Male vs Female Poodle – Which Is Better?

Do you want to bring in a sweet and rambunctious Poodle into your home and your family? If you’re ready to expand your family and become a dog owner, you’ll need to consider what gender of Poodles is a better choice. 

Are male or female poodles better for you and your family?

male vs female poodle
Male vs Female Poodle: Key Differences Explained

Read this guide to learn what gender of this furry animal you should bring home. Personally, I love both boy and girl dogs, but some people have a strong preference for one over the other.

Are Male or Female Poodles Better Pets?

The differences between male and female Poodles can be extensive. While individual Poodles are unique there are some trends that breeders and owners notice. For example, boy Poodles tend to be friendlier and easier to train. They have more energy as well. Essentially, male Poodles try to please their owners more than female ones. 

male vs female Poodle photo
A photo showing a male and a female Poodle. Is there much of a difference in terms of their temperament or trainability?

Girl Poodles are self-reliant and tend to be more determined. You may even find female poodles tend to be more argumentative and challenging. At the end of the day, you’ll need to spend time with a boy Poodle and a girl Poodle to see which personality best fits with you and your family. 

You may think that a boy Poodle is a better choice, but it all depends on the personality that fits best with you and your family.

Boys vs Girl Poodles – How to Choose?

You may see that boy Poodles tend to develop bad behavior if you don’t properly train them. Some behaviors might include humping your friends when they come over! So, you’ll need to train boy dogs consistently to remove any bad behavior.

two Poodles in playhouse
The two Poodles stay in a playhouse. (Image: Instagram/@q__dogs)

Usually, male poodles are neutered at five months of age. Furthermore, you may find that boy Poodles tend to be more reliant on their owners than a girl Poodle. Female Poodles tend to be more clever and intelligent. Girls can be playful but not as much as male poodles.

As such, it is not always easy to tell whether Poodle boys or girls are a better choice. You’ll need to figure out which characteristics are most important to you.

Pros and Cons of Female Poodles

You will find tons of positive characteristics of female poodles along with negative factors. Several noticeable personality factors of female poodles are outlined below. 

Pros

The pros of female Poodles include:

  • Intelligence and cleverness
  • Independence
  • Excellent at dealing with stressful environments
  • Great as service dogs
  • Good at bonding with owners
  • Get along well with children and elderly

Cons

The cons of female Poodles involve:

  • Tend to be stubborn and may ignore requests
  • More likely to pee around the house if not properly trained
  • Dog owners find it difficult to train girl poodles

Pros and Cons of Male Poodles

Male poodles have lots of great qualities as well as some more negative characteristics. I’ve seen the typical behaviors of boy Poodles, and they’re definitely a friendly bunch! 

poodle sitting on the lap
A super cute Poodle sitting on its owners lap

Pros

The positive attributes of boy Poodles include:

  • Easy to train when compared to girl poodles
  • Ready and eager to please their dog owners
  • Gentle nature
  • Great at bonding with the primary dog owner
  • Very affectionate
  • Excellent as service dogs
  • Great at comforting people

Cons

The negative characteristics that male Poodles exhibit are:

  • Trying to show dominance over other animals 
  • Tending to devote themselves to only one family member and ignore others
  • Being rather demanding and taking up lots of attention
  • Tending to weigh more and growing bigger than female poodles 

The Differences Between the Two Genders

As previously discussed, there are countless differences between male and female Poodles. Males tend to be more dependent on their owners while acting more playful and friendly than girl Poodles. At the same time, girl Poodles tend to be smarter than boys and more self-reliant.

Furthermore, male Poodles are more eager to please their family members and tend to act very affectionately. Girl poodles can be friendly and playful but less so than the boys. There are also differences in their size and weight.

Size and Weight Differences Between Male and Female Poodles

The male Poodles are nearly always bigger and heavier than their female counterparts. However, the height between the two genders does not really differ. The heights are nearly identical.

teacup vs mini poodle
Comparing the Teacup and Mini Poodle

At six months of age, a girl Poodle tends to weigh around 21 pounds, while a male poodle weighs 24 pounds. Both are at a height of about seven inches at this age. At one year of age, all Poodles reach a height of approximately 11 inches. 

When they’re one year old, a female Poodle weighs 28 pounds, while a boy Poodle weighs 32 pounds. At full growth, males and females reach about 17 inches in height. The males tend to weigh 57 pounds, while a female Poodle reaches only about 42 pounds when fully grown.

Temperament and Personality Differences Between Boy and Girl Poodles

While girl poodles are more independent, you’ll find your boy Poodle more demanding and reliant on you to help. Male Poodles may also favor one person in your family over others. However, this doesn’t mean a boy Poodle doesn’t love every family member.

Poodles want to eat
Poodles wait patiently for their dog food. (Image: Instagram/@toopoodles)

Boy Poodles are easier to train because they love to please their owner. Girl Poodles might be more stubborn and challenging in terms of training. 

Are Male Poodles or Female Poodles Better With Kids and Families?

Male poodles tend to get along well with other pets as well as children, as they are very playful. Boy Poodles generally do better with kids than females, which are more independent and somewhat less friendly. 

poodle puppy swims in a pool
A Poodle puppy swims in pool. Some Poodles love water from puppyhood!

Nonetheless, either gender should work with kids, as both boys and girls can be playful and kind.

Does Neutering Improve Poodle Behavior?

Neutering a male dog or spaying a female dog does provide behavioral benefits. For instance, both boy and girl dogs are much less likely to run away from your home and begin looking to mate with other canines. 

Toy and Mini Poodles on sofa
Toy and Mini Poodles are sleepy on the sofa. (Image: Instagram/@winnieandfloyd)

Male dogs tend to hurt themselves, trying to jump over fences in order to spend time with a female in heat. By removing the testosterone hormone from your dog, the poodle is less likely to be aggressive, dominant, and stubborn.

Dog bites are also much more likely to occur among unneutered dogs who are territorial. As such, neutering helps improve Poodle behavior.

Wrap Up: Does the Gender of a Poodle Really Matter?

At the end of the day, the gender of your Poodle may not matter as much as its training and socialization. The Poodle’s characteristics and personality can change depending on how well you socialize the boy or girl dog as well as whether you spay or neuter your canine.