Behavior of our Goldendoodle

Question
Hi Patti,
We recently purchased a Goldendoodle and previously owned 3 other dogs.  One was a Chow Chow(female), one was a shitzu mix(female), and One was a purebred shitzu.  The Chow we had until he was 13 and had to put him to sleep.  The shitzu mix was with us for a short time because he didn't housetrain, anf the shitzu we had for about 5 years and then we gave her up because she was a snippy dog and I am a daycare provider.
Everything I have read concerning a Goldendoodle, they are very friendly and pet friendly, and usually not a hyper dog.  This dog is our 1st male dog.  He is very aggressive with me when he wants something.  He bites me, he bites and tears my clothes, he barks, you name it.  He does it!  He will get anything he can off the counters to just throw down or chew on for awhile.  He rips up any kind of paper he can get ahold of. We are afraid he is going to kill our American shorthair cat also.  He will bite his neck and just rip at his hair and skin when he can get ahold of him.  We have found him dragging him about as he is biting.  I have had an obedience trainer over here and tried several methods.  I also read alot on the internet to see if I can get advice.  We have also used a gentle leader collar for him.
Recently I have read that Goldendoodles need positive rewarding as their training because they are a sensitive dog.  We have used both positive and negative I guess you would say. We have lots of chew toys and I do exercise him by walking.
We are at our wits end!  He is driving us nuts.  We do not know if he is indeed hyper or just a very active dog.  What do you think and is there anything you might suggest??  We have like I said nver had a male.  Does that have anything to do with it?  Have you heard that the breed may be hyper?

Thank you,
Patty

Answer
Hi Patty,

This is not a problem caused by gender. It sounds more like a young, untrained, willful and probably dominate dog whom you are unable to control.

You didn't say what you're doing to correct the dog's behavior, just that you had an obedience trainer over. Consulting with a trainer once or twice isn't going to teach you, or the dog anything. Are you working with your dog at least once a day? Are you going to obedience classes? Are you offering immediate corrections for bad behavior, and praise when the dog behaves the way you want him to? Are you crating the dog when you can't be monitoring him? What kind of exercise does he get, and how often? Is the dog neutered?

You realize that the "negative training" you mentioned isn't training the dog anything. Punishment or yelling can cause bad behavior, so it's counter productive.

If your dog is to hyper and won't listen to you, it's
because he doesn't respect you. He's not convinced that you are the pack leader who must be obeyed. You have to give your dog a firm reason to believe he must comply with your commands.
Many people try to win their new puppy's love by letting the puppy always have its way. The pup is showered with affection and attention because he is so cute and cuddly. Buckets of affection is a wonderful thing for most puppies, but it must be tempered with respect.

If you give in to your puppy's every whim, your pup will never learn self control and self discipline. Your puppy will never learn to respect you. If your puppy does not respect you, it will have no reason to do anything for you. Your relationship will be like two 5 year olds bossing each other around. Just as a child needs a caring parent; an athletic team needs a coach; your puppy needs a leader and a clear social hierarchy.

When you do not take up the role of leader, the dog will. You end up with an unruly, disobedient, out of control, often aggressive monster of a dog.

You may want to try keeping him tethered to you at all times while you're at home (with the exception of bedtime, of course, when he should be crated). I've found the easiest way to do this is to use one of those "climber's hooks" (they are also sold as key chains) and hook it through the looped end of the leash and through one of your belt loops.
Carry a squirt bottle filled with water around with you, or hook it into one of your pants pockets. Every time he starts to act up; give him a verbal "NO!" in a low, stern voice (do not yell it) and squirt him once or twice with the water bottle. When he stops the behavior, change your tone of voice into a happy, higher-pitched, praise tone and tell her "Good Boy!" or whatever and pet him. You want to associate bad things with the bad behaviors and good things for not doing the bad behaviors. By tethering him to you, he will be within 4 or 6 feet of you at all times, and you can immediately correct the bad behavior.

This problem didn't start over night.
Your dog can be brought under control, and be the lovely pet you'd hoped he'd be, but it's going to take time, a commitment for change on your part, and rigorous training. I suggest calling a dog trainer and signing up for classes ASAP. Then you have to work with your dog daily, in-between the classes. You can't learn this by reading about it, you need a live professional. It's never too late to begin. Even older dogs can benefit from training classes.

If you don't think your previous dog trainer was effective, you can see if you can find another one here:

http://www.dogtrainersearch.com/owners/find.php

Best of luck,
Patti