Adolescents my friend, adolescents…or terrible teenagers, noortie pooopies call them what you like, they are a Halloween movie wrapped up in bubble wrap ….. if you’re in it, you know what I mean, if you’ve yet to experience it, hold tight and do all you can NOW to lay all the important stuff down so you can ‘get through’ this period.
The dog industry does make me laugh, well not really, it’s incredibly frustrating at times to see how they talk to puppy parents. My advice is to try not to fall for the sales pitches of making everything okay if you do this, that or another through the “set you up for life” or “you’ll only ever need this puppy course”. Maybe, just maybe you feel that you don’t need more than that, which is wonderful news and I take this moment to salute you in being able to glide through puppy hood well.
Sometimes if you’re like me , going out into the big wide world on adventures, you know it’s not always those first few cute puppy things that make the difference, it’s about layering up your dog education.
We start with emotional resilience and confidence and sometimes need to stay at the layer for a while, but adding into those early puppy skills are kinda fun, don’t you think? I’ve loved learning how to get the best out of Diggory, how to help him cope, adapt, build reslience, go on the up and down rollercoaster of confidence and by god has it been up and down and he certainly let’s us know when it’s UP and DOWN lol. I wouldn’t have it any other way. I love seeing him enjoy adventures with the skills he has developed. I feel really proud and when things come together for my little ball of adolescents, well I couldn’t be prouder of what we’ve achieved together.
Until you’re in the full embrace of adolescents, you’re just not going to know, it’s that simple, every dog is unique, they are an individual learner and react to their world in their way mainly based on many things but mainly Genetics, Characteristics and behaviours learned to this day, I encourage you to find out Why Does My Dog Do That in my Dog Blog, also find out what makes your pup tick on their breed level as a good starting point.
Adolescent Puppy – Provide a rich tapestry of experiences
Start Thriving not just Surviving
Although surviving sometimes is just fine too…. here’s some friendly reminders on surviving
- Start looking on a day-by-day basis, sometimes hourly… if you know, you know!
- Don’t overthink BEHAVIOURS (what you’re pup is doing) this can lead to fall out, as they’re just not equipped to be able to offer this level of thinking all the time.
- Focus on the good stuff, the relaxing moments (if ever) when chewing their chews, not something valuable to you! When you start seeing the good, you’ll start to feel better.
- Help your pup by understanding how difficult some days can feel, overwhelm can kick in, worry, frustration and even anger (yes I’m still talking about your pup, not your human teen).
- Provide a rich tapestry of experiences, sometimes for a short amount of duration or distance to enhance your dog’s life experiences
- Socialisation is when we help our dogs just be neutral around things rather than thinking they have to interact, be part of or be in the middle of something or everything!
- Play with your pup, you’ll learn more about what motivates and inspires them when you know what they like and how they interact with you.
If you haven’t already, sign up for my Be Your Dogs Detective freebie, you can sign up HERE this will help you learn a little more as you piece together your dog’s breed characteristics and the dog in front of you.
If you’re struggling, you really don’t have to, let’s have a chat, see where you and your pup are at and how I can support you both.
Charlotte & Diggory xxx