Agression in doodles

[Jill Holder]

I have a 2 yr old golden doodle who occasionally shows agression toward other dogs (tail is up and he lunges or snaps at them).  He also has occasionally bit my kids or growl at them if they jump on him.  I cannot have a dog who shows any type of aggression whatsoever.  I will work with a trainer but if I cannot get this remedied then I will have to - sadly - get rid of him.  Anyone else had this problem and what their solution was???  Most of the time, Max is a friendly dog.  He just needs some training.   Thanks!

[Jennifer,Chloe & Myla]

Perfect summary of advice!

[Nicky, Riley & Boris]

You say 'he just needs some training'.  Perhaps you really should be asking for recommendations for a good trainer in your area?  My hope is that you will find the right trainer very soon and that you will not think of getting rid of a member of your family.

[Jill Holder]

Ok- guys....sorry I probably shouldn't have worded it that my kids JUMP on my dog.  I have a 3 and 5 yr old little girls who are very gentle with Max but when they LAY on him to cuddle, he growls at them.   No one in our family is agressive or jumps on our dog.  Sorry for the mis-wording!!  Didn't mean to cause alarm that my kids don't know how to play with a dog or are mean to him in anyway!!!  Of course, we play with him!!  I have gone thru training before with him but the issues were not resolved - my fault.  With 2 small kids at home and working, we dropped the ball on following thru with training.  Just hard to find the time but I now know I realize that we have to do something and FOLLOW THROUGH!!!  I was very frustrated b/c this weekend he went after a few dogs at the beach for no reason at all.  He lunges at them and then is calm but then snaps at them and scares the peanuts out of the other dog, their owner and me. So, just wondering what other training suggestions you guys can offer.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Was he on or off leash at the beach?

[Jill Holder]

He was on the leash when he lunged at another dog.  We tried to keep control of him but he is very strong and pulled us over to the other dog.  Initially he just sniffs them, then all of a sudden, he lunges at them and tried to snap or bite them. 

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I'm not sure what kind of collar you use for him, but if he was able to pull you over to the other dog, it's probably not the right type.  Once the dog realizes that he's in control and can go wherever he wants and do whatever he wants, you've got a problem.  Find a trainer who will show you exactly how to first  gain control over Max, and then teach him how he's supposed to behave around other dogs.  Also, it sounds like he may not have been socialized with dogs.  I send my guy to Daycare once a week to help him with his dog issues.  You would need to look for one where they keep very tight control over the dogs and have a trained staff who can recognize and address any behavior concerns.

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

Also your dog on leash and the others off leash can be a bad mix!  One suggestion I would make is that you look for a trainer (I think Laurie gave a couple suggestions) that does private lessons for just you and your Doodle.  This might be a little more expensive, but it allows you to fine tune the things that you are really having a problem with.  We just did this with our girls to work on a couple things that we had failed at through all of our other training (greeting at the door as an example).  The great thing about training and following through with that training is you will find yourself with Extra time, as a well behaved dog is much less time consuming that a misbehaving dog!   Once you think you have found a trainer that you like, you can always post it it the training group and have some of the experts take a look at their background to see if they should have the skills to help you.  Not all trainers are effective!  Sometimes for us newbies it helps to have the experts give a little guidance.

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

Great advice!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Great point about a dog being restrained on leash while other dogs are not; that's a recipe for disaster. It puts the leashed dog in a very vulnerable position and triggers his "fight or flight" response. Since the option of flight has been removed, he has no choice but to fight.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I think that's true with untrained dogs.  We walk Murph on leash among unleashed dogs at the dog park all the time as part of his training.  He is learning how to react appropriately to another dog in any situation.  IMO you should be able to put your  trained dog in a heel and walk right through a group of unleashed dogs.  I totally agree that this would not be the case with Max who has not been trained and would likely be uncomfortable in this situation.

[Adina P]

 Agree 100% -- untrained dogs should probably not be put into that situation unless you know what their reaction will be.  Purposeful in-training dogs being conscientiously taken through training so that they WILL be reliable and trustworthy on leash regardless of what leashed or unleashed dogs are around them is totally fine. 

I am so thankful that I got lucky with Rosco and Boca in that they are non-reactive to other dogs.  I took baby on a walk with Boca a couple weeks ago and some little girl's cattle/herding dog broke free from her and bounded toward us.  I didn't want her to lose her dog so I stood my ground with Boca on leash and as soon as the dog got to us (I Had already turned the stroller away from the action) they just sniffed.  Girl got to us and begged for me to grab her dog's leash, I did, handed it to her and she ran back to where she came from.  NOTHING bad happened.  Boca didn't freak out. PHEW.  Thankful.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Yes, I was referring to untrained dogs at a dog park or romp, where chaos usually reigns. Max would not have had any practice dealing with that. Even my sort-of-kinda-trained CGC recipient does not respond very well to other dogs when he's leashed and they aren't. Of course, we have done next to NO practice with this kind of situation. On the occasions when some dog has gotten lose and run up to us when we're on a leash walk, I drop JD's leash.