
A curly coat and a spaniel's stamina, in 45°C heat.
What to do
From May to September, walk before sunrise and after dark. Put the back of your hand on the pavement for five seconds. If you cannot hold it there, they cannot walk on it. Carry water, and ask your vet what length of summer clip suits their coat.
The coat sheds less because the loose hair stays in it, and that is what mats.
Every age, hardest from 6 months to 2 years
Why
The coat sheds less because the loose hair stays in it, and that is what mats.
What to do
Every day or two, slicker brush first, then a metal comb through to the skin. If the comb catches, work the knot out gently. Mats start behind the ears and under the harness, so begin there. Book the groomer on a regular schedule and keep to it.
They will carry something either way. Better that it is theirs.
Every age, most of all 6 months to 2 years
Why
They will carry something either way. Better that it is theirs.
What to do
Keep a soft toy by the door and hand it over when you come home. If they take a sock, swap it for a treat and walk away. Chasing them makes stealing the best game they have.
Hair inside a long, heavy ear holds warmth and damp, which is where ear infections start.
Every age, for life
Why
Hair inside a long, heavy ear holds warmth and damp, which is where ear infections start.
What to do
Once a week, lift each flap, look and smell. Clean with the ear cleaner your vet gives you, and dry inside the flaps after every bath or swim. Leave the hair inside their ears to your vet. Head shaking or a smell is a reason to contact your vet the same day. A weekly ear cleaning routine is in your plan from six months to four years.
Dental disease is on their record at every adult stage, and tops it from 7 years.
Every age, most of all from 7 years
Why
Dental disease is on their record at every adult stage, and tops it from 7 years.
What to do
Brush every day with a dog toothbrush and dog toothpaste, never human toothpaste. At six months, look for baby teeth that have not come out beside the new ones. A dental cleaning is in your plan from age two, with dental x-rays from age four.
Patellar Luxation (a slipping kneecap) is on their record from puppy to prime adult.
Every age, evaluation from 6 months to 7 years
Why
Patellar Luxation (a slipping kneecap) is on their record from puppy to prime adult.
What to do
Put rugs where they turn on marble, give them a ramp to the sofa, and lift them down rather than let them jump. If they skip a step on a back leg, then carry on, tell your vet. An orthopaedic evaluation (a joint and bone exam) is in your plan from six months to seven years.
A curly coat hides weight gain, sore skin and lumps.
Every age, most of all from 7 years
Why
A curly coat hides weight gain, sore skin and lumps.
What to do
Once a week, push your fingers through to the skin over their ribs, spine and hips, and look between their toes. You should feel their ribs easily. Weigh them once a month. If they start bumping into things in dim light, tell your vet.
Four of these are in your plan. The rest you can do at home.
Join the founding families. AED 1,999 of essential care for AED 199.
Their health, at every age.
How old are they?
Their age
the first six months
What to watch for
The care that goes with it
Their age
6 months to 2 years
What to watch for
The care that goes with it
Their age
2 to 4 years
What to watch for
The care that goes with it
Their age
4 to 7 years
What to watch for
The care that goes with it
Their age
7 to 10 years
What to watch for
The care that goes with it
Their age
10 years and over
What to watch for
The care that goes with it
Breed predispositions indicate an increased risk rather than certainty of disease. What is right for them always comes from their own history and an evaluation.
Before they come home.
Types of Cockapoo
The Cocker parent can be an American Cocker, an English show Cocker or an English working Cocker, and the Poodle a Toy or a Miniature. A working Cocker parent often means a busier dog who needs more to do each day. A show Cocker parent often means a calmer dog with a heavier coat.
Colours
Every Cockapoo puppy takes a different share of each parent's coat, so even two from the same litter can grow up looking quite different. The fun is finding out which parent shows through as their adult coat comes in.
The first six months
Their full vaccination course, microchip and Dubai Municipality registration come first. Then handle their ears every day, and spend a few minutes with the brush and comb, so they learn to stand for both.
Puppy health, 0 to 6 months
Getting the flat ready
Put rugs where they turn and run on marble, and a ramp or step up to the sofa and bed. Keep a soft toy by the door that is theirs to carry, and the socks have a better chance.
Ten things that make their life better
Before you commit
A Cockapoo can inherit ear and eye risks from the Cocker side, and joint problems from both. Ask the breeder what health tests both parents had, keep the paperwork, and bring it to their first vet visit.
Before the clinics open
AED 1,999 of essential care for AED 199. No payment now.
For a new puppy: First 30 days with a new puppy · Puppy vaccinations in the UAE · Heatstroke in dogs
When it is not behaviour.
They'll keep sniffing out their dinner. If they stop hunting for it, tell your vet.
Before they were yours.
Before 1900
The Poodle brought ducks back out of the water for hunters. Its name comes from the German "pudeln", to splash in water. The smaller Poodles were later kept as companions and performers.
What they still carryA quick mind, a love of water, and a coat that keeps growing.
1800s to 1892
Small spaniels worked thick cover for hunters, pushing out woodcock, which is where the Cocker's name comes from. In 1892 The Kennel Club separated the Cocker from the Springer, by weight.
What they still carryThe nose down on every walk, the energy, and the long, heavy ear.
The middle of the 20th century
Cocker Spaniels were crossed with Miniature and Toy Poodles in the United States, for a small, friendly family dog with a coat that sheds less.
What they still carryA dog made for the family, from two working parents.
1989 onwards
In Australia, Wally Conron crossed a retriever with a Standard Poodle to make a guide dog for a woman whose husband was allergic to dogs. Poodle crosses of every kind followed, bred by everyone from careful, health-testing breeders to puppy farms.
What they still carryA popular cross with no breed standard, which is why the breeder matters.
Today
In the UAE a Cockapoo lives in a flat or a villa, with no birds to find and not much water they are allowed into.
What they still carryA spaniel's nose and a retriever's mouth, in 45°C heat, with a coat that needs brushing every day or two.
The ones you type at midnight.
If the Cockapoo suits you, so might these.
MaltipooThe same kind of dog: a small poodle cross, with a Maltese parent and a coat that sheds even less.
CavapooAnother poodle cross, gentler and more relaxed, with a Cavalier parent.
Cocker SpanielThe same friendly, busy temperament as the spaniel side of the family, in a bigger dog with a coat that sheds more.
Miniature PoodleA similar size and the same low-shedding coat to keep trimmed, in the purebred poodle side of the family, a little more vocal.
