Toy poodles measure in under ten inches tall and they’ve done so for hundreds of years. The ones that we have now however, are the result of new practices, new goals, and new improvements made by today’s toy poodle breeders -- and they’re quite different from what we had in the past.

It wasn’t until the last eight decades in fact, that today’s toy poodle came into being. Prior to that, they were rather substandard and strange looking. Breeding efforts were inconsistent and they produced pups that lacked characteristics unique to poodles in general. Only after American breeders integrated the genetics of miniature poodles did we finally start to see the small size emerge problem-free.

The end result was so desirable, The UKC (United Kennel Club) created a category for the toy poodle in 1999. The AKC (American Kennel Club) also has a category dedicated to this tiny version of the standard and miniature poodle.