10 month old puppy driving me mad!!

[Vixter]

Hi all,

Just need to have a rant!! My 10 month old puppy is driving me mad at the moment.  She has been a little  this christmas.  Dont get me wrong its all our fault as she is overexcited and out of routine at the moment, but it is hard work!!
She has always been quite a hyper puppy anyway but adolecance and christmas have turned her into a monster. 
  Tried to take her for a walk with friends yesterday and she barked or pulled on her lead like a train the whole time, its like all our lead training or general obedience training has gone out of the window.  Added to that she has now started shrieking with excitment to get off lead or catch up with the other dogs.  I know we have made this worse by giving in to her when she does it but the noise is horrendous and I would do anything at that point to shut her up.
I see other cockers in the pub who just seem so much calmer, I know they are older and i shouldnt compare but sometimes I just cant help it 

[Joules]

It is hard work I agree 

Overexcited and probably overtired too.  As well as being a teenager obviously. 

Are you making sure she has plenty of quiet time out to sleep and relax?

Sure she will settle down again when she is back into her normal routine 

[rednblack]

Never underestimate your cocker's desire to show you up in front of your friends  .
 
In a couple of year's this episode will be a "remember that Christmas when ... "
 
She will grow out of it, with love and training.  When she shrieks to get off lead, have you tried getting her to focus on you first (using a treat or a toy perhaps?), get her to do a "sit" or "down" and use the unclipping the lead as her reward.  (You may of course already have tried this.)
 
Stick with her, the feisty ones are hard work, but the reward does come with time.   

[Vixter]

Thanks - you are right they do love to pick the most public moments possible 

We probably need to do a lot more work in general with keeping her calm around friends dogs as her lead walking is appalling round other dogs (not that its great most of the time).  I have signed up for somemore obeidience classes in the new year to keep on top of trining through the adolecant years.  Sometimes it just seems like an up hill battle, but hopefully things wil improve.

[lescef]

I  have a four year old that still has trouble walking properly on the lead. I have found that I have to concentrate solely on her so only go out on my own with her and when I'm not in a rush. It can take us ages just to walk up our road!
You might already do this but I don't let either dog out of the door or down the drive if they pull. If they try to tear out of the door I close it gently in their face until they wait,  and I tell them they can walk out (or in) It does make them calmer.
Until you have her walking properly on her own with you,  you have no chance with other dogs around her I'm afraid -they are too much of a distraction! It is difficult when you want to be with your friends and the dog won't focus on you.

[Patp]

Oh I feel your pain!

Cant help with the other stuff, but this is what we did to help when we go out to the pub or visiting friends for dinner or for a drink.

When Jinley was a puppy (knowing how much we socialise in pubs  ) was that she had a small blanket in the house next to me that she had a favourite treat on and was told to "settle".

We now try to take a blanket to the pub with us and it usually does the trick.  She has also been known to carry her blanket home from the pub!

[JackieT]

We now try to take a blanket to the pub with us and it usually does the trick.  She has also been known to carry her blanket home from the pub!

That is so sweet.

We have what I think is quite a calm cocker puppy and he's also been hugely hyper over Christmas - I've put it down to being in new places with lots of new people all of whom want to play with him. It was hard work for us, especially at my mother in law's as her idea of puppy proofing was low key to say the least (piles of newspapers under coffee table, wooden ornaments on the floor, plates of mince pies on table so we had to keep whipping them out of reach etc). But we did manage and if it was hard work, well I don't think it was his fault and he didn't destroy anything or eat anything he shouldn't have so I'm counting it as a success. 

Don't be hard on yourself. Work on her routine when things are back to normal and I'm sure what you've trained will come back. Classes will help too. We've had a break for a couple of weeks and I'm sure that hasn't helped.

[Murphys Law]

I remember last Christmas well. The walk of shame home after Murphy did his best to wreck my SIL's house. It was a disaster.

This year we were at my SIL's again for xmas diner and after last year I was very nervous. I shouldn't have been though because he was fantastic, we were very proud.

Things do change as they get older. Just give it time. Next year you will be like us, laughing about it.

[KeresleyKate]

Hi Arvy was an embarrassment at training, barking and howling like he was 12 weeks old again and he has got worse on his lead too. The trainer said the hyper is due to age and everybody being around and excited at Christmas so we just have to ignore the barking and reward him for being quiet. His lead walking seemed a bit better today too but apparently thats just another teenage thing.  I have noticed that most cockers don't seem to good on the lead, the world is just too exciting .

Happy New Year
Kate