Let me start by saying I have nothing against mongrels, I have owned one Heinz 57 and a cross breed in the past and my current dog is a cross breed terrier. In many ways I prefer them: hardiness, less prone to genetic defects etc. But.

What is it with the current vogue for giving them stupid compound names and then charging EXTRA over the pedigrees they came from??? Your lovely Poodle x Labrador isn’t a labradoodle and your cute Chihuahua x Pug isn’t a chug. They are cross breeds and should be cheap. They are still great dogs mind you, just not some wonderful “special breed”. I would say the fashion for them is encouraging puppy farms to churn them out which isn’t good.

Well really it's just an extension of what's been going on forever. Rottweilers, Staffs, Retrievers, all breeds really- were originally crossbreeds. This new batch just have silly names.

I do wonder if sometimes people buy a dog simply as it has an amusing name like CockerPoo.

They do indeed, the worst example being a litter of bulldogs x shih-tzus deliberately bred for no other purpose at all other than for the name...

Designer dogs are a serious bug bear of mine, mainly because so many are crosses that are completetly unsuitable mentally and physically. There is no body to govern cross breeds so on top of being unsuitable, they can be a genetic minefield. There are very few ethical breeders of crossbreeds and it's only a few of the more well known crosses at that. It is also outrageous that you can pay £400-500 for a KC registered pedigree Labrador from a health tested and sound background, and £300-500 for a purebred poodle, yet a cross between these two breeds, with no guarantees on size, background, genetics, health, coat or even appearance can cost £900 +.

But my main issue with them is the fact there is no need whatsoever for anybody to deliberately breed mongrels and crosses. I like mongrels and crosses, many are nicer dogs than their purebred counterparts, but a mongrel used to be something that came about by accident, not churned out on purpose by greedy people who want to make a fast buck. There are over 200 breeds recognised by the UK Kennel Club, of all shapes, size, temperament, personality and ability. That's more than enough for there to be something suitable for everyone, without purposefully breeding mixed breeds to fill a world already overflowing with unwanted dogs. There is only one reason these crosses are produced - money, which too many will part with without question to get something some unscrupulous breeder has duped them into believing is 'rare', 'special', 'one in a million' or 'a must have' that won't shed and is much healthier than a purebred, which is a load of rubbish. If anything, they can shed just as much and have more issues due to inheriting health problems from both breeds!