Hello all!
I have had so many problems with my Mollie, a toy poodle/schnauzer mix. I am allergic to dogs, but love them so much and my Pearl, a toy poodle who was two years old at the time needed a playmate. When we brought Mollie home with us she was 8 weeks old, she is now nearly five years old. At first, she seemed to be a "normal" puppy. She gave us some problems with chewing furniture and completely destroyed my sofa and carpet in two rooms. We finally got that to stop and everything was fine for awhile. One day my husband was suffering from a migraine and was in the bathroom getting sick. He called to me to come get the dog as she had planted herself between him and the toilet. I came in and tried to call her out, bribe her away with a cookie, and finally, I reached down to grab her. She bit me and it has all been downhill since then. She has bitten all three of our nephews as well as my sister, several of my husband's friends, a neighbor boy, me several times and even my husband. She has jumped up and tried to attack two infants while someone was standing and holding the baby. This biting always occurs out of the blue. She literally sneaks up behind people and attacks. She doesn't want anyone near my husband and will climb to the back of the couch to sit on his shoulder if I try to sit with him. At first it was just the biting, but when she was two years old, she started going to the bathroom all over the house. She has even refused to go out side when I go out with Pearl. I left the door open and went out. She pooped in the house while we were outside! We moved to a new home about a month ago and no messes. Suddenly, the last three days there have been messes several times a day. She has a psycho reaction every time someone comes to the door, or even walks through the yard. The noise and chaos that ensues is unbearable. She constantly walks around slinking with her ears tucked. Sudden movements freak her out. Honestly, her reaction to people would make you think we beat her. There are only three people she seems to be okay with. My husband, who she is in love with, my grandmother, and a friend of mine. Other than that, your are the enemy. Her vision is fine and the vet says she doesn't see any reason to medicate a dog for anxiety. My sisters are scared to come around and want her nowhere near their children. She has to be closed up in the bedroom when anyone comes over and then she howls the entire time. I am at the end of my rope. I have put off having children for fear of what she would do to them. I want her out of my life, but I don't have the heart to send her away and I would never give to anyone as that would be a lost friend for certain. We have tried behavior classes, intense training, everything we can research and try! I am to the point of being done and I am desperately seeking out of the box answers to fix this. Please HELP!
Edited to Add: My Pearl is the polar opposite. She is friendly with everyone, wants to play always, and loves small children. I'm sure it has something to do with the fact that they feed her goodies that mama doesn't ordinarily allow, haha. Her only bad behavior stems from a love of shredding tissues, she will tear through a box in minutes and unravels toilet paper through the entire house. I now keep my tissues up high when I am not around and the bathroom door closed, problem solved. Both of these girls have had the same upbringing. In fact, if anything, I was not nearly as patient with Pearl when she was little.