Poodle

This little, frizzy dog is the perfect life companion, on account of how lovable, sociable, excitable and, above all else, loyal she is to her owner. She loves displays of affection and enjoys spending long bouts of time on the couch being patted and stroked at her owner’s side.

Remarkably lively, the Poodle has large stores of energy to spare and is not last in line when it comes to having fun and frolicking around. Training sessions are actually often a synonym of playtime to her, since she loves to learn and to please her master. You should therefore never hesitate to involve her in both recreational and training-oriented games.

Even if she is capable of being still and ‘fading into the woodwork’, this dog is always hungry for action, especially if it involves stimulating her intellect or sense of smell. In this sense, she is a dynamic and active companion, infecting both big and little ones alike with her joy on a daily basis.

The Poodle is renown for her great loyalty and remarkable capacity for learning. She can adapt to many different lifestyles and is therein a very intelligent dog and a particularly pleasant day-to-day companion.

An ancient waterbird hunter as well as a descendant of the French Barbet, the Caniche, as is her original name in French, has undeniably preserved her hunting instincts, good nose and attraction to water. This instinct does, however, remain contained- not least due to contemporary breeding, which has favoured her companion dog aspect.

A rather good ‘alarm dog’, she does become rather alert when something out of the ordinary disrupts her usual routine. She is very approachable once she starts trusting though.

Very loyal and attached to members of her social group, this dog could willingly spend all of her time by her owner’s side. In this sense, she is not independent at all, and requires near constant contact with her family to feel fully at peace. 

If left to her own devices, she loses her joyous exuberance which makes her so charismatic in the first place, and can become ‘yappy’ and anxious.

This dog does not like to be left alone, and only feels good when surrounded by her family (be it the humans or fellow animals in her family). She requires available owners, preferably always present. 

Moments of solitude will only be somewhat tolerated if the Poodle pup has been exposed to her owners’ absences in a gradual and positive manner, and from the youngest possible age.

This dog is very easy and pleasant to train, since she rapidly integrates what is asked of her. Endowed with an exceptional intelligence and sensitivity, coercive training methods will only serve to impact her in a very negative way. You must therefore prioritise gentle methods based on positive reinforcement and trust. 

Despite her great docility, the training process must be implemented as soon as the Poodle pup integrates the house, so as to prevent her from developing any bad habits- especially in the case of toy and miniature specimens, which one tends to be more lenient towards.

Very much alert, she barks as soon as she perceives something out of the ordinary. This has its good and bad sides. For instance: in the countryside, which tends to be calmer and less eventful, the dog’s barking could warn her owners about a potential intruder… but in the city, where many different noises can resound, the barking is at times excessive and not necessarily pertinent.