Teenaged puppies

Dogs go through a “teenage stage” just like human teenagers. This stage of rebellion and hormones is often amplified when a dog remains intact (not spayed or neutered). Housing an intact dog comes with increased responsibility and there are certain training techniques that can make life more pleasant for both of you; however, even if your puppy gets spayed or neutered before the onset of puberty, these guidelines can still be applied to your training.

Male dogs tend to start puberty around 6 months of age; however, it generally begins to intensify around 10 to 12 months of age. If a dog remains intact, he will be more interested in scenting the ground, checking “busy” areas, and investigating other dogs’ posterior regions. He may also have a tendency to hold his head up high over other dogs and attempt to paw at their backs, or even mount them. This is not necessarily a sign of dominance; often, dogs will take turns exhibiting this behavior and it is commonly seen in dogs who are otherwise very submissive. Dogs may also hump inanimate objects; they are not trying to dominate their beds! Females coming into heat will often begin to mount, but some spayed females will mount as well.

Excessive “rear end investigation”, mounting, or putting a paw on another dog’s back can be interpreted by the other dog as rude and has the potential to lead to fighting. These are behaviors that are best interrupted and redirected. Because an intact dog has the potential to be evaluated as a breeder, we do not want to excessively discourage them or traumatize them, as these may become useful behaviors if they are chosen as a breeder! Calmly but firmly interrupt inappropriate behaviors and redirect the dog to another task. If necessary, remove the puppy to a time-out.

One big concern is marking behavior. Urine marking can occur in both males and females; some females will even lift a leg. With males, a general rule of thumb is to keep them away from vertical surfaces when they reach an age during which they are likely to mark. If you are walking your male past a tree or a post and he begins to sniff and position himself for marking, correct him immediately.

A male may lift his leg while relieving even if there is no vertical surface nearby. This is acceptable and not considered marking behavior; he is simply aiming. However, during a walk, it is important to not allow your dog to mark in any way. Marking does NOT just mean lifting the leg; it is a deliberate use of urine to define territory or let other dogs know that they have been there. Marking can occur even if a dog is standing or squatting. Whether or not it is marking behavior is determined by the context of the behavior.

For example, one raiser reported to me that her male liked pull over onto the grass to urinate small amounts at a time during the walk and that he wasn’t lifting his leg, but was still leaving his scent all over the neighborhood. Was that considered marking? Yes, that is still marking behavior that should be discouraged.

Another male puppy was walking behind another pup. The pup in front pulled over into the grass to urinate. The older male puppy walking behind him sniffed the air, then very subtly pulled behind his raiser to urinate into the grass on the opposite side. Even though he wasn’t urinating over the spot the first pup had chosen, was that still considered marking? Yes; the sight and scent of another pup “busying” made him want to mark his turf as well. To give further context, this same pup has begun urinating on the sidewalk during walks occasionally, especially when he passes a tree or another heavily marked area. He is not lifting, but he is still engaging in marking behavior in response to smelling urine.

Why is this a problem? It is annoying, even with “just a pet” dog, to have to stop repeatedly. This leaves the dog in charge of the walk and encourages repeated marking behavior. Guide dogs need to relieve on command, in particular appropriate places, and on a schedule. It is not necessarily whenever they choose. The guide dog needs to focus on keeping his handler safe; if he is more worried about reading and sending “pee mail”, he is putting his handler in a dangerous situation. Dogs who mark at will on fun walks are also more likely to mark in unwanted places; remember that dogs don’t generalize very well! So you might go to Selby Gardens, which is outside and has nice areas where a pup might want to relieve... but you don’t want them to relieve there even though it is outside. Or you might take your puppy to a friend’s house where other dogs have previously had accidents... you don’t want your puppy to think that if he smells other dog scent, he is allowed to mark on top of it.

So if your puppy (male, female, intact or not) is of an age where they are housebroken and they have begun trying to busy on walks, give them more time before starting the walk and enforce a “no busying unless I give you permission” rule. This sets the dog up for good habits, no matter what his career is, and will make your raising experience more enjoyable.

If your puppy is lifting his leg on trees when off leash in your backyard, relieve him on leash before allowing him to run in the yard. He will never be entirely “empty”, but you can help teach him the appropriate place to relieve, and use the backyard as only a reward and play area. If he is obsessed with marking in the backyard, take him on a long leash to keep his focus on play and exercise.

Another side effect of adolescence is the sudden lack of compliance to commands. This is normal! This is where dog training becomes more of an art than an exact science. On the one hand, you want to keep up the commands and hold the dog accountable. However, you want to be understanding of his temporary loss of compliance and might need to widen his box of acceptable behaviors in the face of distractions. If your puppy won’t sit at the beginning of a puppy meeting, you might think that you must require compliance and use corrections/molding cues to enforce your command. However, you also might observe that your dog is “over threshold”, meaning that the puppy is over stimulated and learning is not occurring. Some dogs are agreeable enough and are eventually convinced to sit if you persist in molding them and popping up on the collar. However, he is not responding to your verbal command at that point. You do not have his attention; he is simply noticing your physical cues, but in all likelihood he is still staring at the distraction (the other dogs and people).

If the puppy gets “stuck” staring at a distraction, widen your box of acceptable behaviors BEFORE enforcing your command. Take the puppy on a walk and work on leash manners; keeping the puppy moving can often put his brain back in gear. Try a few recalls and “right abouts”. Then enforce him simply standing calmly at your side. He may settle down, then ratchet his energy level right back up if another dog arrives. Be prepared to start over and get him moving. Once he is able to stand relatively calmly at your side on a loose leash, THEN you can work on “sit”. It will be up to you to judge when the dog is ready to work on a stationary command, and to decide when he needs to get up and moving. You are looking for cooperation and teamwork, not just automatic compliance. Pass by the same distractions repeatedly until they become less novel; notice and encourage when the puppy checks in with you. Reward attention with a treat recall. You are looking to build on that brief moment of attention; without attention, you don’t have cooperation. You also don’t have a thinking dog. We want them to hear your command, think about it, and make a conscious decision to comply.

You may have to reset your expectations somewhat and that is okay. It is okay to say to the dog (without so many words), “I respect and understand that you are distracted right now and that it is difficult for you to comply with my commands. So I am going to ask that you simply give me some attention and calmly stay at my side; I am also going to ask that you come with me if I ask you to. I will reward you with praise and a treat when you respond to my recall command. If you stand quietly here with me, I will allow you to observe the exciting world around you. If you cannot stand quietly, I will remove you from the situation. Once you have calmed down, then we will work on the more difficult commands that I know you are capable of, and we will have fun!”

Please note that while I have used the pronoun “he” throughout this article, that is only because I have male dogs myself. Female dogs are just as likely to go through an adolescent phase of behavior, although marking is not as common of a problem. No matter what your dog’s gender or reproductive status, it is important to be prepared to work through adolescence using a combination of patience, consistency, and a willingness to try different techniques.