![]() This crazy energy from Olive needs a place to go, and this is my responsibility. It is our job as dog owners to drain that battery every day to keep the dog from using it destructively. This energy will come out- one way or another. ![]() In the Culture Clash (one of the best books ever, and I do firmly believe that every dog owning human needs to read it), Jean talks about dogs like Olive, and I remember her stating that every dog wakes up with a battery of destructive energy, every day. Luckily, I keep one of my favorite Jean Donaldson references right in the front of my brain for easy retrieval. So I took a look critically at what was going on here and quickly realized I have to step up my game if we are all going to survive this teenager. Everything I was seeing was normal for her age, but it was certainly a problem for me. So, it wasn’t Olive’s behavior problem that was causing me so much stress- it was her normal dog behavior that was giving me high blood pressure. We had done lots of training but still- it all flew out the window at about 8 months of age. ![]() They can be very hard to live with, especially if you have done no training up to this point. Once outside, in the not-yet-fenced yard, she wouldn’t come when she was called (also routinely practiced as a puppy) or respond to her name at all! Naughty puppy! It is no wonder to me that adolescent dogs routinely end up at the shelter or tied to a doghouse for the rest of their lives. She peed on the bed three times in one day- and hit the brand new couch as well! Right in the middle of playing, she’d pop a squat! It was extra infuriating- especially with all those extra trips outside when she would bolt through the open door (instead of waiting like she has been taught since day one). She started having accidents in the house- not once a day, but multiple times a day. She’s an adult now (or rather just a surly teenager who thinks she knows everything). The puppy you know and love looks at you with different eyes. I use this term to explain how when puppies get to a certain age, everything they know falls out of their head. What was going on? I believe that it was just a tough case of adolescent regression. ![]() The cats hated her (that’s a given!), one dog took to sleeping under the bed to avoid her and the other would lunge and snap randomly. The stress of living with this was affecting our relationship, and everyone was in a bad mood. Even the Daddy Long-Legs that lives above my head when I sleep was through. She doesn’t fit into our little family unit at all. Hell, all of us were done for that matter. ![]()
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