Behavior

Question
QUESTION: I have a standard poodle I purchased 6 month ago from a
breeder. She is almost 2 yrs old and was not the show
quality the breeder wanted. I looked at the puppies and
could not decide on a pick so she showed me this older
pup. Well I am having trouble socializing her. She paces
in the yard running up and down the fence barking, she is
nervous, shy, she chews the wood/deck/latice in the yard
and any stuff animal in sight if she is left alone. She is
mostly inside just let out to go the bathroom. We have
another standard male who she will tolerate some times
showing her teeth ,but she seems to be teaching him bad
habits he did not have before. She has bonded with me. She
has been shown and walks on a leash well. I like her but I
need some help to know ow to help her fit in. We would
like her to be part  of our family. Not the dog in the
kennel.

Thanks for your help!
Trecia

ANSWER: Hello Trecia,
Sounds like your Poodle is a bit insecure and dependent on you.  You can help her by getting her out around people more and showing her that people can be nice to meet.  Take her to a Pet Store that will allow Pets to visit and see if people will come over and pet her.  Bring treats with you to give the people so they can give them to her.  Have your dog sit before people pet her and praise her if she lets them pet her.  If she is still nervous, see if they will come down to her level.  If she won't tolerate this yet, have friends that your dog knows come over to your house and bring her out on a leash.  Talk with your friends for a bit to allow your dog to warm up to your friends, then see if she will accept treats and pets from them.  When she is more comfortable with letting your friends pet her, then get her out into the public.
As for her chewing on the fences etc, you can coat them with a product that dogs don't like the taste of called Bitter Apple.  They have a garden/yard gel that you can put on decks, plants, trees, etc.  This should help with the chewing.  Offer her lots of other yummy things to chew on such as pigs ears or hard knuckle bones.  Try to stay away from Rawhide because they can cause stomach blockage/intestinal damage.  
Her reaction to your male sounds like it is caused by her being bonded to you and she is telling your male that you are HER person and to stay away from you.  You can help this by showing her that your male is the dominate dog in the family.  Feed him first, give him attention first and play with him before her.  Give her a small correction when she acts naughty with him.  
Another thing that will help her with her shyness and intolerance of people is Obedience classes.  This will help her bond with you, will give her an "out" for her restlessness and will help with socialization.  Working her good before letting her outside to potty will tire her a bit so that she goes outside, does her business and comes back inside.  She tends to bark at people because of this; look at it from her point-of-view.  She sees someone approaching her property.  She starts barking at them and they continue on their way.  To her, they aren't just continuing their walk, but leaving her property.  She thinks she has scared them off.  As they continue walking "away", she gets braver with her barking because it boosts her confidence.  About the only way to stop this, is to cover the fence by tarps or weaving plastic strips through the chain-link to stop her seeing the people walk by.  As she warms up to people, she may stop barking so much at them when she sees them.

I hope this helps you some.  If you have other questions, please feel free to ask.

Thanks for using AllExperts.com,
Kim


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: What kind of obedience class should I look for? I have
never taken one. She has been shown in the ring so she
might be training me! I love the way she walks on a lead.
She seems to be OK in public but is use to spending her
time in a kennel. She seems not to be a home/house or car
dog but OK in the kennel.She is very insecure just walking
around the house and will follow me every where. She
remminds me of a  little lap dog in a large body. She is
good with our kids but will try and herd them.She is great
at the groomer, but it may be what she know to the table
and back to a kennel.
Thanks again,
Trecia

Answer
Hello again Trecia,
The best kind of Obedience class would be one where you start off with a private lesson then move on to a group.  This way, your dog can get used to the trainer and get the basics down first, then move into the group where she can continue with her training in and around other dogs and people.  Contact your Vets office or Pet Store to see if they have people they recommend.  If you have a PetCo or PetSmart in your area, they frequently offer Obedience classes.  Poodles do very well in Obedience and after awhile come to enjoy showing off for the class.  
When my mom and I used to go to group classes with our Std Poodles, they used to always be some of the most well trained dogs because Poodles love to please their people.  We would always be number 1 in the Musical Chairs exercise.  The idea was to go around the chairs and run for an open chair when the music stopped, the catch was to leave your dog on a stay around the outside of the chairs and the person left had to make the other peoples dogs break their stay in order to steal another persons chair. Our dogs were very good at the stay and it was always either Mom or me who was left sitting in the last chair.  Hee hee.  
Make sure that whatever classes you take, the instructor needs to make the classes fun and be positive about the training process.  Positive reinforcement and Praise/treats are always best.  

As you mention above, most Show dogs live a hard life inside a kennel and around the grooming area.  It is necessary to keep the Show dog looking his/her best, but not as good for making the dog a good house dog.  Now that your girl is an inside member of your household, she will eventually get into a routine of household living.  Just be patient with her and give her some time.  

Good Luck and Thanks again for your questions, talk to me anytime you have questions/comments,
Kim