# Cockapoo aggression issue



## Moose

Hello fellow cockapoo lovers!

So I got my first ever cockapoo when he was 8 weeks old
And he is now 15 months old. He has aggression issues over 
"Stolen items" ranging from random objects like a pen,
Stolen stuff out of rubbish bin, socks, undies, a dog treat that he didn't 
Actually want to eat. He growls snaps and bites. He has only ever bitten me, my partner and my brother. He has also growled us when asking him to
Leave his crate or our bedroom because he's possessive over it. Has anyone
Else had this issue with their cockapoo? My vet said he could never have imagined
Him being like that because he has such a nice cuddly loving side to him otherwise. He has also growled at my young nieces during playtime for no reason.. He hasn't had major kid involvement though. He barks at people who come into our house/on our property but has never bitten them. He's done this from a young age and went through puppy school etc but it didn't help that side
Of him. We have a behaviourist appointment in a couple weeks which is our last resort for him because it's stressful and emotional having a dog like this. 
Just wondering if anyone has experienced this and if it could ever be resolved? 

Thanks!!!


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## fairlie

Hi Moose you are in good hands here. We have experts here who will walk you through step by step what they did about there dogs guarding issues, which are a known trait of cocker spaniels and thus some cockapoos. Starting with a trainer is a good idea, just make sure it is one who uses only positive methods or the problem will worsen. Others will be able to post links to threads about this specific issue. I am hopeless at that kind of thing.


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## 2ndhandgal

Dogs and pups don't growl or bit for no reason - it is just we don't always understand the reasons.

Protecting possessions can become a serious problem and the dog is likely to steal more and growl more as he becomes more and more insecure and worried that things are going to be taken from him.

Have a read of this thread about resource guarding - it can be resolved but you need to stop confronting him and start to work with him. Particularly concerned that a dog is being classes as aggressive when being asked to leave a crate as that should be a place of safety for a dog.

http://ilovemycockapoo.com/showthread.php?t=56106

A dog without socialisation with kids may well growl out of insecurity and I suspect if you can resolve the resource guarding and your general relationship he will trust you more and you will be able to gently socialise with children.

Make sure the behaviourist is positive and if they suggest confronting and punishing run a mile as that is likely to make matters far worse.


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## Moose

Thank you! I had a read through that thread. Some helpful tips  
See - I got told From my puppy school trainer that when he had a "go" at us, 
To push him to the ground as if we are dominating him. It's difficult when you get mixed advice. There is one issue though - due to what my
Dog likes to get .. Such as nails, screws, even broken glass has had to be taken out of his mouth and I can't wait around to try swap these objects as obviously it can be dangerous especially if he tried to scoff them. We try our best to not have nails etc around but during house renovations is can be difficult haha and the broken glass situation was when I had knocked a cup onto the tiles and he thought it would be good to pick a piece up! 
Will definitely see what the behaviourist is like


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## Moose

fairlie said:


> Hi Moose you are in good hands here. We have experts here who will walk you through step by step what they did about there dogs guarding issues, which are a known trait of cocker spaniels and thus some cockapoos. Starting with a trainer is a good idea, just make sure it is one who uses only positive methods or the problem will worsen. Others will be able to post links to threads about this specific issue. I am hopeless at that kind of thing.


 Interesting that it is a spaniel trait! Is barking/guarding home a trait of theirs as well?


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## fairlie

Keep slices of processed cheese handy for these situations. Use them to teach a very good "leave it" with low value treats and then when you need to trade up just the noise of the slow unwrapping will bring them closer to you. The dominance roll has been completely debunked. I would not trust a trainer who still uses it.


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## Moose

fairlie said:


> Keep slices of processed cheese handy for these situations. Use them to teach a very good "leave it" with low value treats and then when you need to trade up just the noise of the slow unwrapping will bring them closer to you. The dominance roll has been completely debunked. I would not trust a trainer who still uses it.


By dominance roll do you mean the pushing him to the ground and holding him down move? And we now know it hasn't worked.. Months and months later!' That's why we are getting a behaviourist involved. Hopefully we haven't reinforced the behaviour too much  
I have tried swapping with cheese before when it was a sock he had and he *almost* came to me but he just kept running back to the sock inside of his crate :/ so it didn't actually work  I think il have to do more practice of swapping when he's in a playful/good mood where I know it won't escalate


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## 2ndhandgal

Sadly the puppy advice will have made things worse as he will be expecting to be punished and as I have found with Molly if she is more stressed she is more likely to find things to guard.

Coming away from the sock for cheese is actually great - he was conflicted though and that is why he ran back to his sock so they key is to ignore the sock and engage him in something else. In the early days we would sometimes do training and Molly may run to her stolen thing a few times but would gradually relax and as she did I could then give her a handful of treats and scoop up the sock.

You do also need to choose your battles, the chances are he has had these items in his mouth lots of times and not eaten them so is he really likely to - or is he just hoarding them and guarding them. This morning I was cleaning at the back of the washing machine and Molly ran off with a peg - the old fashioned sort with a spring so I was not that keen to leave her with it - but I left her to play and guard it while I carried on for a around 10 minutes before inviting both dogs for a biscuit - she was very happy to comply - think by then the charms of a peg with nobody caring where wearing off!!


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## fairlie

Yes that is a dominance roll and it humiliates and terrifies the dog, but it is never too late Moose. Just apologize and move on. I'd spend alot of time on other fun training, long walks and so on. Cockers will guard anything. Right now my dog Rufus is keeping my daughter's visiting cat from getting close to me.


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## Moose

It's strange though - he often finds one of my socks and happily gives it to me when asked to "give it" and I praise him for that, but other times he feels the need to guard? (I have noticed it often happens at night time although there has been day time situations as well). He seems to get into a mood or mind frame where he needs to guard. There's also plenty of other situations where he steals things but runs away and wags his tail watching me and wants me to chase him
For it, as if to play. (I try my best to ignore him most times except for times where I am running late and need the shoe he has stolen for example). I'm annoyed that I have been doing all the wrong techniques and instilling fear and anxiety into him without meaning to but hopefully it's not too late! He's only 15 months old. 

Even today, he stole a sock (his favourite - I think it's a security item for him) but knew he had taken it out of the bathroom and that I was going to want it and so he waited down the hallway with it and just watched me until I realised he had the sock! He tried to run away but I managed to grab it and ask for it and he gave it up. But then tonight he had a sock and took it into his crate and growled at me when I went to go in and take it off him.. Next time I will try coax him out for cheese and do a swap


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## fairlie

He is trying to have fun with you when he starts the game and then becomes scared of you when his anxiety grows. You need some games which are fun for both of you which don't scare him. Does he like to pop bubbles, play hide and go seek, do agility type work or that sort of thing?


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## 2ndhandgal

Not to late at all - Molly came to me when she was just under 18 months old and at that point her previous owners were scared of her and she was really quite serious about her guarding. It sounds like your boy is not too bad if he will sometimes give you things so hopefully you will soon be back on track.

Taking things to his crate will always be more tricky as he is will consider that his safe place so you will have a double dose of guarding going on especially if there has sometimes been conflict about the crate. As well as a direct swap for cheese loads of distraction things you can do - so ignore walk away and open the fridge or the back door as that will often get a dog to come and investigate.

Guarding levels will depend on the dogs mood - if the dog is stressed they are more likely to guard. Several times when Molls behaviour have got worse I have had to sit back and consider why and it is often something I have done which has caused her stress. When I first got a second dog her guarding went through the roof and it was extremely tense for all of us for a good few weeks.


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## Moose

I am glad it's not too late! I would be heartbroken to have to give him up. Yes we play a lot of ball games because he constantly retrieves and wants me to throw things. And he loves hide and seek.
Tonight with the sock in the crate issue we aren't sure what provoked it because we were sitting watching the rugby all night and he randomly did it and we noticed the change in his stance and body language. If he goes to bite us what should we do now if he does? Lately I've tried the "don't bite" and he actually mouths my hand but doesn't bite down and he holds back and the situation deescalates. (He learnt the don't bite command from his biting /mouthing puppy stages). We have tried isolation by making him go outside or locking him in his crate I'm not sure if this helped or not? It helped in calming him down but then he would start to cry and want to be let out of his crate to come back to us


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## Moose

Also another question : 

He sleeps on our bed with us. I've been told by people we should never allow it because he sees himself as equal or dominant over us, do you think it's true? We all love cuddles though. 

And ever since he was tiny he has always been a nibbler at his food and we work so sometimes he's at home for a few hours alone and so we leave him access to his food (although he doesn't seem to eat much unless we are around), we've been told we should give him time limits on eating but we found it hard to stick to that. What are your views?


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## 2ndhandgal

Excellent that you noticed the change in his stance and body language - they are big clues as to how serious his intent is when guarding.

As to what to do when he goes to bite - I am not entirely sure what you mean - you need to totally avoid putting him in positions where he feels he needs to bit unless it is literally a matter or life and death which I don't think a sock, shoe, or even nail is ever going to be - or are there other situations where he is likely to go to bite?

Isolation and punishment are all going to make him more insecure so I would avoid them too.

Molly was also an awful eater when I first got her, she had 15 minutes to eat and then the bowl was lifted and she had nothing until her next meal (and as I now have 2 dogs no chance of any food left over surviving my second dog). As a bonus if you do not have food around all the time this increases its value for use as a distraction if you need to get him away from something.

I don't remotely believe that a dog sleeping on a bed will feel even slightly more dominant or otherwise over you - however is is generally not recommended for dogs who guard spaces - but if there has never been a problem then I would not worry - for the record Molly sleeps on my bed and has not murdered me in my sleep yet


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## Moose

Well there has been a couple times where he turned quickly and straight bit me and I'm guessing that's because we've growled him
For growling at us as we saw it as a bad thing.. So there has been a few times where he has skipped that step and straight bitten our hand. 

Okay so it is a good idea to uplift the food after fifteen or so minutes then so that it becomes more valuable - I'll start that. 

He has never guarded our bed other than when he has been naughty and I've told him to get off and he wouldn't and kept jumping up and turning it into a game... Sometimes when we ask him to leave our bedroom (for example if he was humping a jacket hanging up which he often does and I said "no" to) then said out of the room, then he has immediately become defensive and won't leave the room and growls and snarls. 

Sometimes when he's guarding an object And he's growling and barking at us he won't listen or stop or anything - is this when we leave the room and ignore? Or is it safe to try swap / distract because when he does that is when he is often likely to bite


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## 2ndhandgal

Yep - if he is growling and barking at you walk away - you want to defuse the situation rather than take him on. It might feel like backing down but as everyone gets more relaxed things will improve and you will eventually be able to take anything away from him. 

Growling is good as it is a warning he is not happy - far better growling than going for a bite and as he realises you are listening even the growling should diminish. Molly growls and grumbles at other dogs but I can't remember the last time she actually properly growled at me - although she does do a grumbly complaining whingey talking growl sometimes just to tell me she would rather not do something the difference in he now though is she will usually then do it after having protested!


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## Marzi

Hi Moose.
I'm glad that you are on here getting some advice - hopefully you'll soon feel that you have your guy sorted out.
Be consistant, be gentle, be kind and follow advice that 2ndhandgal gives as it is gold.
Fairlie is right too - up the fun training, walking, games of fetch etc.
Do a little bit of interacting with him while you are boiling the kettle or on the phone - hand signals for down, sit, stand. Lots of rewards.
If you have got into the habit of sounding cross with him then consider introducing a clicker for training and hand signals...
Good luck.


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## fairlie

I'd work hard to avoid leaving stuff like shoes and socks around for him to steal. I'd also limit where he is allowed to go if he is doing things like humping your jackets. Keep doors closed and stuff picked up. Does he do well with other dogs? It sounds like you could use some walks with some well behaved dogs so you can watch and model the "I call the shots but I am completely trustworthy" owner vibe you are looking for. It is not an easy thing to achieve on your own.


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## Moose

Thanks guys!! 

He does quite well with other dogs, we go to the dog park and he's never had an issue with another dog, when he plays he likes to bow and jump around and pretend to mouth other dogs which some dogs don't like and other dogs are exactly the same  although he likes to say hello then to straight back to fetching the ball because he's obsessed with balls!! When he runs around with another dog he barks a lot and tries to bow to initiate play but the barking puts some dogs off and I don't know how to quieten him! he walks off leash and has good recall at the dog park. Two weeks ago he unfortunately got hit by a car outside of our gate, he was just really sore no fractures etc but that increased his aggression which the vet explained might happen.. And has also meant very little exercise lately! I can't wait to get back into walking (especially because warmer Weather is coming, I live in NZ). 

We have plenty of happy fun times and cuddles everyday which is nice. Question: when he used his nose to nuzzle your hand to force a pat, is it okay to pat him? I was told to ignore it when he is being demanding like that. 

Okay I think il keep the bedroom closed when we aren't in there then!


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## Moose

Side note: as we tried our best to socialise moose with other dogs and went to puppy school etc, we've trained him in terms of sitting lying and a few tricks like play dead, he hasn't had much socialisation with children because we are a young couple and I have nieces and nephews but that's it! No friends with children. Anyway, in terms of his aggression the only thing I can think it might stem from is his separation anxiety??? (which I noticed is common in cockapoos) because he had that quite bad when we first got him


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## fairlie

I might have broken every single rule you've ever been told....Rufus sleeps in our bed, demands pats and we've never rolled him. Ouch for the car hit, poor little guy!. Rufus is also ball obsessed and plays with other dogs as you've described. Maybe his ball can be used for some of the training? When Rufus was young and bossing us around our trainer recommended a lot of tug games where we called the shots and he had to release on command. I'm not sure what 2nd would say to that, she is a pro.


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## Moose

fairlie said:


> I might have broken every single rule you've ever been told....Rufus sleeps in our bed, demands pats and we've never rolled him. Ouch for the car hit, poor little guy!. Rufus is also ball obsessed and plays with other dogs as you've described. Maybe his ball can be used for some of the training? When Rufus was young and bossing us around our trainer recommended a lot of tug games where we called the shots and he had to release on command. I'm not sure what 2nd would say to that, she is a pro.


Haha. So many people and their differing views of owning a dog! I've never told him off for demanding pats because I think it's cute. Yeah we do play tug games but I always make sure I win!


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## 2ndhandgal

Poor chap - and yes being sore will have made him more grouchy and likely to show aggression (I am also more likely to show aggression if I am sore  ) 

Sounds like you have done pretty well with his training and socialising and just a few bits to sort out 

In my view the majority of aggression stems from insecurity of some form so not surprised to hear he also had separation anxiety (Molly did too) She guards things because she is afraid of losing them, as she gets more secure and happy with things she feels less need to guard them, if she knows things will be taken off her straight away this makes her worry more and so she guards them more and this all fuels and aggression - she is not saying she is the boss - she is saying they are her security and she does not want to lose them.

Nosing to get a pat is fine if you are happy with a dog asking for that which sounds like you are - it is a bit of a pain at times (Molly - yes I mean you) but is not going to lead to your dog taking over the world.

I love tug games - fantastic for teaching pups to be gentle with humans (game stops when they touch the hand with teeth) great to teach a dog to release on cue (stop when asked and the game continues) and I let my dogs win some of the time. The last sock Molly stole she allowed me to take it from her with only a bit of tension so we then played tuggy with it for a while, I asked her to give it to me and she did and after another brief tug I left her with the sock.


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## RuthMill

We play tug too but I make it fair and let the girls to win every now and then. I don't believe in dominance.


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## DB1

I had Dudley as a pup at the height of all the dominance theory stuff and I feel sad that we spent a lot of time ensuring he knew we were pack leaders and were possibly tougher on him (not physically though) than we should have been, having said that he always has been quick 'cocky' for want of a better word so i still don't know, one thing he will not do is drop a tug toy unless you put a treat right under his nose, i'd love him to just drop it on command - any suggestions?


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## 2ndhandgal

DB1 said:


> I had Dudley as a pup at the height of all the dominance theory stuff and I feel sad that we spent a lot of time ensuring he knew we were pack leaders and were possibly tougher on him (not physically though) than we should have been, having said that he always has been quick 'cocky' for want of a better word so i still don't know, one thing he will not do is drop a tug toy unless you put a treat right under his nose, i'd love him to just drop it on command - any suggestions?


The way we teach drop the toy to pups is with a small tuggy toy you can mostly fit in your hand. Easiest to play tuggy down on the ground then gather as much of the toy into your hand as you can and hold it steady against your leg and just ignore - with bigger dogs two hands might be needed to hold steady but the idea is the toy is as still as possible so no game - the second he lets go you yippeeeeeeee (literally if that will not scare him) and play again vigorously. Repeat a few times and most dogs quickly get the idea that the way to continue the game is to let go. At that point you can give it a name and start to say the word as you gather the toy to you. Eventually you just say the word and the dog releases.

If that does not make sense I will try and borrow a pup and video it!!


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## DB1

Thanks, that has reminded me I think we tried something similar, when you then play vigorously do you slow down and do the same to end the game or let them have it that time?


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## 2ndhandgal

For teaching to start with I would repeat the playing and getting releases a few times then the final time let them win the toy so they always have a really nice reward of another game for releasing the toy.


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## DB1

Thanks, (and sorry for hijacking thread moose).


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