Help! My puppy is an unruly teenager

[Kelly and Brasco]

We thought we were making all the right steps with our pup Brasco - training classes, long walks at lunch, dog parks, etc. but it seems that lately he is testing us as parents.  He is 7 months old and has a lot of stored up puppy energy which has been coming out in more negative ways lately.

Example 1 - attention barking and nipping. He gets hyper at night when my husband and I return from work that it's not long before he begins to bark at us for more attention and if I put out my hand, I get a very quick nip and then he runs.
Example 2 - If we play with him for a certain period of time, and then stop. He will begin to grab things that he knows will make us chase after him - pillows from the couch, mail on the counter, socks...pretty much anything he can get his mouth on.
Example 3 - If he does get something in his mouth, say a receipt or paper towel, that he knows he can swallow, then he will run under the dining room table and hide and if I approach the table, he begins to scowl at me...teeth showing and growling. If we put our hands near him, he will nip/bite.  (We have been working on this one A LOT, trying a "hansel and gretel" approach by putting treats outside the table in a sort of breadcrumb trail until he comes out and rewarding him more when he "drops" toys and other objects around the house)

Some additional info.: . My husband and I have a fairly reasonable work schedule for spending time with Brasco. I leave at 9:15am and then come back at lunch for an hour with the pup, then my husband is home by 5pm. The behaviors above seem to intensify at night when we are both home.

My question is whether this is fairly normal behavior for a 7 month old? Does anyone have any helpful tips for handling this behavior? I would loooove to hear some new methods to try! Thanks in advance!

[Donna M Lowry]

Kelly, I am laughing outloud!!! If I didn't know better, I would think you were talking about my doodle, Riley!
While its not really funny, we experience the same thing, and usually when its just me and my daughter. When he is acting up as you describe, my instructor from puppy training class advised to use a leash inside for training purposes if you need to. We have been using this when he starts acting up, and for whatever reason, once the leash is on the behavior stops. It is not intended as a "threat" but instead a way to maintain control. Riley does all 3 of the examples that you listed above. Add Example 4 - running around in circle in my bedroom and across the bed with one of my shoes or a bra in his mouth like you can't catch me!!! The joys of Doodle-hood!!!

[Joyce,David"Mochi,Latte,Popcorn"]

We've been through EVERYTHING you described when Mochi was 5~8 months old. (nipping/biting/showing teeth..etc).
We once thought something must went wrong with this puppy. We've never seen puppies with so much energy and also that aggressive. We thought he was the worst puppy, ever. We also did everything we could to train him, but magic didn't happen in one day.

Mochi mellowed down a lot when he turned one, now he's almost two and is the sweetest dog we have ever had, we love him into pieces :)
Brasco is a cutie, with consistant training and patience, I'm sure he will turn into a sweet gentle boy soon!

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I can certainly identify with the "bratty teenager" stage. You mention that you and Brasco have attended training classes. Is he still in training? Have you tried talking with your trainer about this behavior? The nipping, showing of the teeth, and growling would be something I would definitely want to talk to the trainer about. Young puppies nip and play growl, but for my guys that behavior was all over by seven months. Also when he takes something that he shouldn't and then runs under the table his outcome is a trail of treats. I'm wondering if he's looking at this as a reward which would tend to make him repeat the behavior. I taught "drop it" using treats as rewards, but that was in an exercise and under my terms. This feels a little different, but a trainer or behaviorist would certainly have more insight.

[Carlos and Chloe]

Looks like you're describing my Chloe as well :) She's 10 months old and she doesn't really nip but she does this biting motion away from us like she wants to bite something but knows she's not suppose to bite us so she either starts biting the air or the carpet. Once in a while she put teeth to my finger nails or something and as soon as I give her a look she takes off. Sometimes she start barking at me trying to get me to chase her or give her more attention. A sock lying on the ground and it's off to the races when she sees me approach. I used to be able to just say "drop it" and she'll eventually drop it but now I have to chase her a bit and then she'll finally drop it. She's also stopped doing her 'tricks' She used to do all her doggie tricks: sit, down, leave it, beg, pray, rollover, peekaboo, bang...etc and now I get attitude when I ask her to do some. And she simply just refuses to do others and after a few barks she'll walk away even though I'm holding some delicious treats. I'm wondering if she's getting spoiled because we have been treating her a lot lately without much emphasis on tricks or commands. She's seems to have just developed this very naughty phase in the past few weeks or so.

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

Ditto to what everyone says. More training will help with all of this. Peri was very bad during this time in her life and she did grow out of it, HOWEVER, it took diligent formal training on our part.

The only thing she has never done is resource guard (growl when we try to get something away). We taught her drop it from day 1. This is something a trainer can help with.....I agree with Jane.

Oh and try daycare or the dogpark or something to allow that excess energy to escape. This is a hard time with a puppy, I know. Fast forward to where my Peri is now (20 months) and life is a heck of a lot easier.

[Deb, Connor & Simon]

I agree with everyone who says more training now.
The reason he is grabbing stuff off your couch is because you are chasing him. As frustrating as this is for you, it is that much fun and more for him. Stop chasing him. Ignore him. And with your trainer, teach him the commands, drop it, leave it, bring it.
When he has something under the table, is he "resource protecting" or is he being a goofy boy? I agree that putting treats around the table to pull him out could be perceived by him as reward. Offer the treat in exchange for what he has in his mouth - ideally, you tell him to drop it, he does and then he gets the treat.
Lastly, this is very definitely teenage behavior, but like with human teenagers, it needs to be dealt with. Your trainer can help you deal with this in a positive way. Many times just redirecting the behavior can work well. Giving him a bully stick or TUX to chew on after your dinner when you want some calm time is a positive way to keep him occupied. Even 15-20 minutes of chewing will help release tension. :-)
With continued, consistent training, you will have the wonderful, adorable adult doodle you always wanted. :-)

[shelly]

Oh Kelly, you might as well just put Brasco's name in place of Tori's... if you search back a few months... maybe even a year (I kind of blocked it out- lol) you will find the EXACT same things that I wrote... right down to eating paper towels, receipts, money, and running under the dining room table and growling baring teeth and she even bit me and my mother-in-law... she KNEW she was wrong, and I refused to look at her! (YES I lowered myself to her level both physically and MENTALLY - I became a "Bitch"! too I almost opened the door one night and let her run (not really, but I was close! The look on my kids' faces when she bit me and I freaked, actually stopped me from saying more than I did about how much I didn't like her or want her any more... BUT!!!!! She's my little 'puppy-girl" (NOW).... does she still run under the table? YUP... but most times she'll trade easily. I have learned NOT to put my hand under there until she leaves it... What was suggested to us (but we didn't do, but should....) is block off that room from her so she can't run under the table, putting us both in a bad spot. Good luck... just be consistent.. think of the trading as learning a good behavior, not bribing. You really have to remember Brasco is a DOG, not a person. sometimes we just love them so much, that we forget they are animals! things WILL get better... hang in there. And when the hanging gets tough... call on us!

[Pat and Traveler]

Traveler went through some of the same behaviors at exactly the same age. He'd grab ANYTHING and run with it--a credit card, the remote control, a pillow, etc. Some things I HAD to chase him for--like the credit card. (My daughter's card, which made it all the worse.) But he stopped that when I put important things out of reach and then just closed the door on him and whatever he had in his mouth. He didn't like being isolated--that wasn't his idea of fun at all! Fortunately, I never had to worry about nipping and growling. You might try isolating Brasco, if possible, so that he's alone with whatever he's taken. You might have to plant something you don't really want and that wouldn't hurt him, but it might be worth a try. Good luck!

[Sandra Griffith]

Oh the trials and tribulations of adolescence!! I'm so sorry that you are having to go through this. Having said this it is very common and sadly one of the biggest reasons that dogs end up in shelters (not that you are considering this of course). Here your loving puppy seems to be doing so well and then seems to turn into a monster almost overnight! But don't worry, this situation can be turned around so that you will have your loving little angel back again.

First, congratulations on having taken so many wonderful steps to bringing up a wonderful dog. The training classes, walks, and socialization are so important and you were so right to do all of this. You have laid a wonderful foundation towards bringing up a great dog.

When an adolescent puppy is exhibiting the types of behaviours that you describe, I usually suggest to my clients that they send their puppy "back to kindergarten". What I mean by this is that everything: all of the attention, play, etc. that Brasco recieves has to be earned by him. For example if he tries to get you to throw a toy for him he must do something for you first such as "sit", "down", or anything else that he knows. Before he is given his food bowl he must sit and wait until you give him permission to eat (if he gets up before you tell him to "get it") just pick up the bowl, tell him to sit again, and keep up the process until he waits for you to tell him he can eat. A leash is kept on him at all times that you are home and he is loose. At first he should be either tethered to you or in his crate. Once he is behaving well for a week or so with this he may wander around in the room in which you are in but with his leash dragging so that you can grab the leash should he start getting into something. Greater freedom has to be earned by good behaviour. If he growls at you or nips at you, say "too bad" in a friendly voice and put him in his crate for 10-20 seconds and then let him out. All play is elicited by you; not by him. Dogs love the game of "chase me" and will do a lot of things to try to get you to play it (much to their people's frustation). By managing your environment and Brasco's freedom, you are not allowing him to suck you into this game.

When you come home, ignore Brasco for the first 1-5 minutes. If he jumps up on you, nips at you, or in some other way tries to gain your attention walk out of the room and close the door. Return 10-20 seconds later. Repeat this process until he is no longer acting up.

Lastly, it sounds as though he might need more extended exercise. A tired puppy is a better behaved puppy.

Brasco sounds as though he is a very smart little guy. The problem with smart dogs is they need a lot of mental stimulation in addition to physical stimulation which is where training comes in. They like having a job to do and will create their own form of work (which may not be one that you approve of) if you don't provide something for him to do. There are many good classes, trainiers, DVD's, and books out there to give you suggestions of things you can teach Brasco.

I hope all of this helps. Don't give up; as you can tell from the many wonderful responses this is a common stage in a young dog's life and with a little work you'll get through it!

[Kelly and Brasco]

I can't tell you how much better I feel reading everyone's responses! Thank you so much! This is SO helpful. I think we have a handful of new ideas/tricks to try now. I'm just happy to hear that this is NORMAL. We are certainly up for the challenge with Brasco. There is no giving up! I know that in a year or so, we'll have a great dog and friend. Counting the days! Haha.

Thank you again!

[jessica (Rufus)]

i am getting my doodle fixed soon do they mellow out after they are fixed ???????

[Kelly and Brasco]

Hi Jessica! We had Brasco neutered at 6 months and I will say that he became very snuggly and stopped "dancing" with pillows and with my leg (thank goodness!). As much as these are both great perks, I would say that the puppy energy is still very much there and making sure he gets enough exercise and training is even more important as he continues to grow and mature.

I made the mistake of assuming that fixing him would result in a much more mellow pup and I was wrong. Before and after getting fixed....he is still a young energetic puppy! Enjoy the extra cuddling and keep up the hard work!