Life With Your Teenager Dog
By Benah Stiewing
Just like in humans, canine adolescence can be a challenging time! Canine adolescence generally starts between 6 months and 12 months and ends between 18 and 24 months, but can fall outside of that period. During adolescence, a part of your dog’s brain called the hypothalamus begins to release a hormone called gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH). Once GnRH is released in large enough quantities, it begins to stimulate the development of your dog’s reproductive organs, pumping out estrogen and testosterone. While critical to your dog’s healthy development, the sheer magnitude of these hormonal changes can cause some difficult behavioral shifts as well! Your dog’s change in behavior may shock or worry you, so it’s important to prepare ourselves and be ready to support our dog during this transition.
First, let’s discuss how we can manage our dog’s environment to help them feel comfortable and relaxed during their adolescence! It’s normal for your dog to have strong emotions about activities or actions that they previously may not have cared much about. For example, if you have family or friends that visit with their dogs, your adolescent may need more breaks and time away to decompress. Maybe your dog has had an excellent recall, even in high-distraction environments, but now it’s less reliable. You and your dog can stay safe by keeping them on a harness and long-line. Baby gates, ex-pens, leashes, and your dog’s crate will really help you both through this developmental period.
Your dog may suddenly become more nervous around unfamiliar people and dogs. Never force an interaction if your dog is worried, this will only reinforce their anxiety. Instead, watch the unfamiliar people and dogs from a distance to allow your teenager to collect information with a feeling of security. We do want to note that while behavior change is normal during this period, extreme behavior changes in your dog should be evaluated by a veterinarian and canine behaviorist. If your dog was solidly house-trained and then begins eliminating throughout your home, definitely have your dog evaluated by their veterinarian. If your dog went from sweet and friendly with strangers to suddenly biting your neighbor, seek professional support.
If you haven’t already, adolescence is the perfect time to start Look At That with your dog! Look At That, or LAT, is a pattern game developed by Leslie McDevitt from her Control Unleashed Program. LAT aims to neutralize the trigger (the thing that your dog has strong emotions about, like another dog or a scary thing) by reinforcing your dog for acknowledging the trigger. This exercise occurs in five steps, outlined below:
Your dog looks at the trigger.
While your dog is looking at the trigger, you say your marker word, such as “Yes!” or “Good!”
Your marker word is the sound you make (either verbally or with a clicker) when your dog is about to receive food. Because your dog experiences food as reinforcing, a behavior that is marked and rewarded will be repeated. You want to be consistent with your marker word because we want the word to have a strong positive association for your dog, or else they would have no reason to turn their attention back to you after looking at the trigger.
Hearing their marker word, your dog redirects their attention to you.
If your dog is unable to redirect their attention back to you, put food directly in front of their nose and try to guide their attention back to you. If you have to do this multiple times, you are too close to the trigger - create more distance and try again.
You reward your dog.
Repeat this sequence as many times as your dog will acknowledge the trigger, either by looking fully at it, or simply twitching an ear towards it.
Surviving your dog’s adolescence is all about meeting your dog where they are at. The rush of hormones they are experiencing can make them feel a little insecure and nervous, so the best we can do is recognize that and make life as simple and fulfilling for them as possible. Increase your time spent doing decompression activities together, like long, slow walks in nature where your dog is free to sniff and explore to their heart’s content. Instead of feeding meals in a bowl, switch to feeding in puzzle toys, like Kongs and Topls. Overall, we want your adolescent dog to practice relaxation over high-arousal activities, like fetch or going to the dog park. While these activities aren’t bad, we want to be careful to balance them out with decompressing activities where your dog is able to truly relax and you can take some deep breaths together.
If you’re nervous about your puppy’s upcoming adolescence or currently in the throes of teenhood, we now offer Smells Like Teen Spirit! This is a 6-week virtual class that provides guidance, insight, and support for your dog to not just survive, but thrive during adolescence. The class is bursting with information, presented through recorded lectures, written instructions, and demonstration videos.
If you want additional support for you and your dog, we offer in-person Private Lessons in Fort Collins, Colorado and Chatham, New York, and virtual coaching right in the comfort of your home. As you experience your dog’s adolescence, it’s critical to remember that your dog isn’t being bad, they are having a bad time. The more we can understand this and meet them where they’re at, the stronger your relationship will be.
Summit Dog Training offers group dog training classes & private lessons in Fort Collins, Colorado, as well as online self-study courses & online private lessons for education on how to live the best life with your dog! If you are looking for more training support, please don’t hesitate to contact us! We’d love to help you and your dog get ready for any adventure.
