# Standard Poodle aggression, please read....



## KPoos (Aug 29, 2009)

Most people around here don't know what Harry is so they always ask if he's a poodle. I have to explain that he's a standard poodle which is the largest size. So far no one has ever been afraid of him because he's so friendly. He'll stick his nose on anyone and always has his tail going but his mother is very cautious around new people. She's a girl so she's a bit different in personality than Harry is and his sister is very similar to that.


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## Locket (Jun 21, 2009)

One of my boy's is not friendly with strangers that approach him, but would not act aggressively unless they tried to pet him. Its out of fear, and developed after his first seizure. He never had problems before then. 

All the other spoos I've met are friendly or aloof.


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## Fluffyspoos (Aug 11, 2009)

I have friends that have three standards, one I guess was extremely tormented as a puppy by their daughters boyfriend, so she's weary towards strangers. She's never bit anyone, but their owner says that if anyone came into the house while it was empty, unannounced, and the dogs didn't know them, that she think she would attack. Her sister and mother are harmless, however.


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## plumcrazy (Sep 11, 2009)

The adult daughter of one of my high school friends is terrified of standard poodles. When I was telling them about Katy's spoo and that I was going to be getting one, too, the daughter curled her lip and basically said, "Yuck"... She said she had been attacked/bit by an apricot standard poodle when she was small and she'll never forget it... I told her not to judge the whole breed by one bad experience, but it's hard for her to get beyond it... sad...


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## Keithsomething (Oct 31, 2009)

I hate blanket statements about breeds like that xD
I could understand being attacked/bitten by a dog and not liking DOGS in general
but to place all your fear in that one specific breed is completely irrational and those people should maybe talk to a therapist for some help

and in addition...how can you be scared of a standard poodle?!!? they're like short cute goofy people 

-:bird:- 
insanity


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## Fluffyspoos (Aug 11, 2009)

I was attacked by a Basset Hound when I was a toddler, I still have the scars on my face, hands, and legs from it. I apparently lost a lot of blood and got a number of stitches, I don't automatically think every basset is going to bite me.. though I do cringe when they come in to get their nails done. They have thick, dagger nails that're such a pain to clip.


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## KPoos (Aug 29, 2009)

My sister has a scar on her face since she was a child from our family lhsa apso. I've read things about them not being good for families with children but since that bite I've never really liked the dogs.


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## Marian (Oct 20, 2009)

I was bitten on the mouth and nose by a long haired chihuahua when I was about 6. Even though it made me wary of dogs to the point of being very afraid of them, I knew even then that it was ultimately my fault for invading the dog's space. 

It makes me angry when people assume that one breed is aggressive just because they had a bad experience with one dog. 

It's the humans that cause the problems that make dogs aggressive, not the breed itself. Perfect example...pit bulls. Goes without saying.


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## cbrand (Aug 9, 2009)

I think there are a couple of things at play here.

First, many people do not separate in their minds Standards from Minis and Toys. All varieties are tarred with the same brush. There have always been and continue to be Toys and Minis out there that are nasty little beasts. They are indulged and babied and they grow up to be insufferable tyrants who terrorize folks around them. It seems like everyone has a story about their Aunt Betty's horrible little poodle. Note... Toys and Minis are wonderful little dogs. I wish that owners would raise them correctly.

Next, I think that owners should understand that the Standard poodle is a natural watch and guard dog. They are protective of house and home. I grew up with a Dobie and I think the Standard Poodle has similar guarding behavior. A well bred Standard should always show good judgment though He should be able to tell the difference between pre-schooler who has wondered onto the property and the potential rapist who is up to no good.

Standards are working dogs. They are always looking for a job to do. If they don't have an owner who provides good solid leadership, then they feel the need to step into the role of leader. We are seeing this with my friend KB and her Standard, Gracy. As KB has gotten sicker with Parkinsons, Gracy has gotten more and more protective of her. She will bark very aggressively at people and other dogs when she is with KB. When she is with me..... nothing. I took her just yesterday on an off leash hike and she didn't bat an eye at any dogs or people. She knows that she does not need to watch out for me.

There continues to be too many Standards with poor temperament. A Standard poodle is a strong, proud dog with a well developed sense of its own worth. A well bred Standard should never be nervous or fearful or overly reactive. This weak temperament leads to sharp-shy biting.

Finally training. Owners need to put some work into their dogs. Hell would pretty much freeze over before I would allow one of my dogs to bark aggressively or even grump at people/dogs when we are out in public. It is NOT THEIR JOB! If your Standard has behaviors you don't like, get on top of them! You are the boss.


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## ArreauStandardPoodle (Sep 1, 2009)

In 47 years of being involved with the breed, I have only ever known one who was aggressive, and it was a female, and she only hated men. Countless dog shows, a grooming salon,working in other salons, breeding, meeting other breeders and only one who had issues. She never did bite anyone, but I am certain she would have if the opportunity had been right. The most aggressive, frightening dog I have ever known was an Old English Sheepdog. His father was a pilot, and left him at my shop to be groomed in the evening. Once that man walked out of my shop, I couldn't even walk past the dogs crate without him trying to eat me. Needless to say, Daddy arrived to an ungroomed dog. He absolutely terrified me!!


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## bigredpoodle (Sep 13, 2009)

cbrand said:


> I think there are a couple of things at play here.
> 
> First, many people do not separate in their minds Standards from Minis and Toys. All varieties are tarred with the same brush. There have always been and continue to be Toys and Minis out there that are nasty little beasts. They are indulged and babied and they grow up to be insufferable tyrants who terrorize folks around them. It seems like everyone has a story about their Aunt Betty's horrible little poodle. Note... Toys and Minis are wonderful little dogs. I wish that owners would raise them correctly.
> 
> ...


Well said ! We encourage every puppy buyer to attend obedience class. I would not have a dog that was shy as this can cause fear biting which is where most biters come from. My neighbors respect my dogs. The poos are quite protective and as you say natural protection animals.


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## Keithsomething (Oct 31, 2009)

I agree with Cbrand COMPLETELY even the smallest of training can help any dog. 
Our lab/poodle mix goes NUTS with the barking when he hears a car pull into our drive way, but once you open the front door and he can see the people he calms down and sulks away...almost as if he's sad he couldn't be a big mean dog xD 
But I don't think he'd ever bite someone

to be honest if I were fearful of any dog it would be the small ones ((chihuahuas, toy poodles, yorkies...and schiperkes* I was bitten by my aunts just last week))
because of the way they're "babied" they get to act a certain way which doesn't play out so well when they're adults

Its the same misconceived notion that ALL pit bulls are going to latch onto your childs face and maul them to death...bad dog owners make misbehaved dogs


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## taxtell (Sep 17, 2009)

I am not a big fan of blanket statements for breeds either, but I am not naive and know they happen.

I haven't met a 'mean' spoo. Protective and watchful, sure, but never outright aggressive.

It's all in the raising/training.

My mom, for example, is an extremely high strung and nervous person. She has schnauzers. Recipe for disaster, really. She freaks out when they freak out and it's an endless cycle of barking/nervous behavior. She inadvertently lets the dogs be 'pack leader' and they don't want the job, so they are constantly weirded out. She even makes my dogs/bird nervous because of her nervous energy.

My point is, a lot of it has to do with the vibe you're sending out to ANY animal, how well the animal behaves/was trained, and the situation you are in. 

I had a person just the other day act fearful towards Flip and tell me that spoos were aggressive and nasty. He was doing a play bow at her and wagging his tail! :doh:

Breed stereotypes can be dangerous as well. I had a retired racer I was fostering for a bit who was amazingly aggressive. She was an excellent runner and raced until she was nearly five. She was a beautiful red brindle with huge liquid brown eyes. Everyone wanted to pet her because they assumed greys were big sweeties. Unfortunately she'd quite happily rip your face off if you just approached her without showing some common sense. I kept her muzzled in public and her adopters went through extensive socialization training with her, and she's pretty much fine now. 

Everything is situational.


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## KPoos (Aug 29, 2009)

Oh I love what cbrand said and I agree with it all. I do see how it's very possible for your spoo to get it into their head that they need to take over. Harry does that with me sometimes because physically he knows he's stronger and he feels more need to protect me especially when the kids are around. His kids are very precious to him and he does act protective around them sometimes but you are right it's not HIS job to protect them it's mine as a more dominate pack leader. 

A smart dog is a good thing but it does require a consistent smart owner to stay on top of the dog and not let the dog take over. Harry is one of those dogs that is not outwardly dominate but he does display dominate behaviors with other dogs and will try to pull stuff on me sometimes but I refuse to let him. The other day he almost pulled me over to sniff out some dog walking by with their owner and I took him back in the house put him in a sit and did a stare down with him. I talk to him like a person so I told him he's not in charge, I am. He looked down and gave me a little sullen whine but that's what I wanted out of him and he gave into me. He doesn't act like that with my husband. He knows how much stronger my husband is than him so he doesn't even bother trying anything with him. Smart dogs can be a handful but very rewarding to train.


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## bigredpoodle (Sep 13, 2009)

Hey if you look up B***** in the dictionary Sadie s pic is there HA HA If you let her she would run yopu all over the palce . but since I dont she is fine .. She is my baby doo


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## PonkiPoodles (Feb 25, 2009)

cbrand said:


> I think there are a couple of things at play here.
> 
> First, many people do not separate in their minds Standards from Minis and Toys. All varieties are tarred with the same brush. There have always been and continue to be Toys and Minis out there that are nasty little beasts. They are indulged and babied and they grow up to be insufferable tyrants who terrorize folks around them. It seems like everyone has a story about their Aunt Betty's horrible little poodle. Note... Toys and Minis are wonderful little dogs. I wish that owners would raise them correctly.
> 
> ...


Very well said... I also think it depends on the owner. How an owner raise/train/handle/interact etc. with a dog can have a lot to do with their behavior.


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## Mister (Sep 10, 2008)

Very well put everyone, thank you. I knew you guys would understand. I too was bit as a child by our family dog, he was a mastiff/rottweiler but we still had him till he was 12 years old and was humanely euthenized because he had cancer. It was my fault and i got bit in the face for it (still have a scar on my nose). I dont have any fear or anger towards large breed dogs or mastiffs or rottweilers. 
Blanket statements on breeds are just dumb.


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## jester's mom (Nov 25, 2008)

Cbrand, that was so well put! I wish all people who had dogs would realize that you can't pamper them and have a "well balanced" dog and if you have any type of "working" dog, they MUST have some sort of 'job' to do, even if it is just learning tricks or obedience or something. They need to feel like they are doing their job and they need direction. MOST, or should I say nearly all, ill natured dogs are that way because of their owners not understanding what they should do FOR their dog.

A BIG KUDOS for all the owners that do and have wonderful pets and examples of great dogs of any breed or mix.


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## Emfgray (Dec 30, 2020)

I work at Paws With A Cause. I can say without hesitation, that the poodles are significantly more aggressive than the labs, Golden's, and papillons. They aggressively bark and try to bite thru their kennels when all the other dogs are happy to see us. 
They are one of our breeds bc they are hypoallergenic and some people need that, without exception. We have excellent trainers so we are able to turn them out.
But I'm here to tell you that they 100% are more aggressive than other dogs. Like deep in their blood. I see so many of them. They are consistently about 100 times nastier than the other dogs. 
I've worked with dogs in a pet store, training, and vet environments now for ten years. And I don't feel this way about another breed other than Chihuahua's, who are notorious for being some of the worst aggressors and biters. 
Poodles absolutely are, in my professional opinion, much more difficult personalities.


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## ArreauStandardPoodle (Sep 1, 2009)

Emfgray said:


> I work at Paws With A Cause. I can say without hesitation, that the poodles are significantly more aggressive than the labs, Golden's, and papillons. They aggressively bark and try to bite thru their kennels when all the other dogs are happy to see us.
> They are one of our breeds bc they are hypoallergenic and some people need that, without exception. We have excellent trainers so we are able to turn them out.
> But I'm here to tell you that they 100% are more aggressive than other dogs. Like deep in their blood. I see so many of them. They are consistently about 100 times nastier than the other dogs.
> I've worked with dogs in a pet store, training, and vet environments now for ten years. And I don't feel this way about another breed other than Chihuahua's, who are notorious for being some of the worst aggressors and biters.
> Poodles absolutely are, in my professional opinion, much more difficult personalities.


 WOW! You are joking right?! I have been involved in this breed since 1961 and have met a grand total of ONE nasty Poodles! My Mom was a breeder, most of her friends were breeders and I am a breeder, and in all those years, and countless Poodle exposure, ONE ill tempered dog. I am now working with Steadfast Dogs in Alberta who trained one of our pups to be a certified service dog, who was so impressed, she and I are hoping to co-own a few girls along the way and co-breed hoping for some lovely show dogs for me, and some service dog prospects for her. I have never, ever heard such a statement in my life!


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## Emfgray (Dec 30, 2020)

I am not joking. This is my genuine experience. For YEARS.


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## Starla (Nov 5, 2020)

So you joined a poodle forum to resurrect an 11 year old thread to provide your opinion that poodles are awful. Mmkay.


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## Emfgray (Dec 30, 2020)

I actually was researching about a real problem I'm dealing with. That's a good thing to do, in my opinion. Sorry I missed the dates. Apparently this line of thought still applies 11 years later. Interesting.


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## For Want of Poodle (Feb 25, 2019)

If you are having that issue, I'd suggest either changing the breeder you work with, or the puppy raising methods. Poodles should not be aggressive dogs. Mouthy, yes, often. Excitable? Yes. Needing plenty of training and stimulation? Certainly. Nasty? No. Especially not a service dog prospect. I can see one poodle you meet having the issue, but all ??? 

You don't get a dog looking like the show poodles do without having breeding for a dog that is very tolerant of handling. 

If you'd like suggestions on how to raise poodles as service dogs,or find good service dog prospects, I'd suggest creating a thread in the Service dog forum and asking for suggestions from some of the awesome service dog owning members  you will have better luck with helping you problem solve than posting about how you think all poodles are aggressive.


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## PeggyTheParti (Sep 5, 2019)

And on that perfect note, let’s close this ancient discussion.


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