Cockapoo Generations explained

Types of Cockapoo
The most common type of cockapoo in the UK is a Cocker Spaniel crossed with a mini poodle, but you will also find an American Cocker Spaniel crossed with a poodle, gaining in popularity in UK too. Sometimes other poodle sizes are used apart from the minis, such as the smallest of the poodles the toy and there have been some matings with the Standard poodles.

There are three types of Cocker Spaniel that can be bred to produce a Cockapoo:

The English Cocker Spaniel

There are two types of English Cocker Spaniel, working and show. The are from the same gene pool just have developed into to two different strains.
The Working Cocker : Tends to have a shorter, smoother coat with higher set ears and a finer muzzle. Bred to be working dogs for game flushing and field work.
The show Cocker: Has a shorter muzzle and a more domed head. They tend to have a longer coat and longer, lower set ears than the Working type.
The American Cocker Spaniel : Generally the smallest of the three types with a compact body, domed head and short muzzle.

What does F1 , F1b, F2 Mean ?
When a Cocker Spaniel is mated to a poodle to produce a cockapoo this is known as a first generation cross and is referred to as an F1 .Sometimes a Cockapoo is mated back to one of the parent breeds either the spaniel or poodle and this produces an F1b. The "b" denotes back-bred. When two Cockapoos are mated together they produce the next generation known as F2s. It is possible that a small number of the litter may have what is called the 'Grandad effect'. This is where a puppy will resemble one of the grandparents, either the poodle or the Cocker Spaniel and is usually referred to as a throwback. An experienced breeder will normally wait till puppy is at least 6 weeks old before being able to see whether any of the litter is a throwback.

When two F2's are bred together , their litter will be F3's and so on..... here is a simple guide:

Cocker Spaniel (Any of the 3 types) + Poodle (Any size) = F1 Cockapoo. Though if Toy poodles are used normally called F1 Toy Cockapoo .
F1 Cockapoo + F1 Cockapoo = F2
F1 Cockapoo + Poodle = F1b
F1 Cockapoo + Cocker Spaniel = F1b
F1 Cockapoo + F2 Cockapoo = F2
F1 Cockapoo + F3 Cockapoo = F2
F1b Cockapoo + F1 Cockapoo = F2b
F2 Cockapoo + Poodle = F2b
F2 Cockapoo + Cocker Spaniel = F2b
F2 Cockapoo + F2 Cockapoo = F3
F2 Cockapoo + F3 Cockapoo = F3
F3 Cockapoo + F3 Cockapoo = F4
F4 Cockapoo + F4 Cockapoo = F5
and so on.................