Kloe could have never hung out with the Seven Dwarfs. Mainly because of Sneezy.
Sneezy is one of the seven dwarfs in Disney’s 1937 animated feature film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. As a result of severe hay fever or cold seasons, Sneezy is prone to eruptive, unpredictable, and uncontrollable bouts of sneezing, hence his name.
From the Fandom Disney Wiki, https://disney.fandom.com/wiki/The_Disney_Wiki
Eruptive, unpredictable, and uncontrollable bouts of sneezing do not go over very well with Kloe! When Kloe hears a sneeze she will stop whatever she’s doing, or isn’t doing as the case may be, and run to my side and lean her entire 80 pound body into me all the while staring with her beautiful chestnut colored eyes into mine. But honestly, after 8 years I am still not 100 percent certain if she is there to save me or for me to protect her.
When Kloe was a puppy there was a time when we used a “Pet Protector” to discourage certain behaviors. You know, like not cleaning her room, skipping out on her chores around the house, and not getting homework done on time. Just (obviously) kidding… Unwanted behaviors like jumping up on visitors, digging where she shouldn’t be, etc. The Pet Corrector lets out a loud hissing sound from compressed air in a can. It always got Kloe’s attention and she would immediately cease the unwanted behavior and come running to Holly’s or my side with fear in her eyes. Although the Pet Corrector stopped the unwanted behavior it also scared the poop (not literally) out of Kloe so we didn’t use it very long. I want my pups to behave but not out of fear for their lives!
A sneeze sounds a lot like the Pet Corrector. So for the longest time we thought Kloe was having Pet Corrector flashbacks whenever someone sneezed.
Kloe is a highly sensitive dog. She senses when people are sad or not feeling well. At those times she will go to that person, lean her body into them, and gaze at them with loving, caring, and her aforementioned beautiful chestnut colored eyes.”Feel better, get better”, she seems to plead. We began thinking that Kloe interpreted the sneeze as a sign of illness or distress for the “sneezer” and took it upon herself to care for that person.
But that theory didn’t last very long. We soon realized that if Holly sneezed Kloe would come running to me. Holly would say, “Thanks Kloe; I’m the one in distress but you’re worried about Dad?!” So more recently we are back to thinking that sneezes just scare Kloe whether because of the Pet Corrector days or just because she’s a sissy wimp. 🙂
So these days whenever one of us sneezes we’ll say “sorry Kloe” as she comes running to our side. I even go so far as to run into another room when I feel a sneeze coming on so Kloe won’t hear it. The things we do for our pups, right? Our friends have even become acutely aware that if they sneeze Kloe will react. They too will say, “Sorry Kloe”.
But here is the kicker. Kloe understands the word “sneeze”. If I feel a sneeze coming on – and don’t think I can make it to another room or closet to sneeze – I’ll say, “Sorry Kloe, I think I am going to sneeze.” Kloe will immediately come to my side as if I had already sneezed.
Moral of the story: If you are within earshot of Kloe, avoid Eruptive, unpredictable, and uncontrollable bouts of sneezing at all costs !
Golden Kali 
Ah Kloe! Ducky would bark at us whenever Sam or I sneezed. At the time, we would always laugh at her reaction, evoking a puzzled look from her as if she were asking “what’s so funny?!” When I think back to those days, though, I really wonder why she barked at us. Maybe, as with other things, she was just sensitive to it.
Aww, what a sensitive soul. Loud noises (whatever kind) can be a distress trigger with some dogs.
Kloe is the source of very loud noises (barking) when she sees a cat! 🙂
When we had Trooper, our Leonberger, whenever I sneezed he would get up and leave the room. He didn’t do that when other people sneezed, only me. I never did figure out why.
Funny… who knows right?
That Post brings back a lot of “Ray memories” and the things we learned (from Trainers) as we worked with him … such as:
– Do you want him (Ray) to do what you expect of him because he simply wants to please you, or because he is scared to do otherwise? The answer is surely a “no brainer”, and simply encourages Positive Reinforcement Training.
– A dog replicates a young child in so many ways so, when contemplating training … “If you would not do it to a young child, then you probably should not be doing it your dog!”
Nigel has the jumping up habit and, although he is extremely gentle, we are obviously rather concerned that it could cause an accident. My initial approach was to simply turn around so he could not complete what he intended (lick my face!) however, he has met some people who are thrilled that he would give them such attention so Plan “B” is now in progress … ‘Down!”
He (Nigel) can also get rather “mouthy” with me to the extent where it could be an issue. Based on the belief that he is trying to get my attention to play, then it is hoped that eventually he will respond to “Down” and “Easy”. Until then however, I just extricate myself to go to another room, and close the door. He does seem to be getting the message that “mouthing” does not get him what he wants! This is still a “work in progress” as we need to understand him more.
They really are an education aren’t they!
Yes they are indeed an education! And, I’m sure Kloe and Koda would tell you that I too am a work in progress. They have scheduled my next annual performance review for next month so I am currently on best behavior. 😇
I can see you’re learning about fairly standard poodle behavior 😂 and have every confidence you’ll figure out what works best for Nigel in accordance with your rules. When we would go to the hospital well meaning people would encourage ‘kisses’ and Sam’s previous owners actively encouraged jumping up (to my horror). It takes a while to get folks trained…most likely more than with the dog you trying to train. LOL