When does adolescence end?

[Annette]

Buddy is 16 months old now.

Is he still in his Kevin phase or am I just kidding myself?

He seems a bit wayward lately, and I find myself telling people it's his age, but I guess it has to end sometime.

[Deb H]

Jasper is still a bit wayward and he's four and George well best not to go there.

[Helen]

about 13 i reckon 

(depends on the dog annette - jarvis is going through a particularly bad kevin stage this week....and buddy has 7 months on him so i'm just reminding myself that jarv CAN be a very GOOD boy and am hoping that some kind col'er will say sooner rather than later - but my fingers aren't crossed)

can someone just wake us up when adolescence has finished??

[Joules]

Coco is nearly 9 months and lately is being very wilful and naughty.   >:(Please tell me this does not go on for years!!  I have had various people say they calm down at 1, 2, 5, 8 and never!!!  I am getting tired of people making snide remarks like "I thought you had taken her to training classes" - in fact if anyone else says that I am likely to punch their lights out    I am beginning to get a complex as I always feel that people think I am just a rubbish owner who can't control her dog.    She can be good but now chooses when to do what I tell her to and it is very exasperating and wearing. I am just trying to be firm and persevere with the basics and hope I will win in the end    I really wouldn't be without her now but I read that this age is the most common time for people to decide they can't cope with a dog after all.  If people have not thought carefully and done their research before getting a dog, I can quite understand why 

[Cob-Web]

We have noticed a definite difference between last Sept/Oct, when Molo was 16/17 months old, and now he's coming up for 2 

We went back to our caravan a few weeks ago after the winter layover, and his behaviour was much better than last year - he was quite happy to settle down, rather than leap all over the furniture  , and we felt confident that we could leave him there alone uncrated, something we didn't feel happy doing last Autumn.

Despit that, he still gets totally hyper when he meets new people, but calms down a lot quicker and is more willing to listen now than a few months ago.

Stick with it - it does get better 

[Annette]

Buddy's not a bad dog really, and I am certainly not despairing of him yet (apart from last Friday, but I won't bore you with the details. Enough to say that I was VERY cross!!!)

Just wanted to know if I was deluded or what.

I know they never become quiet meek little things, and that's why we got a cocker, I don't want that. It's just the recall etc which used to be so good, is so hit and miss now. I was going to bring out the long line on Monday, but I forgot, and he's back to being pretty good again now (so perhaps my foul language on Friday DID work after all! )

Any other bids?.........................................

[clairep4]

Ooh, Annette, glad to hear it's not just Bella that's regressing then!  

Bella has also been a bit troublesome lately - not in a major way but just little things like deciding after months of having really good recall that she'll just ignore you because she feels like it (the other day she wasn't even on a scent trail, she literally did that "am I bovvered?" kind of look and sauntered off in the other direction, really slowly, sniffing the odd twig on the way, and absolutely refusing to come back to me even though I was only 50 yards away  . She's just being a bit testy but I think it's probably down to us assuming she was now a pretty well behaved, polite little girl and letting the training and ground rules slide a little bit, so of course she is taking full advantage.

So I'm reinstating her daily training sessions and being a bit more firm with her all round and hopefully that will sort things out.

What has Buddy been up to then?

[Annette]

 

I won't go into the full story of Friday's incident, but it involved two slices of bread found in our shared front garden, a young lab puppy, lots of swallowing with very little chewing (of said bread) some fairly aggressive food guarding.

Then, when released from lead about 1/4 mile away, immediate return to site of bread, more aggressive guarding (from the normally sweet Buddy!!!!) and no recall whatsoever.

Then at the end of the walk, no recall when released again, and straight into the dirtiest, foulest water you can imagine in the balance pools.

I was sooooooooo mad. I think he may be wondering what a bar steward is now  , and I refused to allow him to swim to wash the mud etc off, I took him home and used the hose instead!


And no, I was not pre-menstrual!

[clairep4]

Their memory for where food is never ceases to amaze me. Bella's been doing agility for a few weeks now but only went twice then had a 3 week break due to her torn claw and then it being rained off. So after 4 weeks, we went back and she did the dog walk (like walking the plank) and then stopped at the bottom sniffing around frantically and looking up at me with this "well where the hell is it?" expression as she remembered from all that time back that she had been given a treat at that point!

Our dog walker says he always knows where she is if she disappears, either cleaning up by a bin or paddling around in the river, I guess at least she's predictable! 

I can just imagine you with a face like thunder hosing down Baaaad Buddy!  Still at least you know it's not just him...

[PennyB]

Their memory for where food is never ceases to amaze me. Bella's been doing agility for a few weeks now but only went twice then had a 3 week break due to her torn claw and then it being rained off. So after 4 weeks, we went back and she did the dog walk (like walking the plank) and then stopped at the bottom sniffing around frantically and looking up at me with this "well where the hell is it?" expression as she remembered from all that time back that she had been given a treat at that point!

mine are like that at agility age 3 and 4 (mind you Wilf goes freelance and won't do the jump you want him to but then does the A frame somewhere else in the field, and then heads off to where he saw the bin on the farm where we do agility and goes for a rummage in it). Ruby also memorises where they put the binbags round the streets here as well long after they've been collected and the sweepers have been round.

I think some things just don't cease with some cockers.

[Joules]

I suppose there is some comfort in the fact that it is not just my dog that is so appallingly badly behaved at times    I just let her go into the field opposite where my friend was feeding her ponies.  Coco got very excited trying to get them to chase her and just would not let it go - charging around them and between their legs.  Not surprising then that she got stepped on by one of the ponies not once but twice.  Lets out a loud yelp each time but still totally ignores me calling her out of the field.   She then goes back for more harrassing the ponies and barking at them (limping this time no doubt for dramatic effect!)  - I swear the dog has a death wish!!  She seems fine now - only hope she is not really hurt.  Sure she won't have learned her lesson anyway - the dog has no sense at all     I really do not want to keep her on a lead all the time but at this rate...............  Annette, do you think we will be thrown off the course on Saturday if our dogs don't behave??

[Helen]

I suppose there is some comfort in the fact that it is not just my dog that is so appallingly badly behaved at times    I just let her go into the field opposite where my friend was feeding her ponies.  Coco got very excited trying to get them to chase her and just would not let it go - charging around them and between their legs.  Not surprising then that she got stepped on by one of the ponies not once but twice.  Lets out a loud yelp each time but still totally ignores me calling her out of the field.   She then goes back for more harrassing the ponies and barking at them (limping this time no doubt for dramatic effect!)  - I swear the dog has a death wish!!  She seems fine now - only hope she is not really hurt.  Sure she won't have learned her lesson anyway - the dog has no sense at all     I really do not want to keep her on a lead all the time but at this rate...............  Annette, do you think we will be thrown off the course on Saturday if our dogs don't behave??

jarvis is a good boy....most of the time -  he has  the same 'blips' that coco and buddy have too....i am sooooo relieved that we're not alone


you won't be thrown off the course on saturday...but i guarantee you'll be more knackered than the dogs!!!  good luck x

[Annette]

  Annette, do you think we will be thrown off the course on Saturday if our dogs don't behave??

One of the things that has always impressed me about Rebecca is that she is so calm and patient. 

I think we are going to test her to the utmost limits! Especially as she asked us to work on recall etc before the days!


Hope this isn't her pmt week.

You do know that they are hoping that the deer will hide away over the hill, don't you? I so, so hope it's not Buddy who disgraces himself (and me) by haring off after them.

[Joules]

Hmm, I hope it's not her pmt week too - I agree she will need lots of patience.  Perhaps she can tell us the secret! I have even been practising recalls as per her instructions but they seem to have got worse not better! Oh joy, I look forward to being bottom of the class.  Should be a laugh anyway - I just hope the other people are not going to want to take it too seriously 

[silkstocking]

Can you take a video camera!!?? Sounds like this training class could be a laugh to watch!!!! tee hee hee!!

Good Luck