Your Purebred Puppy, Honest Advice About Dogs and Dog Breeds

Sensible advice for raising your Miniature Poodle puppy so he lives a long healthy life and seldom needs to visit the vet. Learn about the most common health problems and issues in Miniature Poodles, the best dog food diet for feeding Miniature Poodle puppies and adult dogs, the truth about vaccinations, spaying and neutering, and natural health care.

How To Raise a Healthy Dog

The Best Dog Food For Feeding Your Miniature Poodle

The Second-Best Dog Food

Vaccinations and Booster Shots: Are They Needed?

The Type of Veterinarian I Recommend

Spaying and Neutering: Pros and Cons


11 Things You Must Do Right To Keep Your Dog Healthy and Happy, my best-selling dog health book

Miniature Poodle dog breed

Miniature Poodle Health Problems and Raising a Miniature Poodle Puppy to be Healthy

By Michele Welton. Copyright © 2000-2011

How To Raise a Healthy Dog
Feeding the Best Dog Foods
Vaccinations: Needed or Not?
Spaying and Neutering: Pros and Cons

The most common health problems in Miniature Poodles:

Eye diseases are the major concern in Miniature Poodles:

  • Progressive retinal atrophy (PRA) can appear at 3-5 years old. Fortunately, a simple DNA test is available so you can find out at any time (without waiting for symptoms) whether your Mini Poodle has inherited PRA, or not.
  • Severe cataracts can appear from birth to 3 years old and usually lead to blindness. Cataracts appearing after age 3 are usually milder.
  • Other eye problems in Miniature Poodles include tear duct disorders, corneal ulcers, eyelash abnormalities, retinal dysplasia, and glaucoma.

The most common orthopedic health problem in Miniature Poodles is luxating patella (loose knees). Legg-Calve-Perthes disease is more serious, but less common. Hip dysplasia occurs in the breed, as well.

Intervertebral disk disease (IVDD) is not uncommon in Miniature Poodles, especially in those born with short legs and a long back, which is a deformity called chondrodysplasia. But IVDD can occur in square-built Poodles, as well. My dog Buffy is a square-built Miniature Poodle and she has a mild chronic IVDD.

Epilepsy (seizures) is a real concern in Miniature Poodles.

Allergies (which cause itchy skin and can lead to pyoderma), non-tumorous skin growths, and tumors (usually benign sebaceous gland tumors and basal cell tumors) are fairly common in Poodles. Ear infections are common due to the long narrow ear canals and profuse hair in the ear canals.

Two digestive diseases, pancreatitis and hemorrhagic gastroenteritis, are more common in Miniature Poodles than in most other breeds. Pancreatitis is especially common in middle-aged Poodles who are pudgy around the middle and don't get a lot of exercise. Be sure not to suddenly give these dogs a meal or a treat that's very high-fat, as this is the most common trigger of a pancreatitis attack, which can be fatal.

Heart disease (patent ductus arteriosus and septal defects) and blood-clotting diseases (von Willebrand's and hemophilia A) occur in Miniature Poodles. Fortunately, a simple DNA test is available so you can find out at any time (without waiting for symptoms) whether your Poodle has inherited von Willebrand's disease, or not.

Hormonal/endocrine diseases include hypothyroidism, Cushing's disease, and diabetes.

Rare neurological diseases include cerebellar ataxia (in Miniature Poodle puppies) and narcolepsy.

Mini Poodles are prone to dental disease and harmless episodes of reverse sneezing.


Can you prevent health problems from happening to YOUR Miniature Poodle?

Yes, often you can.

  1. Some health problems are genetic, which means inherited from parents. Genetic health issues are common in Miniature Poodles today because of unwise breeding practices. My book, Dog Quest: Find The Dog Of Your Dreams, shows you how to find a Miniature Poodle puppy who is genetically healthy.
  2. Other health problems are environmental – caused by the way you raise your dog. My best-selling dog health book, 11 Things You Must Do Right To Keep Your Dog Healthy and Happy shows you how to prevent environmental health problems by raising your Miniature Poodle puppy (or adult dog) in all the right ways.

Here are my dog health tips for raising a healthy Miniature Poodle puppy or adult dog:

Obedience instructor and author Michele Welton How To Raise a Healthy Dog – My Philosophies
Read my advice on sensible feeding and health care so that your Miniature Poodle lives a long, healthy life and seldom needs to see the vet. An excellent goal, yes?


Real homemade dog food The Best Dog Food For Feeding Your Miniature Poodle
The best diet for feeding your Miniature Poodle is real food. Real chicken, turkey, beef, bison, venison, fish....This is not "people food" and I'll tell you why.


Natural dog foods for your Miniature Poodle. The Second-Best Dog Food For Your Miniature Poodle
If you can't (or won't) feed what your Mini Poodle really needs, the best I can do is to point out what to look for – and look out for – when choosing a brand of kibble or canned dog food.


Information on booster shots for your Miniature Poodle. Vaccinations and Booster Shots: Needed or Not?
How many vaccinations does your Miniature Poodle puppy really need? Does your adult Poodle need yearly booster shots? The vaccination guidelines have changed. Find out what many vets aren't telling you.


Information on choosing the best vet for your Miniature Poodle. The Type of Veterinarian I Recommend
Does your veterinarian belong to the AVMA or the AHVMA? They're not the same at all, and which one you choose can make a world of difference to the future health of your Miniature Poodle.


Information on spaying or neutering your Miniature Poodle. Spaying and Neutering: Pros and Cons
Advantages and disadvantages of spaying your female Miniature Poodle or neutering your male.