# Oh boy, adolescence...



## Cdnjennga (Jul 30, 2009)

So in the past few weeks Darcy appears to have fully entered his adolescent period. His recall is less stellar than it was, his focus is down and his relationship with other male dogs in the park has a tension to it that wasn't there before.

The thing that is bothering me the most, and that I have the least knowledge on how to handle, is the reactivity he is showing. He has always been sensitive to new and different things - for example, if someone leaves an umbrella in our condo hallway, he immediately clocks it and has to cautiously investigate it. And that's been fine and easy to handle.

However now he is showing this senstivity by screaming at the top of his lungs at whatever it is that he's unsure about. In the last few weeks this has included an older woman in the park with an unsteady gait, a dog with wheels to help with mobility and a physically disabled helper in our agility class. So basically anyone he sees as "different" from the norm. Oh and this morning he freaked out because there were people standing in the hall outside my condo (we don't normally see anyone there). So again, he's freaking out at "different" situations and people.

My question is how do I handle this? Obviously if it's someone walking by in the park I can't necessarily get them to feed him treats or whatever because they are just going about their daily business. Right now I am just distracting him to calm him down (or turning him away from the thing he is upset about), then treating once he is calm, but I really don't know if this is the right approach. I just want to make sure that whatever I do turns this into a phase rather than a lifelong issue! Any suggestions?


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## JE-UK (Mar 10, 2010)

Oh, the joy of it. Mine went through a second fear period about then, too. I just tried to keep getting him out and about, and was VERY careful of my body language, trying to stay loose and relaxed when I thought he might be tense about something. His was more people than things, and he suddenly wasn't keen on strange men, so I introduced him to as many men as I could. 

Can you set some useful 'traps'? An umbrella in the hallway with hot dogs underneath?


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

Poppy is running late with adolescence, as with other things, and has also started hysterical barking at things she was ignoring a few weeks ago (not helped by my neighbours dog whom we walk, who is somewhat reactive). I turn and walk away a few steps, and then try again - or if that is not possible, walk in a wide curve around whatever it is. 

It also helps that Sophy is so confident and socially adept - yesterday it was a small child, a scooter, and a mum wearing a huge baby carrier on her back that set them off - I kept Poppy and Jilly with me, and let Sophy go and greet the people. Seconds later they were all saying hello politely, and on we went. Do you have a friendly, confident dog you could walk with for a while?

I think the important thing is not to allow it to become a habit (hence the walking away), and not to force anything that may associate odd happenings with painful consequences, or lead to serious fear. Keep things calm, keep yourself relaxed and positive, and all that early work on socialisation should eventually win out. This too shall pass!


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## Cdnjennga (Jul 30, 2009)

Thanks for the suggestions. It helps just to hear that others have gone through it! This morning he took exception to a woman holding a big fur lined hat while we were waiting to cross at some lights. I just walked him away and treated him once he'd calmed down. I hope this phase doesn't last too long!


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## Purley (May 21, 2010)

Lucy went through that stage too. If I left a plastic bag with library books in it by the door other side of the dog gate - she would bark and bark at it. She barked a lot at her reflection in the French doors to the deck. But I just kind of ignored it and she hardly does it any more.


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## Fluffyspoos (Aug 11, 2009)

Vegas was shy when he was young in the backyard to sounds, if a neighbor closed a door he was booking it to the house with his tail between his legs. I kept him on a leash and we would STAY there until he realized, oh, I'm not dead, silly me.

Now he just barrels forward like a lab. I AM A CONFIDENT, FRIENDLY POODLE! HERE I COME!


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## Feralpudel (Jun 28, 2010)

If he's around 9 months, my guess would be it's a fear period. If you can identify some "brave" behavior, e.g., checking out what he's afraid of, reinforce it.


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## poodleholic (Jan 6, 2010)

> =Cdnjennga;146323]However now he is showing this senstivity by screaming at the top of his lungs at whatever it is that he's unsure about. In the last few weeks this has included an older woman in the park with an unsteady gait, a dog with wheels to help with mobility and a physically disabled helper in our agility class. So basically anyone he sees as "different" from the norm. Oh and this morning he freaked out because there were people standing in the hall outside my condo (we don't normally see anyone there). So again, he's freaking out at "different" situations and people.



There's a fear period between 6-14 months,or so. Many dogs will show a rise in their level of reactivity during this time, and may suddenly be apprehensive about new things, or shy or timid of new people or situations. They may become protective and territorial. A fear of new situations needs to be handled with the utmost patience, and avoiding confrontations. I don't force exposure to triggers during this time (fear periods).


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## WeLoveBenji (Jan 18, 2011)

Benji is 8 months old and we are going through the same fear issues...odd objects and strangers. Some people mentioned that avoiding the fear triggers is best while, others are saying repeated exposure. What are some of your thoughts on this? So glad this was posted because it has been a tough 2 months for us with Benji being such a chicken. Thanks!


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

The trick is to desensitise, by linking the scary stuff with Good Stuff For Poodles without getting close enough to trigger a fear response, if that makes sense. If in doubt, avoid the scary stuff - don't force him to face anything that makes him react badly, but if you can work on making it less frightening, that is all to the good. Walking with an older, friendly, confident dog helps a lot. Stepping between him and the scary thing shows you understand, and will protect him. Just turning and walking away makes him feel safer.

To take the example of strangers - if my dog were very nervous of strange people, I would avoid taking him anywhere where people get too close, or are likely to crowd him. Instead I would find a bench somewhere where we could sit and watch the world go by, with me dropping treats to him to keep his attention, or playing games of tug, whatever he loves most. I wouldn't let let people approach him - explaining he is nervous, and being prepared to body block the "But all dogs love me!" crowd! As he got happier about people, I would ask them to toss him a treat as they went by. And then to offer him one. This is very much what I did with Poppy, although we jumped pretty quickly to the treat offering - as far as she is concerned, a human of any shape or size is automatically safe if they have liver cake in their hand! We still do it - she took exception to the new window cleaner with his weird brushes and strange hat - so I asked him to give her a treat - problem over. The only person she really barks at now is the newspaper delivery man - I could almost believe she had been threatened with a rolled newspaper, she is so adament that he is dangerous, but I'm pretty sure she never was.

With objects I usually leave the dog to keep its distance if I can safely do so, and go and investigate the thing myself. That's usually enough to convince them it is nothing to worry about. Some things, like the large concrete gargoyle with starey green eyes in a garden we visited, take a bit more getting over ...


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## WeLoveBenji (Jan 18, 2011)

Thank you!! We have definitely encountered so many people who are the "all dogs love me!" type...it really spooks him when they come at him. I have to be more assertive at telling them to stay away or just leaving. Benji will actually eat a treat offered by the stranger , he will have his hind legs stretched as far back away as possible and his tail under his tush but he will go for it and sniff the person's hand and eat the treat. I think I need to make sure that I always have treats on hand because once the person stands up or makes a move, Benji goes of barking again.


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

WeLoveBenji said:


> he will have his hind legs stretched as far back away as possible and his tail under his tush but he will go for it and sniff the person's hand and eat the treat.


That is Poppy to a T - until it dawns on her this person has a pocket full of treats! I used to feel I should carry a recorded message - "She can be rather shy, but if you ignore her for a few moments she will be all over you." Fortunately we meet more sensible people than daft ones - we tend to be out when it is mainly other dog walkers around - and she has definitely gained confidence over the last months. I think training classes and agility helped enormously.

Sophy is very different - she reads faces and body language 20 yards off. If people smile at her, she goes to greet them with wagging tail and flattened ears. If they ignore her, she ignores them. And there are one or two people who she knows always have dog treats - those she will spot at 200 yards, and race to be first. The downside is that Poppy relies on Sophy's judgement, rather than developing her own - I should take them out separately more, but there are only so many hours in the day ...


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## WeLoveBenji (Jan 18, 2011)

It's great to hear that Poppy is doing much better now! We haven't signed Benji up for classes yet... having a bit of trouble finding some close by. Had three private training sessions a few months back. It seems like we need to pass through an obedience class before starting agility classes. 

We started taking Benj to the dog park and he seems to be coming around and playing with the other dogs there. He is a lot more respectful of the bigger ones.


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## JE-UK (Mar 10, 2010)

WeLoveBenji said:


> Thank you!! We have definitely encountered so many people who are the "all dogs love me!" type...it really spooks him when they come at him.


I haven't found a good solution for dealing with these types, have you? They also tend to be people who speak to dogs in big booming voices and want to go straight for the head pat, which Vasco doesn't like even from people he knows and trusts. I generally step between, but I would love to have a FREEZE button for these types of people! :smile:


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## Marian (Oct 20, 2009)

Sophie sounds a lot like Teddy when it comes to reading people from a distance. He always seems to be able to pick out the animal lovers and he approaches them like they are long lost friends.

But white bags (plastic or otherwise) are his mortal enemy. He barks and growls at them and keeps a safe distance from them. I have been working on desensitizing him to them, which is going very well, but yesterday I heard him growling in my bedroom and went in to find him keeping a watchful eye on the ceiling light fixture. What a goofball! It isn't a scary looking light fixture, either!


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

You keep an eye on it, Teddy - today the bathroom, tomorrow the world! 

Mine have the abdabs about big white footballs left on the lawn, and - until they got used to them - house For Sale boards going up along the boundary. It makes sense, I suppose - in the wild any sudden change in the surroundings may be dangerous, and needs to be warned off, or explored with great care. No wonder we humans get stressed, with the amount we have to process every day!


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## Marian (Oct 20, 2009)

They are funny, aren't they? Since a football is round and white, he would probably bark at it too. Once, at a park, he saw a white newfie from a distance and became very reactive. When we approached, he saw that it was a dog and his demeanor changed. I honestly think he was mistaking the big white fluffy dog for a white plastic bag. 

Sometimes I would like to know what goes on in his mind (and sometimes I wouldn't).


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## WeLoveBenji (Jan 18, 2011)

Marian said:


> I honestly think he was mistaking the big white fluffy dog for a white plastic bag.


That is hilarious and adorable!!


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## Cdnjennga (Jul 30, 2009)

I have to come in and update this thread, because I got so frustrated with Darcy in our agility class today. As background, he hasn't had as much exercise this week due to the weather so he was already hyped up and then this Aussie that's in our class growled and lunged at him as soon as walked into the reception area of class. So that just set him off, and from then on he was reacting to EVERYTHING! The Aussie, a Poodle that barked at him another time (Darcy's like an elephant, he never forgets), the helper who has some disabilities who he barked at when we first started going to the school 8 weeks ago but who he's been fine with ever since. It was so frustrating and I have to admit I lost my cool with him. The barking and reactivity is driving me nuts!

The trainer, who is fantastic, suggested I get a gentle leader for him so that I have better head control. It's really hard to get his attention once he's in a reactive episode. What does everyone think of them? I'm not a huge fan of haltis/ gentle leaders bc in my experience dogs find them very aversive. But I need to do something. I'm concerned that if I don't handle this properly, I'm going to have this reactive dog forever! I ordered the book Control Unleashed as well so I hope that helps.

It's such a bummer, he has been so amazing in agility class and then today was just horrible and I was almost in tears by the end as Darcy was freaking out and lunging to the end of his leash and paying me no attention whatsoever. I can see why adolescence is the time when people most give their dogs up (I never would of course), it's so frustrating and feels like we're not making any progress when we have a day like today!


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## AgilityIG (Feb 8, 2009)

Cdnjennga said:


> The trainer, who is fantastic, suggested I get a gentle leader for him so that I have better head control. It's really hard to get his attention once he's in a reactive episode. What does everyone think of them? I'm not a huge fan of haltis/ gentle leaders bc in my experience dogs find them very aversive. But I need to do something. I'm concerned that if I don't handle this properly, I'm going to have this reactive dog forever! I ordered the book Control Unleashed as well so I hope that helps.


Please don't get down. Be patient and persistent. You guys will get there. I would recommend a gentle leader - they work well when used correctly. Have your instructor help you. 

If Darcy is being reactive, just remember that he is probably not able to handle the close proximity of those dogs/events and needs some more space/distance to calm down and work in that type of situation. Then you can gradually move closer. 

Control Unleashed is a good book (as are the videos that go with it). Another book I would recommend is by Susan Garrett Clean Run: Shaping Success. Her other book is also really good: Clean Run: Ruff Love

Do you have a PetSmart or PetCo nearby that you could go and do some training?


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## Panda (Jan 7, 2010)

I share your pain. Panda is perfect in the park, on walks and at home. Put him in a training class and he is an utter nightmare with the attention span of a gnat! 

Keep at it and I am sure we will get them through this phase and end up with happy, balanced dogs at the end of it ^_^


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## Cdnjennga (Jul 30, 2009)

AgilityIG said:


> Please don't get down. Be patient and persistent. You guys will get there. I would recommend a gentle leader - they work well when used correctly. Have your instructor help you.
> 
> If Darcy is being reactive, just remember that he is probably not able to handle the close proximity of those dogs/events and needs some more space/distance to calm down and work in that type of situation. Then you can gradually move closer.
> 
> ...


Thanks, some great points here! I'm feeling much better about things today, I know he's still young and we will work through this. I don't have any big pet stores right nearby but I think I can find some dog areas to practice in.



Panda said:


> I share your pain. Panda is perfect in the park, on walks and at home. Put him in a training class and he is an utter nightmare with the attention span of a gnat!
> 
> Keep at it and I am sure we will get them through this phase and end up with happy, balanced dogs at the end of it ^_^


Haha, yes, I read your post about focus and thought "oh that's so Darcy". It must be a young mini poodle thing.


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## AgilityIG (Feb 8, 2009)

Vinnie had a LOT of trouble handling distraction, etc... until he was just over a year and then things started improving by baby steps. We are still working on it and will continue to work on it for quite some time, I would imagine, before he ever goes in an agility ring.

It will get better... baby steps :biggrin:


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