Dog adoloscence

[jamiegirl]

I've read all about dog adolescence in the other forums but I guess I never really prepared myself for how bad it really is. Our 1 year old GD right now is SO full of energy that she has gone back to playing rough with us. She gets bursts of energy about 6 times a day that leads to anywhere from jumping, nipping, grabbing and hiding shoes, chewing and destroying, to all out battle for dominance with me. We have gone through most of these things before but I thought we were seeing the "light" about 2 months ago when she has showed some calming down. Now, even our walks have become difficult again. We also noticed that she has a voracious appetite where we are feeding her almost double what she had just a few months ago. We continue to work on her training sessions but it is the sudden burst of destructive, willful energy that we find challenging. The fact that she's about 90 lbs doesn't help our cause. Any advice or sympathy would be appreciated. Thanks.

[Debbie Penny]

I read somewhere recently that a one year old dog is equavalent to a 16 year old teenager, and you have a girl!!! Hmmmm, Trying times. All the best, my Charlie is just 11 months, and todays walk and off leash time was not as it's been, he had a mind of his own. Next walk will include his 30' lead for the off lead area! Back to basics. All the best, and here's some patience to share with you : ) ... tc and kennel her in when your eyes can't be on her.

[Bronwen Watts]

Our doodle was incredibly difficult to deal with almost immediately after we got him. He was VERY dominant with us, trying to establish himself as alpha. Our dog trainer showed us some ways of getting physical with him to get him submissive, and it worked wonders. It was initially hard for me to get so physical with him (because I'm a big softy), but what a difference! Anytime our dog started acting up, right away we would put him in a position that clearly indicated to him that we were the bosses. Our dog is so much more respectful and he is so well-behaved now. If you haven't been to any kind of obedience training, you should definitely go, and if you have, then ask your trainer for advice. Ours gave us two good ways of showing our pup I am alpha, and after being consistent with it for a few months, it has not been a problem in over a year for us! Good luck!

[Karen P]

We are having the same problems with our GD. If you do not mind me asking, what are the 2 ways that worked? I am assuming one was the alpha roll onto his back? Any info would be great. Thanks

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

Just a thought, but is there any chance that there has been a change in her activity. Maybe it is colder out or bad weather, or everyone has been very busy over the holidays and she just isn't getting as much exercise as she normally did prior? Our girls turned one last March, and I very distinctly remember the few months leading up to that time when it was winter and dark early, and their outside activity and walks weren't what they had been. We had some very frustrating times. (Even spent $7000 to fence the back yard)! Everytime they got in trouble, I could always associate it right back to the fact that they were not getting the exercise that they needed to get rid of that energy so they were finding ways of their own to do it. I learned to find inside ways to get them more exercise so that they were chewing up my rugs etc. Lesson Learned ...... a tired dog is a much better behaved dog!

So, that was my thoughts on advice, and I'll also add some sympathy too because I remember those days well. Fortunately, as they are maturing this winter hasn't been quite so bad.

[Karen P]

Thanks for the advice and sympathy!! We do not have a fenced yard and that may be our next investment. We are on 2 acres but there is no way I would trust Chewie off leash !!!

[jamiegirl]

Although it doesn't snow in our area, it was during the rainy weeks that she had the high energy again. She has been doing a whole lot better in the last couple of weeks but every once in a while, she still gets testy, sort of like a teenager mouthing off to a parent. I've also started teaching her a couple of new tricks; I think the mental challenge helps drain some of her energy.

[Karen P]

I am glad to hear that it is getting better. It is kind of frustrating when you think you are past some of the rebellion and then it comes back. I am thankful for this website to learn that it is all "doodle" normal !!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Exercise, exercise, exercise. I know it's difficult in the winter, but big sporting dogs need at least 45 minutes of exercise a day to keep them happy and calm. Even though they're "doodles", they have the same exercise requirements of Golden retrievers, Standard poodles, and Labrador retrievers. Your GD needs a constructive outlet for all that energy; there are lots of discussions here on DK about creative ways to give them exercise in the winter months.
The jumping, nipping, and challenging are training issues, though. Training really never ends...it has to be reinforced through continous practice and refresher exercises, at least until she's three years old, which is when conventional wisdom tells us a retriever will "mature", lol. A good training session every day will help not just with controlling these behaviors, but working with her is a form of "exercise"...a "job" for her, in dog terms... that will also help tire her out.
Good luck!

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

We are going through this with Peri right now (9 months old). The cold weather is making her nutty and our walks have been shorter because it is frigid to us in Nashville (9 degrees at night - yuck). We still try to do 2-3 15 minute walks/day - this is helping. It is not as much of a big deal for us when she gets a zoomie or goes crazy because she is only 20 pounds. But still, I feel your pain. One thing we are doing (to echo Karen's comments above) is reinforcing her training right now. Last night I was making dinner, DH was helping with laundry and Peri started going a little crazy. Just barking at our other dog, etc....I told DH to do a trianing session. He did a series of come, sit-down-sits, Go to your place, go to your bed, touch, etc... (you get the point). He did this for 15 minutes with high-value treats. She laid down for a nap literally right after. We were able to eat dinner in peace. Working out their brain tires them out, trust me.

[Karen P]

Thanks I am sure that is part of the problem. I know he could use more exercise which we will try and get. But we can definitely get more mental stimulation with more training.

[Karen P]

Yeah, we need to focus on more exercise. We are in Northwest Indiana and it is cold and snowy !! We will try some more training to at least get more mental stimulation.

[Kyoko]

We thought that we were lacking the exercise lately as well due to the cold weather and snow.....So today, I took her to the snow covered baseball field and let her ran, ran and I ran around with her! After awhile, it wasn't cold to me anymore either, and it started become fun to play fetch with snow ball! It's just hard to get the courage build up to do it.....I hate cold weather.... :-(