Hi All,

Had a couple of questions for anyone with a mini poodle(or maybe it's just a puppy thing).
Although my little girl seems more submissive than dominant these days (wasn't sure as a puppy but she's six mos now) but she sometimes crouches down butt in the air teeth bared and barks at me even tries to bite at me. It seems to happen when i'm trying to get her to obey(almost like she's yelling at me like a spoiled child) I usually just walk away and ignore but am concerned. Is this a puppy thing or a poodle personality thing and any suggestions on what to do if anything? She's really good in other area's just taught her to jingle a bell at the door to go out(whether she has to go potty or not is a mystery but no accidents inhouse so far) so she cant fool me I know shes smart. She's also great in the crate(will stay in at night and stays quiet until i get up even if its 8:00 am) and she's very loving so i'm a little confused about this behaviour. She knows basic commands but is very treat oriented so I'm trying to weane her off a little because she's starting to refuse to do things if she sees nothing in my hand.

Also, can you get any idea on what size a mini poodle will be full grown at six mos. Is this determined on the size of the parents (dad 11" 11lbs and mom was 12" 12lbs)? I'm trying to get an idea of about how much more she will be growing at this point and how big she'll get.

Lorna(a little long winded,sorry)

Usually the position of a dog crouching down with its bum in the air is an invitation to play a game - so it could be that she thinks you're both having a lovely game!
:)

I sure your right. I had heard that but wasn't sure that's what she was doing. It's been a longggggggg time since I had a puppy and there seems so much more to know and do now it seems then before. The best thing is the internet so you can get others opinions and feedback. By the way, what do you think about going to obeidence classes at this stage of the game?

First of all, she is still only a puppy, and all puppies are naughty, particularly Poodles. Also she's not a mini, she's a Toy, going by the size of her Sire and Dam. Minis grow to at least 15". Am curious as to what colour she is as Apricots and Silvers tend to be nervy. Poodles are very intelligent and know your every move, so don't be surprised if she wants to rule the roost!!!!

Your right, I know she's still a puppy I was just checking. I'm trying to keep the training in check and wasn't sure if I was doing something wrong or if it was something I needed to work more on. I am just trying to keep the upper hand because like you said "they have a tendency to want rule the roost"

She's black with a little silver around her muzzle and small spots around her ears(which makes her look older than she is,premature gray:0). She seems to be lightning up since summer to a kindof choc. Her sire was choc and her dam was white. So you think she's a toy? She was listed by the breeder as a mini because the parents were more than 10" 10lbs so that's why I asked because I'm not at all that knowlegable about breeding. So you think she probably will not get much bigger? The breeder I got her from had both mini's and toy's but her toys were not that small. The litter right before the one I got my girl from was toys but they were already taken so I went with the mini(I thought).