Help with aggressive, unaffectionate puppy?

[Joanna & Maya]

Hi everyone :)

I have a 5 month old miniature goldendoodle puppy. She is nothing like what we were expecting. She hates being touched, will back away if we try to pet her, doesn't cuddle...if we try to put her on the sofa with us she jumps to the floor. she's really aggressive...bites us like mad and only bites harder when we yell NO or hit her snout/spray water. we've had her since she was 8 weeks old and have been consistently training her EVERY DAY, but NOTHING. she still jumps on furniture, attacks our socks, steals stuff from the coffee table etc. 

when we bought her we thought she'd be an affectionate, cuddly, friendly girl...but she's the complete opposite. it's making us sad, and we're starting to lose hope. have any of you had this problem? do you think she'll change or is this just her personality? i don't understand why she's like this. 

[Leslie J]

If she was separated from her mom too young, that may be part of the problem. Puppies learn bite inhibition from their mothers and litter mates. Pups who are separated too early can have biting issues. I think hiring a good trainer for a few sessions will do a world of good. It will get easier!!!

[Rosemary (Ro) and Enzo]

Jennifer and Donna have given excellent advice. At 5 months this is still a baby. Nipping, stealing socks and " stuff" are all normal puppy behaviors. A hit on the snout is not training. Time to join some puppy classes.

[Emily, Bentley, & Maserati]

I agree! I would enroll in puppy classes and follow their advice! 

[Adina P]

The 3 months you've had her may seem like forever with a nippy monster who doesn't like to cuddle...but she is still VERY young.  Few dogs respond consistently to commands at this age.  I'm not there so I can't see what's happening, but my AWESOME love bug nearly 8 year old doodle was a bit of a monster at that age.  He left bruises on me and was HUGE (not a mini) and could jump and reach my belly or even the back of my neck if he jumped really high.  He left a bruise on my belly from his wound up, growly, nippy moods.  But once he passed the year mark, after some considerable time in serious training (serious as in consistent, daily, following a strict training program), I noticed he had quit biting on me. 

Since he is 5 months this is a great time to sign up for a great obedience class.  Start with beginning obedience and go through intermediate and finish with advanced and THAT TIME you spend with your dog doing something productive will make a WORLD of difference.  I'm not talking about the time in class, though.  That part is for you to learn how to train him OUT of class.  I'm talking about the time out of class, the daily 'we're going out for a training session right now' time.  Train at home, in the yard, on the sidewalk, in parks, outside of dog parks, in front of stores, inside Home Depot...wherever you can train him.  It's not just 'work' but time spent with your faithful companion.  It builds a bond of trust and respect...both ways.  And once you have that...plus a way to communicate what you want and a way to hold him accountable, I would be amazed if you still had any problems with this.

[Joanna & Maya]

Thank you Adina! I have training sessions with Maya every day. She's a very smart, but stubborn girl.

[Adina P]

Well don't stop. It is at this age and on that training starts to matter. Before 5 or 6 months they are just babies with attention spans of gnats ;)

If training doesn't work and you aren't seeing results in the next few months, then either your method needs changing or you are doing it wrong. I know because everyone including me makes a lot of operational errors in training initially.

[Lynn D.]

It sounds like you need professional (and I would add-private) training! Hitting the dog only causes the dog to distrust humans, big or little. Some dogs act like puppies until they are 3. Are you prepared for that? At 5 months old she is just starting to test her boundaries. I learned the most from the Monks of New Skete. They have really wonderful books on training from puppyhood on. I read their puppy book before I even brought my Echo home, as well as 3 other training books. Time, patience and training is what makes a good dog. I think it was the Monks of New Skete who mention in their book that having a dog on the couch with you gives the dog mixed signals. I read a lot however, I hired a the most wonderful private trainer who Echo adores! I would have gladly paid TWICE what he asks for if I had to do it again. Because I put in the dedication, time and training I have the best dog ever! Puppies don't come preprogrammed to be wonderful dogs.

A tired puppy is a good puppy! Wear her out before trying to touch her. Puppies need mental and physical stimulation, a lot of it. Training isn't a once and done proposition. You work on it and continue training all the time, for the rest of their lives.

[Joanna & Maya]

Thanks Lynn :) I will stop with the snout hitting and just put her in time out.

[Leslie, Yogi & Maci Bear]

You're getting some great advise. Don't give up on your puppy!
I always dreamed of a puppy curled up on my lap on the chair, but Yogi wants no part of that.
I have discovered that he Loves it when I get on the floor to play with him, he then brings his toys
over to me and lays across my legs and we cuddle...so it is our time and we compromised.

The smack on the nose sounds like a bad idea though. Please take your pup to obedience classes,
they are as much to train humans as they are for the puppies. We learned so much!

Btw, our dog loves to steal socks too, so I lot of your concerns sound like normal puppy behavior that
they grow out of in time. Your pup does want to please you, she needs to learn what you want.

[Joanna & Maya]

Thanks Leslie & Yogi!

I will stop hitting the snout and just put her in time-out :)

[Rebecca Chynoweth]

My ALD Cooper was a total menace and the biting was out of control. We had a lot of training and he still was aggressive towards my daughter especially. It really worried me but I learned to manage it until he grew out of the puppy behavior through tons of exercise and putting him in a confined area when he got out of control. I did almost give up on him!

Things really turned a corner for us when he was about 7 months so hang in there and seriously listen  to some advice given in this thread. Things will get better!!!

[Joanna & Maya]

Great thank you! I'm hoping when all the puppy teeth fall out the biting will cease :)