Aggressive Cockerpoo :-(

[DogGoneOrDogTrainer]

Hello.

I’ve name changed as other posts may ID me along with this issue but I am a long time poster (Sistine screamer/penis beaker/villa thief etc)

I have a 13 month old Cockerpoo who is a total nightmare.

He is walked 4 times a day with plenty of other games/ puzzles and wants for nothing.

In the last 3 or 4 months his resource guarding has got worse.

He has started to lunge and bite me if I go near him when he has anything of high value such as a treat, a toy, a pair of stolen socks etc.

Tonight, it is raining so we have just come back from his last walk of the night and I started to dry his feet and he has bitten me through my jumper and broken the skin underneath.

There are no thorns or anything like that in his pads or for and there are no underlying health problems as he was castrated 5 weeks ago and had had 2 follow up vet appointments since. The most recent one on Saturday morning.

I am at my wits end. I don’t know what to do. My head is saying he can’t be trusted if he’s biting me but my heart says when he’s not biting he’s the most loving dog ever.

I guess I’m asking for guidance as to what you would do?
More training?
A behaviourist?
Bootcamp?
Re-home? (Unlikely with the biting)
Euthanise?

Thanks for reading and any help would be gratefully received.

Do you live alone or are there other people in the house?

Just me and DH now…children have flown the nest.

Cockers are just pure shits when it comes to their paws, they dont like them being touched at all, and as I had pure show cockers, it could get a tad antsy.

I had to train them from them being 8 weeks ( when I got them ) to let me handle their paws, and really feel between the toes - they collect grass seeds like magnets

A 13 month old cocker is also a stroppy teen

I talk about cockers, because I know that breed and not cockerpoos

My last cocker I was ready to rehome at a year when he regressed, he was hard work - I was older - a lot more going on in my life - but I persevered and he turned into a gentle soul

You just have to carry on with the training. You cant out exercise a cocker - it has to be brain games and seeing as you have a cockerpoo - a cross of two of the most intelligent dogs bred, its going to be hard work

Agility classes might be a good call?

Spaniels are known for resource guarding. I think your best bet is a trainer to help break your dog’s bad behaviour.

My cockerpoo is a resource guarder. He is 5 now and it’s fairly manageable. We did a lot of training and just came up with coping strategies. He will do anything for cheese so if he’s stolen something he shouldn’t have I throw some cheese and he normally drops and goes to it.

I remember being so stressed about it all but it has got better.

Has the aggression worsened recently? He might be in pain/have an infection from the castration . It’s worth getting the vet to check him over. You can ask their advice about the aggression and get a recommendation for a behaviouralist or trainer.

he’s also at the end of adolescence (usually around 12-13 months) but it can go on until around 18 months, so he might just be pushing boundaries, especially with the hormone changes his body is going through. Also, just because you can’t see anything wrong in his paw doesn’t mean to say there isn’t a grass seed or a piece of gravel etc stuck between his toes. If he’s been groomed regularly he should be used to having his feet handled, so this flags up a concern that he’s pain.

4 walks might be too much, can you swap one out for some enrichment activity? Get him using his brain and his nose the help challenge and calm him.

I hope you get it sorted.

Edited because my iPhone thinks it knows better than a human!

i have a working cocker and a cockerpoo. They can be pretty badly behaved - not with biting, more with running off or stealing food. But when I make a big effort to refocus then with commands and treats, they have improved. If you use high value treats does he give up the other item? I think I would get a really good trainer involved to help.

I agree, I have been "swapping" with my cocker since he was a pup if he has something that he shouldn't,but i do think you need a behaviourist, also do you. Need to walk your dog 4 times a day he will be wired to the moon does he get any rest if he is all go all day, gundogs do need to rest and decompress.

Also do you need to take everything from him ?

I don't think you need to euthanize that is a very very last resort, I think it can take weeks for his hormones to calm down after castration, my dog was done in August and he was pretty up and down mood wise in September still. I wonder if you are being to unpredictable with him, like going for toys or wiping his feet so he is anxious you might need to go back to the beginning with training, so he co operates with you.

Resource guarding is one of the hardest issues to manage. Fair warning, dogs don't usually stop, but things improve once a solid plan is in place.

Unfortunately neutering may worsen the behaviour . As his testosterone drops, he has less confidence and anxiety can rise. This is why it is generally not recommended to neuter Resource guarders (I didn't know either, and my boy was snipped at 9 months).

Never take anything that he is guarding.

Get clued up on canine body language.

Hire a behaviourist (not a trainer) stat.

Consider prescription anxiolytic medicine.

I can’t believe you said euthanize. I have a cockapoo who resource guards and it is stressful but it’s on me to continuously train us . I manage the situation through swapping and been training since she was a puppy.
I’d stay well clear of boot camp too.
Sounds like the behaviour is escalating because of lack of knowledge and kindness . Cockapoos can be very nervous dogs . He may even be being overstimulated through too many walks and that’s made his guarding worse .
scentwork and a kind based trainer I’d highly recommend .

Don't over stimulate him
Is he crate trained?
Go back to basics with training
Have a look at some of Charlie Thorburn's videos - Mordor Gundogs - on YouTube. Yours is a crossbreed but there is some very sound advice on cocker and springer training.

We had this with our Cockerpoo.
Went to vets but they couldn't find a reason. We eventually got him x-rayed and both cruciate ligaments had torn.
He's ball obsessed and even with the pain he must of been in he still enjoyed his walks. I was at my wits end and after two ops he's a different dog.

I just had a look at the dog training YouTube videos you mention.

Absolutely fucking horrible training.

Commiserations OP, I also have a resource guarding dog (cocker spaniel - it can be common in the breed I believe which is maybe what you're seeing)

Let me guess - does he also guard spaces - the sofa or bed if he is lying there first and you approach? If he isn't yet keep an eye out because the 3 are often present together - resource guarding, body handling issues (both of which you have experienced) and location guarding.

I would recommend the book Mine! By Jean Donaldson, which takes you through a management/ desensitisation / positive association approach. Or a reputable behaviourist if you feel the issues are too big to handle.

I've still got my 10 year old boy now but we had tough times and I remember being on the phone to the police dog team to offer him up as a potential sniffer dog recruit as I found it such a hard issue to manage!

Who advised you to get him neutered, out of interest?

Another that has a cocker not a cockapoo but yes to them hating the paws touched, resource guarding (our dog not allowed on chairs or couches as it brings out the worst in him!!) and thee we y are the bitiest dog. It depends on how aggressive you mean but as someone else has said you seem to be taking a lot from him!! Can you do swaps? Also our dog at 3 is a totally different dog, so different it’s unbelievable. I’d say persist but with help. He’s still only a puppy. You can totally do this x

Out of interest what made you say that ?

I have a cocker/ Bedlington who resources guards.

No free access to toys. No high value toys (balls) in the house at all. He has rope toys and a large soft toy football that he asks for and gets to play with in the evening then it gets put away.

No long lasting treats. Never give him a kong wobbler, my dog thought it was the source of eternal kibble!! That went in the bin.

Tidy up your socks!! My dogs thing is gloves, and it's that time of year again. If he gets a high value steal, don't make a drama out of it. Make it into a game, which is probably what he is after, and reward when you get it back, either by giving a treat or giving the stolen item back again and carrying the 'game' on for a bit.

Exercise wise, 4 walks a day seems excessive, are the walks high quality walks, off lead with interaction with other dogs at a range of different locations through the week (i understand that I'm spoilt on this one as i live on a mountain in a national park 15 minutes from the sea). But i think it really makes a difference to the level of stimulation and subsequent tiredness. Consider using a dog walker (preferably one who also does dog training, many do) so that he can join a pack and be thoroughly exhausted a couple of times a week.

You have a high energy breed, he's going to be an arsehole till he's at least 4, buckle up and manage this trait well. But if you manage it you will be rewarded by have a dog who is still a bundle of fun and energy at 9 years old when other dogs far younger are already boring and 'old'.

I have a cookerpoo that used to resource guard.

It takes consistency from your side to get this corrected. I taught mine drop/ leave but that wasn't enough for some items. So I upped the game to hand / give - so basically the dog places the item in your hand. Next step from there was get X toy towels or socks & hand. Slowly built up to the items that are most desirable to guard!
I always use lots of praise and a treat (which sometimes is a ball thrown as mine is a ball junkie).
I agree with others, teach your dog to give paw & then clean paw (or whatever) be gentle to start with and do it little & often. Work your way around his whole body- this will also help his groomer. Always finish with a big tasty treat! Your dog will be soon eager to let you clean the paws.

And one golden rule of dog training: if you feel yourself getting frustrated or anxious end the session!

He is walked 4 times a day with plenty of other games/ puzzles and wants for nothing.

How long, how far and how high energy are these walks? Only asking, as I've met a few dogs recently with early on-set Arthritis/dysplasia due to over-exercise and poor breeding (not saying either are the case with your dog, but it could definitely be a contributing factor to any aggression around the paws. Not necessarily because it's the paw, but the act of holding it at a certain angle and the impact of that on the joints causes pain and therefore the dog reacts.

On the resource guarding, being honest a behaviourist or trainer is only going to get you so far if you're not clued up on the basics already. Resource guarding is hugely challenging for the existing family to solve. I help with Goldie re-homing and resource guarding (and bites on children)/both are some of our most common issues and the amount of people who have tried a behaviourist or a trainer and not managed to improve is astounding. And very often those issues never re-emerge in foster. Why? Because it is always about cues. Your dog will give you cues it's not happy, and it doesn't want something to be taken, and if you can't pick up on that already then a behaviourist/trainer won't be able to help.

Do not send your dog to 'bootcamp' - euthanasia would be kind given the abuse so many dogs suffer at these 'bootcamp' type places.

I have to say, although Goldies are my thing, I've met many cockers and I've absolutely never met as many as there appear to be on mumsnet (and indeed on this thread) with issues around paw touching.

Dogs almost always given warnings before bites. I can't really think of a situation I know of where a dog has suddenly just attacked, and never given any sort of warning (be that stiffening, lip curls, grumbling, ears flattening etc). So, given that and the above, I think you need to be honest with yourself: are you picking up on your dogs body language every time? If the answer is an honest 'yes', then you should consider Euthanasia - because a dog attacking without warning is a risk - and if the answer is 'no' or 'sometimes' then you should contact Spaniel Aid and consider re-homing because you'll never be able to help your dog if you're missing cues.

In particular the video of the guy using a
slip lead to train a dog to walk on a lead without pulling.

The dog is absolutely slinking along, fearful of the yanks he’s giving it. It’s horrible to see and the dog he’s using is apparently an already trained dog.

They are a working dog trainer/breeder they also train pet gundogs. Some gun dogs will slink about like that, they never advocate slip leads for untrained dogs, of course you don't have to like it but they are reputable, imo

He is saying that’s the way to train them not to pull. He makes a point of explaining that the dog in the video is a trained dog that won’t pull, that he’s just using it for demo purposes.

I know that the gundog world tends to lean towards the yank and crank aversive methods. That doesn’t make it right.