spooked puppy

Question
My 5 month old mini poodle has developed an absessive kind of spooked behavior, jumping in place and barking at the ground as if something threatening was there.  He has been doing this for 3 days--can distract him for a moment but he goes right back.  This morning, instead of stretching & cuddling upon being let out of his crate,he immediately started jumping, barking etc.  Am at wits end!!!

Answer
My guess is that it is just a reaction to the increased hormones in his maturing body.  I would run him into the vet.  There could be more of physical problem.  Otherwise, the key to most behavior problems is approaching things using the dog's natural instincts.  Dogs see all the people and dogs in the household as a pack with each having their own rank in the pack and a top dog.  Life is much easier if the 2 legged pack members outrank the 4 legged ones.  You can learn to play the role of top dog by reading some books or going to a good obedience class. A good obedience class or book is about you being top dog, not about rewarding standard commands with a treat. Start at http://www.dogsbestfriend.com/  For more on being top dog, see http://www.dogbreedinfo.com./topdogrules.htm