I need help...

1622 Views 11 Replies 7 Participants Last post by KPoos, Feb 17, 2010

buddyboy

Discussion Starter · Feb 17, 2010

We purchase a 5 month old standard black male poodle last june (09) after loosing our dearest R.J. a rottweiler ( 14 years old) in april. We have 2 kids 2 and 5 years old ...we wanted a non-shedding, big,dog and we knew that standard poodle are 5 star with kids...I used to own a grooming salon and worked with dogs for 5 years so kind of use to different breed and temperament but never expected this from a standard poodle. Buddy just turned 1 year old in january and things are not getting any better. I'll try to describe you how Buddy is and let me know if that dog is what the breed should be.
We work from home so he is not in his crate all day like others are
He eats in the morning and then goes outside , we try to walk him every other day or we use the treadmill for 20 minutes...he loves it. His crate is in the garage that connects to the house...it's large and heated...He comes in the house for some period of time...when he is in the house he always try to eat kleenex in the 3 bathroom that we have...he has this things about kleenex and it drives me nuts. I always have to close the babies gate so he doesn't have access to other rooms. He will only settle after about an 1 hour.
He will sniff everywhere and try to jump on counters, he's hyper .
We did obedience class and agility class. The trainer basically said that we would probably need to show him about 2500 times before he understand...he learns and then quickly forgets...it's like his brain is not quite there sometimes...he's a really goofy also.
Outside well we live on a 1 acre waterfront lot and did purchase the electric fence system so that he could have lots of play area .It worked for about 3 months until he figured out that if he run fast enough he'll get trough with a beep... He barks a lot , chases people and cats, disturbs the neighbours , is not confident at all and is scared of cars and act stupid. He is now always on a leash.
Left alone in a big area like the garage he will chew on everything he finds, so we always put him in his crate.
He barks and barks at everything since he's lacking so much confidence. We've tried training, citronella collars , vibrating collars so we are down to shock collar which I find cruel...
Our Rottie was well a very well trained dog that we so enjoyed being around.
We were very proud of our training with him...
But for Buddy it's seems that he not easily trainable at all and is high-strung most of the time...so we are kind of discourage right now.
We have read that this breed is highly intelligent and easily trainable but this guy would need to restart training every day .
Does he represent the breed at all???

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Locket

· #2 · Feb 17, 2010

He sounds really bored and under exercised. Poodles also need to be a part of the household, they don't take well to being "left out" of the family (I wasn't sure from your post if he is let into the house all day or not). Poodles, well at least mine, are slow to mature. Don't count on him losing any of his goofy puppy personality until well after two years old.
Increase his exercise to AT LEAST an hour a day. Do 10-15 minute training sessions every day.
You might want to consult a vet to check for neurological disorders as well.

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KPoos

· #3 · Feb 17, 2010

I haven't had that problem with either of my dogs so I'm not going to be a lot of help. I don't think it's the "norm" for a standard poodle to be so destructive. Have you consulted a dog behaviorist? How much training in discipline do you do with him? I hope cbrand sees this because she often times has really good training advice.

He might not have any idea that you are the person in charge and you are the person that will correct him if he doesn't do what he's supposed to do.

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plumcrazy

· #4 · Feb 17, 2010

buddyboy said:
The trainer basically said that we would probably need to show him about 2500 times before he understand...he learns and then quickly forgets...it's like his brain is not quite there sometimes...he's a really goofy also.

Outside well we live on a 1 acre waterfront lot and did purchase the electric fence system so that he could have lots of play area .It worked for about 3 months until he figured out that if he run fast enough he'll get trough with a beep...

This doesn't sound like a stupid dog to me... this sounds like an underexercised, bored, high energy dog looking to find something to do... My daughter's spoo LOVES kleenex, too - preferably the used ones (ick!) :lol: So I bought wastebaskets with lids on them so she can't go "fishing"!

I don't know what a "typical" standard poodle is - I only know what our two are like and they are wonderful members of the family - not hyper... they have never attempted to jump up onto counters (although Meau will hop up on the grooming table and just lay there from time to time...)

It sounds like maybe your dog needs a job... something to stimulate his mind and keep him busy so he doesn't come up with his own games to play...

Good luck!!

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PonkiPoodles

· #5 · Feb 17, 2010

Locket said:
He sounds really bored and under exercised. Poodles also need to be a part of the household, they don't take well to being "left out" of the family (I wasn't sure from your post if he is let into the house all day or not). Poodles, well at least mine, are slow to mature. Don't count on him losing any of his goofy puppy personality until well after two years old.
Increase his exercise to AT LEAST an hour a day. Do 10-15 minute training sessions every day.
You might want to consult a vet to check for neurological disorders as well.

I agree with locket, usually dogs turn to destructive behavior when they are bored and under exercised. Poodles are very active dogs and need regular exercise and of course mental stimulation to be happy.

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Olie

· #6 · Feb 17, 2010

For me, I can see some of what you're saying in my spoos. I have not experienced all of what you have BUT I can honestly see the potential if the dog is very active and isn't getting enough exercise, for him.

Poodles are VERY smart and even myself, I underestimated them. I think they are big goofballs when they are pups and I am not sure they ever lose the playfulness.

What are the boundary's?

If the dog Gert's toilet tissue, shut the bathroom doors.

Use a tie out in the yard, setting restrictions.

Maybe crating more often might help versus the free run.....
I would rather leave a dog alone in a crate then in a garage, honestly it teaches them bad habits because they had too much area to explore with no corrections and it can be unsafe....if they are destructive.

We were not with Suri as we got her when she was older but with Olie - we have to train with him daily. We are constantly going all evening some days because he is more active then others. If that gets away from you next thing you know it is 3 months later and the dog has learned nothing and forgot half of what he was trained to do 6 months ago - it's happened to me, so it's very possible.

I would step back (I do this often when something goes out of whack) and asses what has been done, what can I do more of, how to do it and be consistent. You should get a lot of feedback here. I think there is hope - you just have to reel yourself (everyone) in to figure it out and stick to it. Good luck.

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cbrand

· #7 · Feb 17, 2010

I would say that he is not representative of the breed. However, it is hard to know which came first, the chicken or the egg. Do you have to isolate him from the family because he is wild or is he wild because he was isolated from the family.

Certainly he is not learning things at a typical rate. Most Standard Poodles learn new tasks in 1-5 repetitions. http://petrix.com/dogint/1-10.html

He also shows a serious lack of impulse control. I think it is actually a hallmark of the breed that Poodles mentally mature early. They should not be like Labs or Goldens who have an extended adolescence. I'm not sure that it is a lack of exercise because I have a girl the same age and this winter I just haven't gotten her out much and she doesn't tear my house apart.

I wonder at the start this dog had. What did he do (or not do) for the 1st 5 months of his life. Dogs are like children. If their brains aren't developed in the beginning I think it impedes their ability to learn.

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buddyboy

Discussion Starter · #8 · Feb 17, 2010

plumcrazy said:
This doesn't sound like a stupid dog to me... this sounds like an underexercised, bored, high energy dog looking to find something to do... My daughter's spoo LOVES kleenex, too - preferably the used ones (ick!) :lol: So I bought wastebaskets with lids on them so she can't go "fishing"!

I don't know what a "typical" standard poodle is - I only know what our two are like and they are wonderful members of the family - not hyper... they have never attempted to jump up onto counters (although Meau will hop up on the grooming table and just lay there from time to time...)

It sounds like maybe your dog needs a job... something to stimulate his mind and keep him busy so he doesn't come up with his own games to play...

Good luck!!

Thank you -we were actually thinking of buying baskets with lid so he can stop...it's really all new for us , we had a dog loose in the house for 14 years and never touch or chewed anything, ever. Now I feel like we are going to make sure every door of every room is closed when the dog comes in the house for the rest of this dog's life..lol...thanks again

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KPoos

· #9 · Feb 17, 2010

cbrand said:
I would say that he is not representative of the breed. However, it is hard to know which came first, the chicken or the egg. Do you have to isolate him from the family because he is wild or is he wild because he was isolated from the family.

Certainly he is not learning things at a typical rate. Most Standard Poodles learn new tasks in 1-5 repetitions. http://petrix.com/dogint/1-10.html

He also shows a serious lack of impulse control. I think it is actually a hallmark of the breed that Poodles mentally mature early. They should not be like Labs or Goldens who have an extended adolescence. I'm not sure that it is a lack of exercise because I have a girl the same age and this winter I just haven't gotten her out much and she doesn't tear my house apart.

I wonder at the start this dog had. What did he do (or not do) for the 1st 5 months of his life. Dogs are like children. If their brains aren't developed in the beginning I think it impedes their ability to learn.

I'm glad you came here and responded because it didn't sound like any poodle I've ever met either.

I know so many here say that poodles are VERY active and some might be and some might be more laid back (typically more true with the standards) and not need that family that is just out and doing things constantly too. I think that they should be easy to train and should respond to your cues and your attempts at training better than what this dog is responding. My issues with Harry were resolved by doing more training with my daughter and having her give him space and being the person that is sometimes in charge of offering treats and his dinner. It didn't take long for her to be able to say "Harry sit" and him respond. When we had the issues before, he wouldn't respond to "Harry sit" by my 2 year old because he had no respect for her at all. Sounds to me like this dog has absolutely no respect for the humans in his life and while it might be exercise related, if you are getting him out and walking him then he's getting exercise. Like cbrand, I haven't had as much time to get the dogs out of the house and the weather here has been so wet and muddy that they cannot just romp freely in the yard but we haven't had destructive behavior even when left in the garage for an hour.

You don't have to say who the breeder was but did this puppy come from a breeder that adheres to the breed standard and shows their dogs or is this puppy from a person that just breeds to pump out puppies for pet people?

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buddyboy

Discussion Starter · #10 · Feb 17, 2010

cbrand said:
I would say that he is not representative of the breed. However, it is hard to know which came first, the chicken or the egg. Do you have to isolate him from the family because he is wild or is he wild because he was isolated from the family.

Certainly he is not learning things at a typical rate. Most Standard Poodles learn new tasks in 1-5 repetitions. http://petrix.com/dogint/1-10.html

He also shows a serious lack of impulse control. I think it is actually a hallmark of the breed that Poodles mentally mature early. They should not be like Labs or Goldens who have an extended adolescence. I'm not sure that it is a lack of exercise because I have a girl the same age and this winter I just haven't gotten her out much and she doesn't tear my house apart.

I wonder at the start this dog had. What did he do (or not do) for the 1st 5 months of his life. Dogs are like children. If their brains aren't developed in the beginning I think it impedes their ability to learn.

Hi cbrand

Thanks for replying
I think it started out as we had to isolate him because he was way too wild and the trainer said he should never be loose by himself because we could'nt trust him.(chewing up things). Maybe now especially during winter time he does spend more time alone in his crate. We do work from home so he is not more than a few hours at a time...which is good.
The first 4 months he was at the breeders home and then to that person I got it from...BIG MISTAKE...Our rottie, we choose right off the litter , we also had the first choice.What a difference.
As for exercise , when it's not those chilly months of winter, we go for a walk every morning with the baby (15-20 min. ) then we play with the ball in the yard, afternoon he naps, plays in the house with us and his toys , we even play hide and seek sometimes, after dinner we go back outside and play with ball and frisbee. We also have some treadmill session on top of that...Winter time we do a bit less. We think and we might be wrong but when we compare him to other dogs that their owners work outside the house we thought he had a good execise time...
Now with him running away the second he is loose we don't know how we are going to have exercise fun time with him this spring . He will play ball and then will run off to the neighbors and disturbs everybody...so he will end up always tie and no space to run and catch ball...So he'll get even more bored...
Could really use your expertise in poodle
Thanks again

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buddyboy

Discussion Starter · #11 · Feb 17, 2010

KPoos said:
I'm glad you came here and responded because it didn't sound like any poodle I've ever met either.

I know so many here say that poodles are VERY active and some might be and some might be more laid back (typically more true with the standards) and not need that family that is just out and doing things constantly too. I think that they should be easy to train and should respond to your cues and your attempts at training better than what this dog is responding. My issues with Harry were resolved by doing more training with my daughter and having her give him space and being the person that is sometimes in charge of offering treats and his dinner. It didn't take long for her to be able to say "Harry sit" and him respond. When we had the issues before, he wouldn't respond to "Harry sit" by my 2 year old because he had no respect for her at all. Sounds to me like this dog has absolutely no respect for the humans in his life and while it might be exercise related, if you are getting him out and walking him then he's getting exercise. Like cbrand, I haven't had as much time to get the dogs out of the house and the weather here has been so wet and muddy that they cannot just romp freely in the yard but we haven't had destructive behavior even when left in the garage for an hour.

You don't have to say who the breeder was but did this puppy come from a breeder that adheres to the breed standard and shows their dogs or is this puppy from a person that just breeds to pump out puppies for pet people?

Hi kpoos
Buddy did not come for a show breeder he just came from a family in Montreal who had a Brown female and a black male and it was their first litter...Should have probably followed my first idea and bought it from a breeder like Omar podlles in Montreal...Best breeder close to my place
Thanks you so much for your advice

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KPoos

· #12 · Feb 17, 2010

I know that cbrand has offered this as advice before, keep on a leash at all times even in the house. This dog has no impulse control and it seems to me that he doesn't know what down time in the house is. He needs to know that you or your husband are in constant control of his world. Right now he's like a 4 year old loosed in Chuck E Cheeses. He's out of control because he can be and the world is just open for him to do whatever he wants. I wouldn't play in the house at all. The house needs to be a time of quiet and relaxation and naps. If he's going to play it needs to be outside so get a long lead and keep him with you at all times. When he comes to you give treats. Most trainers keep toys from being readily accessable to dogs. If the dog has earned a toy or bone to chew they give one but they don't have them sitting there available for them 24/7. I'm bad about having a basket of toys available but they never even play with them because I don't allow rough housing inside the house, they are too big.

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