c_l_7

Oh thank you so much for your detailed answer. Much appreciated. There are great ideas that I can work on. I actually used food today as a good lure to distract him and it went quite well. Probably just a fluke 😂but it was a pleasant change. I will try your good suggestions ! Thank you !

Ps. To answer your question yes we’ve had this dog since he was a pup but his personality changed once we lost our other toy to cancer 2. Years ago

Thanks so much for your very informative answer. I will try and go into more detail. About 2 1/2 years ago we lost our other toy poodle to cancer. Prior to this the dog that barks now , never barked like he does now. They were good buddies , evenly matched in temperament. Shortly after the other poodle died we bought a very very small toy 3.5 pounds. Although very small , (and even though they play together very well ) the little guy is very alpha. Even over our very large standard. That’s the dynamics in the house. The breeder did not want me to have another male ( they are all neutered) so we r bringing home a female who will be spayed, into the mix. The barker has anxiety - he will not go for a walk with me unless my husband is there too -providing my husband is home. We live in the country and my dogs are off leash in forests and trails. The barker will literally start on the walk then run back to the house if my husband isn’t with me , and wait at the door. He seems to want us both there. If I go somewhere and drive a vehicle to get there , and it’s just him and my standard dog , then there is no problem.( the little guy doesn’t go on hikes - if he does it’s in a backpack for most of it ) If we see the odd dog walker my barker will charge and bark but then usually jump up to the owner for a pet ( not cool ) I think he barks bc he’s afraid in this instance. He needs a lot of exercise but on some days if I walk locally he misses out bc he’s turned around and gone back home if my husband is out and about or just isn’t on the walk with me — but he will follow my husband all through the property right by his side , when he’s working on our property — no problem. An example in the house— if I knock on a cabinet by accident - he will bark. Something like that. Also if people come to the door —which doesn’t really bother me. So high anxiety. Needing both of us to be together on local walks. I’m the main dog walker / hiker / and also they run alongside me /us when I /we bike ( no car -?dirt roads ;) but I think it would be the same if the roles were reversed and it was just my husband on the walks ( never the case though as he doesn’t take them for walks by himself) as “ barker” is always checking for me on walks - Where I am etc. ... waiting for me if I seem to be lagging behind .. I have tried getting him to sit before I open the door. If he barks I get him to sit again and don’t open the door til he’s quiet but once that door is open —holy cow ! He’s very food motivated but didn’t want to use food as didn’t want to reward him. Raising my voice does not work ! Lol I found that out quickly. But seriously I am going crazy here. If he knows we r driving to a hike - which we do everyday btw -omg the barking and he doesn’t stop til he’s in the car and then as soon as the car door is open he’s on full force again for a good long time. Stopping the bike ( for example when i stop to close our driveway gate ) he Will then bark bark bark high pitched crazy frenzy out of my mind tension ratcheting barking. When I go to get my bike - same thing. Then all the way up the drive and continues barking. It’s so hard to stay calm. I’ve tried to ignore it but that just Makes it even worse. I hope I’ve clarified a few things. They are never on a leash walk but hikes off leash as we live In an area conducive for that I will read what you have mentioned. But any help you could give would be greatly appreciated. I’m not a vet or trainer but I think he has generalized anxiety disorder.

My 3 year old toy poodle barks continuously and very high pitched when we go out for a walk or when I stop when walking etc. I have chronic migraines and it is so very hard to take. Every little sound in the house triggers him. He’s just gotten worse. We r at our wits end. We r getting a new puppy in a week ( 14 week old standard poodle pup ) and have also a very small toy and a standard poodle. I’ve never encountered this in all my years of dog ownership. Please help. It’s why I joined in the first place actually ;( he doesn’t hear me when I try and correct him. He goes into puppy brain ( although not a puppy )