# Need advise on my 8 month old male standard - HELP



## revpar (Dec 22, 2011)

When I was 16 years old I often took care of our neighbor’s dog, Chou, a black standard poodle. I’ll never forget what a wonderful animal he was and ever since then (40 years ago), I told myself that when I would grow up I would have a black standard poodle. Be careful for what you wish.

Hi, I’m new to this forum and in desperate need of help. I’m the proud owner of an 8 month black standard male. I’ve had him for 4 months. The breeder told me he was the best male of the litter, the alpha male, but then corrected herself, he was the confident male. In fact, she wanted to keep him for showing but decided to keep his sister instead. Oliver comes from a champion dad, plus a cousins that won Best in Show at a national championship. But to me he’s my pet and I don’t plan to show him, plus he’s neutered. He is beautiful, smart (aren’t they all) and a very energetic puppy. He’s a bit alpha, however in my household I’ve established myself as the leader of my home. No problems in that regard.

But I’m having quite a few issues with his sometime aggressive behavior. Ok, so now I know that standard poodles are amazing guard dogs. Yikes, he has a loud bark and he’s definitely scary to strangers. Now I know why so many people think that standard poodles are mean. He’s great on walks and has amazing leash manners UNTIL another dog is in his sight, then all bets are off. I’m working with a trainer – she calls it leash excitement – and it’s getting better. But here’s where I need help and hopefully someone out there can tell me if this is fixable – the CAR! Yes, the biggest problem I have is his aggression while we’re in the car. He gets so angry when he sees a jogger, a pedestrian, another dog, anything that moves on the road. It’s become so dangerous that I’ve had to put him in a harness, but even that is causing problems because he get’s so excited he twists himself up in knots, only to worsen the problem. I could try a crate, but it would block my view. Honestly, I can’t take him anywhere.

I’m hoping someone can give me advice on how to get through this issue, and hopefully tell me that it’s a temporary problem. 
The breeder tells me that she never had this problem with his mom or dad. I was hoping for a gentle, mellow walking partner, a dog that likes all strangers, a happy go lucky fellow. Will I get there? PLEASE HELP!


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

I am uncomfortable with your use of the alpha concept - the whole dog-out-to-dominate the world thing has been disproven by large quantities of research in recent years - it was based on a misunderstanding of how wolf packs work, and some dodgy extrapolation to domestic dogs. At 8 months he is a puppy, needing firm, loving parenting, and he may also be going through a fear period. I suspect his "aggression" is actually more to do with anxiety at things he fears may be threatening, or with frustration at not being able to reach potential playmates. Has he been well socialised to all sorts of people and dogs? Have you kept up with gently and calmly introducing him to new things every day? Do you work on frustration control, asking him to wait politely for things he wants? All of these are essential to a puppy's education, and to teaching him to be the sensible dog you want to live with for years to come.

As a short term management, I would crate him in the car, and if necessary cover the crate - if he can't see stuff, he is less likely to react to it. If you cannot fit in a large enough crate, is there some way you can screen the windows? Then think through what exactly is causing him to react - seeing someone moving a hundred yards away? 50 yards away? Right up by the car? What do you do when he starts barking? Do you join in (we all do on occasion!), thus convincing him there really is something to bark about? What does his body language tell you? Is he excited, tail wagging, at least at first, or does he seem anxious and trying to chase the scarey thing away? Barking when the car is moving must be very rewarding, as the distance from the scarey thing increases rapidly, which proves the barking worked! Read up on counter conditioning and desensitising - and if necessary get in touch with a suitably qualified trainer, who has real, practical experience of these methods. Plenty of exercise - both physical and mental - and play sessions with well-socialised dogs will also help.


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## neVar (Dec 25, 2009)

He sounds like he needs some obedience classes and some socialization. He could be also going through a fear stage. Some when fearful go to the loud and bark and grrr because he's scared and this is how he's reacting to that fear/stress

My suggestion would be to try and find a trainer who has positive methods (Clicker etc) don't look for a trainer who deals with 'aggression' (which he isn'tbeing IMO he's being REACTIVE there is a HUGE difference) 

Also look up Control Unleashed. This is a system of exercises that teach a dog (be it one who's reactive or just over exited or what ever) whatthis program does is teach the dog to react to those stressful moments in a new way. So for example my very reactive "20 minutes to live" pound dog when stessed? now goes finds a bone hides in his crate (which any other time he eats) chews on it til he's calmed down and then comes out to visit. He does this with new dogs in the house, new people anything- the moment his stress ramps up this is what he does. It's a fabulous tool.


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## 2719 (Feb 8, 2011)

Oh I agree 100% with FJM

Misstarry used to do the same thing. She would go nutso when a car going in the opposite direction passed out car. she would bite at the window. I found it very strange because I never had a poodle do this before. I might have mentioned before that my poodles travelled every where with me. Just a quick trip to the store the poodles came with me. They sat calmly and just enjoyed the trek. (of course one was always waiting in the drivers seat when I got back). But they never ever went crazy at people or cars passing.

I tried to calm Misstarry but it did no good...plus I was driving...not so much I could do. So I did what FJM suggested.  I put a Crate in the van. She goes in the crate and she is calm and collected in there. The outside movement caused extreme excitement on her part. I will note also that Misstarry is very high prey driven. She will watch any television show that has ANy animal on it. She just sits and waits and suddenly lunges at the screen. She also is very squirrel obsessed. 

So I think that maybe in her mind she sees the passing cars and people as prey and she tries to get them... Sounds like this is what is happening with your fellow. So my suggestion is to take away the "prey" and he will calm down.

Good Luck.


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## revpar (Dec 22, 2011)

*Thank you Truelovepoodles*

Not sure if this is how to reply, but hope you'll get this message as I'm still trying to figure out how to navigate this website. 
Oliver has been to obedience classes and we have a few more to go, plus he's in a wonderful doggie day care 3 days a week where he's well socialized with other dogs. I think you hit the nail on the head, he must have a strong prey drive. When he hears a dog bark on the TV he lunges at the screen, just like Misstarry (love that name). Plus, on walks he's at full attention always looking for any critter movement, birds, dogs, etc. However, during our nightly walks, he's much calmer, walks behind me and isn't interested in looking for any prey - most likely because he can't see them.
So now that I know he has such a strong prey drive, any suggestions on how to work with him? Guess he would have made a great water retriever! 
Next week I have a 1 hr session with the trainer who tells me she has had experience with this issue, so stay tuned. THANK YOU!!


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## Countryboy (May 16, 2011)

secretgardner said:


> So now that I know he has such a strong prey drive, any suggestions on how to work with him? Guess he would have made a great water retriever!


Retrieving may be good . . but I would look around too for a local club doing Lure Coursing practices. A high prey drive is beneficial in LC. And it looks like the dogs have a lot of fun.

What I don't know is whether it would provide an outlet for a strong prey drive or serve to reinforce it.


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## petitpie (Nov 16, 2011)

I've always heard that dogs have a highly developed sense of smell. If this is so, does day or night matter in prey drive?

One of my mpoos pawed the tv screen, if she saw something that attracted her....it could have been any movement and not necessarily another animal. There was nothing for her to smell. My 1st spoo was attracted by moving cars and reacts inside of cars to movement on the outside. I'd also like to know what is causing this.

My other spoo at 1-year old reacted one way to the tpoos and another way with the other spoos.


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## MrsKaia (Dec 3, 2011)

My experience with my spoo is to keep him as tired as possible. Hiking, dog park, agility, teaching him new tricks, throwing a ball in the backyard. I even throw or kick a ball inside the house to keep him occupied. When I'm cooking. When I'm watching t.v. The more exercise he gets, the easier he is to handle. Cal too barks at people and dogs when he's in the car, but only the ones that come too close to the car. Like when we're standing still at a traffic light, or in a parking lot when someone gets out or gets in a car that is parked next to ours. Might be just about coming too close into his personal/social space. I have discovered that he doesn't bark when we drive back home from the dog park, where he has been running after a tennis ball for almost 90 minutes non stop. Too tired I guess. During these instances I started praising him for not barking when someone is close enough to our car for him to normally start barking, hoping it will pay off after a while.
Walks are about training for us. I'll have Cal do all sorts of things like heel, sit, down, attention, etc. There's prey drive. He chases after the wild rabbits in the backyard, and he's very interested in squirrels whenever he spots one, but enough practice, a solid recall, and loads of patience, (should) make him eventually pay more attention to you than to a squirrel or a rabbit. And treats do help 

My spoo has zero interest in television. Sound effects, loud noises, he doesn't seem bothered. Unless there is some or other squeaky-like sound from an animal. That has his undivided attention, and often times triggers a head tilt in front of the speakers.

When it comes to a dog's eye sight, they have very poor acuity. In spite of that, they are better at detecting movement than us humans. They have little problem recognizing us from a great distance as long as we're moving. Not so much when we're standing still. Like cats, they have more rods than cones in their eyes. So unless there's an eye problem, or the 'prey' sits absolutely still and they have the wind to their advantage, they should have no trouble detecting movement in low light conditions.


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## revpar (Dec 22, 2011)

MrsKaia, thanks for the information. When I pick him up from the day care center he is dead tired so he lays down and sleeps on the way home. The excitement is when I take him there in the morning. I'll start praising him for not barking and see how that works. I also have been trying something that really works but it's not a long term solution. I put a piece of hot dog in my hand, then I make a fist and put my hand behind my seat where Oliver is laying down. He'll spend a good 10 minutes trying to get to the hot dog, then I finally relinquish the treat. It's kind of like a Kong, but I have the control. The only problem is that it makes driving with one hand a bit difficult. Yikes. 
I haven't tried the dog park yet (too many aggressive dogs for my taste), but I'll try longer walks to get him tired. Thank you for your advice, I really appreciate it. And it's nice to know I'm not the only one having this issue. Thanks again.


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