Is 15 Weeks the Start of the Bratty Stage????

[SoSa]

Yesterday, Ace turned 15 weeks old, and he was a bit out of control.

We've never had an issue with his crate, but yesterday, all of a sudden, he did not want to be in there, at all. We would try ignoring his barking and whining, but he would not let up. He hardly napped yesterday and we played with him A LOT!!!! He even woke up in the middle of the night, something he never does.

He was kind of hyper and jumping on the sofa to play with his toys (something he is not supposed to do). He also got out of hand when I was drying him off with a towel after playing outside. He thought it was time for tug of war and in his excitement when he went to grab for the towel, he grabbed my hand instead, OUCH!!!!!!!!! I was not happy.

Also yesterday, he had an increase in appetite. Usually he grazes his meal, but yesterday, he ate every last kibble as soon as it was put down. We gave him additional 1/2 cup with dinner and he ate all of that too.

What is going on with this guy?

[Rosemary (Ro) and Enzo]

LOL.... Sorry for laughing...biut your little one is coming into his own. He's becoming more independent and confident enough to let you know his likes and dislikes. I always laughed with my puppy owners would tell me their new puppy followed them everywhere and never left their side and came when called outdoors. How quickly that changed as they aged! ;). All is normal! And it just means you now have to be diligent in training. Patience!

[Cindy and Olive (Ollie)]

:) totally agree w/ Ro. It's an important time for leadership stuff and consistency in training. Also, maybe he has started teething and perhaps also a good idea to start offering lots of cold chew toys (as a reward for a sit, etc. of course! ;). Stay strong! Best,

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

dun dun dun.....

sounds familiar.

Trying times but they pass

[Amy and Annabelle]

I think Annabelle is just an over achiever and started this stage at about 13 weeks. It really tried my patience. She is such a joy now it is hard to believe what a little stinker she was for about 10 weeks. When I look back on those days, I wonder if we are insane for considering adding a second one. We still get a kick out of her telling us it's her bedtime. I put her down at 9pm, but sometimes she is ready sooner and she lets us know. At first we thought she was just being obnoxious.

[Laura and Angus]

I agree. Sounds like your baby is used to his environment now and testing boundaries. And if your baby is anything like ours was, he may struggle to settle himself down because he's hyper. We used to (and sometimes still say) that our guy Angus is like a toddler. He'd get all ornery and cranky when he was over-tired...good luck! It's a busy busy time for baby puppies but you'll start to learn Ace's behaviors and find what works best for him. 

[Lori, Winnie, Bob and Indie]

I too am laughing, because I can picture Winnie doing all those things..... It happened right smack between the "I'm A Crocodile And I Like To Bite Human Hands And Arms" stage, and the "I'm An Adolescent And I Have No Idea What You Are Telling Me To Do" stage.  :-)  

Stick with the training, and it WILL get better. Consistency and patience....  

[SoSa]

...as if it couldn't get any worse...

...earlier on our potty break, he went into one of the bushes and pulled something out, that was little and dead. I don't know what it is. It's still in my driveway. I just started freaking out when I saw this, "thing", in his mouth. Yelling "leave it" didn't even occur to me. I was just so grossed out that I just kept saying, "oh my God, what the heck is that?!?!?!" I kept saying, " Ace here's a treat", but of course this is the one time that I left the treat bag in the house. Once he dropped it, I dragged him  into the garage and into the house and washed his mouth. Now, I have to go pick whatever that thing is up. Uggggghhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Lori, Winnie, Bob and Indie]

I'm impressed that he even dropped it!  I've dug out dead birds and both dead AND alive baby bunnies from Winnies mouth....ewww.  So, Ace scores a point for dropping it!

 

[SoSa]

LOL, OMG!!!!!! I've gotta start carrying not only poop bags and treats in my pockets, but those surgical gloves too. Good grief!

[Lori, Winnie, Bob and Indie]

LOL!  FYI- a poop bag can double as a makeshift glove in a pinch. :-)

My husband sounds like you- not a fan of critters, let alone touching them. So when we were out walking Winnie the other day and she snatched up a dead bird, he was gagging while I was shoving my hand into a (clean) poop bag in order to fish out the bird.....a great reminder to always carry 2 poop bags..... :-)

[Amy and Annabelle]

Annabelle discovered a dead bird in the driveway a few weeks ago. She put it in her mouth. Of course I didn't see it happen. My husband finally decides to tell me like 3 hours later. He acted like it was no big deal. He did get her to drop it thankfully. We have those little rodent things called moles in our yard. They live underground. Annabelle can smell them down there and goes crazy trying to get to them. I learned a long time ago to bring a pocket full of treats with me on our potty walks, just in case.

[SoSa]

Our property backs up to a nature protected area and is next to a pond. Why I moved into this house, I have no idea, because I am fearful of all critters, rodents, pretty much all of the wildlife we are exposed to living here. Now that it's spring, the frogs are back. I used to never go out in our yard. Now I am forced to because we have a puppy. I am sooooooo not looking forward to all of the "treasures" Ace will probably find.