All About Moyen Poodles

There are so many questions about moyen poodles! Hopefully, you will find many of them answered here as you learn all about moyen poodles – the perfectly sized poodle. 🙂

What is a Moyen Poodle?

A moyen poodle is a poodle who matures at the size between a miniature poodle and a standard poodle. In the US, “moyen” is an unofficial size. That is, it is not recognized here as a 4th size of poodle. Here, it is used primarily as a size descriptor.

What size are Moyen Poodles?

Generally, in the US, moyen poodles are 16-20 inches tall (from floor to shoulder) and can range from 17-35 pounds. The larger moyens are usually 17.5-20 inches tall and 25-35 pounds, while the smaller moyens are 16-18 inches tall and 17-24 pounds.

What are Moyen Poodles’ temperaments like?

They are poodles! That means they are super smart, sensitive, incredibly intuitive and in tune with you, sweet lovebugs with a wonderful sense of humor. If a Moyen Poodle puppy was created with a lot of miniature and/or toy lines, you may get a bit more of the personality traits of those varieties. (See the “How do breeders get the Moyen Poodle?” section below.) If all or most of the lines behind your Moyen Poodle are standard poodles, you will get more of the traits of a standard. Here at Magenta Bay, my pups very much have standard poodle traits! For me, that means less barky, more stable, and much calmer.

What is the difference between a standard poodle and a Moyen Poodle?

For the most part, just size. The difference between a standard poodle and a moyen may well simply be size. Moyens can just be very small standards.  However, if the breeder produced her moyen-size poodles by intervariety breeding (breeding a standard to a mini or a toy – see the “How do Breeders get the Moyen Poodle” section below), another difference may be that a standard is 100% standard poodle, while an intervariety poodle is part standard poodle and part miniature poodle (or toy poodle). Still 100% poodle.

How do breeders get the Moyen Poodle?

There are basically three ways that breeders can get a litter of Moyen Poodle puppies. The first is to import true Moyen Poodles (or Klein or Medium) from a country that recognizes them and breed those dogs together. Those puppies are “true” Moyens or Kleins or Mediums. The second way is something called “intervariety breeding.” The varieties are our three official sizes (toy, mini, standard). So, intervariety breeding means breeding a standard poodle dam (mom) to a smaller variety sire (dad), such as a toy or a mini. This can be done quite successfully if the breeder knows the lines and also knows how to properly evaluate structure in the sire and dam. But, if not, it can also produce a structurally undesirable or structurally unsound dog. The final way to create a litter of moyen poodle puppies is by breeding like-size to like-size. So, for example, breeding a Moyen to a Moyen or a small standard to a Moyen. The latter is what I do here at Magenta Bay Poodles. It is what I am most comfortable with and what I feel produces Moyen puppies with the best structure; one that comes closest to what a poodle is supposed to be.

Are Moyen Poodles pure poodles?

Yes! They are 100% purebred poodles! The term Moyen Poodle does not mean it’s a different breed. Again, Moyen is just a description of size. The dog himself is still a full purebred poodle. Depending on the specific breeding that produced them, they can genetically be either large miniatures, very small standards, or a mix of small poodle (toy or mini) and standard (see the “How do breeders get the Moyen Poodle” section above).

What are the health concerns in Moyen Poodles?

The health concerns for Moyen Poodles are the same as they are for Standard Poodles, or in some cases, for miniatures and toys. Here again, Moyens are not a separate breed! They are poodles. They don’t have their own specific health concerns. In this country, unless imported, they are simply very small standards, large minis, or a result of a standard/mini or standard/toy breeding. If a Moyen Poodle puppy is a result of a standard-standard breeding, his health concerns are the same as they are for a standard poodle. If he is a result of an intervariety breeding, there may be health concerns for both of the varieties (standard/mini or standard/toy) that he was produced from. This can vary depending on his size at maturity.

How long do Moyen Poodles live?

The expected lifespan for a Moyen Poodle is 12-14 years.

Are Moyen Poodles registered with the AKC?

They can be, sure! They are purebred poodles, so can indeed be registered with whatever registry their parents are registered with. So, if the pup’s parents are AKC, then yes, he can be registered with AKC. If the parents are UKC, then he can be registered with UKC, and so on. Again, “moyen” is just a size description! It’s not a separate breed. It’s the same as if you bought a very large standard (sometimes referred to as a “royal standard”) or a very tiny toy (sometimes referred to as a “teacup poodle”). They are still poodles and still registerable with their parents’ registry, regardless of what we are calling the size.

Are Moyen Poodles recognized in the US?

No, Moyen Poodles are not an officially recognized size in the US. So here, the word Moyen is just a description of size; it lets you know that dog is expected to mature to a size between what is typically expected for miniatures and what is typically expected for standards.

Are Moyen Poodles recognized in other countries?

In many, yes! For example, in France, there are officially 4 sizes of poodle: toy, miniature, moyen, and standard. In Germany, it’s toy, miniature, klein, and standard. Of the other European countries that recognize a 4th size, they generally call moyen poodles or klein poodles “Medium poodles.”

What do the words Moyen and Klein mean?

Moyen means medium in French. Klein means small in German.

To learn more about my very small breeding program where all pups are raised only in my home and always as part of the family, where temperament is top priority, and where your new baby will get the best start in life by being raised by a 30-year dog trainer, please click here to be brought to the main page of the website. There is LOTS to see and read. Enjoy!