The Adolescent Dog

Adolescence can begin as early as 4 months and last as long as 2 years. It is during this period of time that any dog is difficult to own. They jump, they steal, they bark, they seem to have no regard for your rules at all. What happened to the sweet and cuddly puppy that tottered after your feet and slept half the day? Why are adolescent dogs so frustrating to own?

Adolescent dogs are teenagers, and just like teenagers of our species, they’re hardwired to push boundaries. If your teenaged dog was in the wild, he would now be physically strong enough to investigate the world, but still be under his mother’s protection. It’s an ideal time to explore and learn some valuable lessons before he’s expected to head out on his own. It’s a time to establish who among his siblings is going to rise in the ranks as well as testing appropriate behavior towards mature adults. He’ll experiment with hunting and foraging, learning what can and cannot be caught. Have you ever seen a nature video with some poor fox or wolf whimpering because his muzzle is full of porcupine quills? Only an adolescent would be so bold and inexperienced to tangle with a porcupine.

In the wild, learning about porcupine quills is important. In our world, raising an adolescent dog is downright frustrating. Those same urges that would be so useful in the wild are bothersome in our home. Our dogs can’t understand that no matter their age, they’re never going to be expected to go it alone or take over the pack. Their brains are telling them it’s time to explore and test boundaries.

Your job, as the owner of an adolescent dog, is to:

1. Set the best example you can by keeping your cool;
2. Manage your adolescent so that the trouble she causes is minimal;
3. Encourage and reward good behavior; and
4. Have a sense of humor.

Every dog goes through this phase. As owners, we must set our adolescent dogs up to be well-behaved and stable adults.

Maintaining Attention

One of the biggest challenges of owning an adolescent dog is that they have short spans of attention. This can be very frustrating when you’re trying to teach your dog something new. Here are some ways to help strengthen and increase your dog’s attention span.

Practice Name Recognition: Name recognition is when your dog turns her head because you said her name. The stronger a dog’s name recognition, the more things from which you can pull her attention. To practice this, say your dog’s name often and have a reward ready when you do. Treats, walks, belly rubs, and games of fetch can all be rewards for your dog turning towards you when she hears her name.

Mix obedience into play: Many dogs love games like fetch and tug. Some become so obsessed with the object they’re engaging, their eyes hardly ever leave it. Before throwing the ball or offering the tug toy, ask your dog for a “sit” or a “down”, or any other command he might know. Don’t play the game until your dog performs the behavior you requested. This will help teach your dog that you are a part of the game as well. If he wants the ball to fly, he’s got to notice and respond to you.

Play “Find It”: Find It is a game where you toss a treat on the ground and ask your dog to “Find It!”. Most dogs love this game (because who doesn’t love free food?), but the real trick is this: in order to get you to throw another treat, your dog must look at you. As soon as she does, toss down another treat and say “Find it”. As your dog gets the idea of the game, begin asking her to look at you for longer periods of time (1 second, 2 seconds etc).

Teach your dog the “Watch” command: “Watch” just means “look at me”. To begin teaching this behavior, take a treat and hold it near your dog’s nose. Then move it to your forehead and say “Watch”. If your dog’s eyes remain on the treat (and your forehead) tell him “Yes!” and give him the treat. Repeat until your dog reliably watches the treat. Next, lift the treat to your forehead and then move it off to the side. Your dog’s eyes will follow the treat. Watch for the instant when his eyes flick back to your face and say “yes!”. Then treat your dog.