Training : Intact Males

Written by Melissa Alexander
melissa@clickersolutions.com
From the Clicker Solutions website

Every puppy of every breed -- and every adolescent of every species that raises its young -- goes through the same thing at adolescence. Adolescence is an important, necessary transition period between childhood and adulthood. As infants, these creatures were completely helpless, completely dependent upon their mothers for everything -- food, comfort, safety. In childhood, the creatures begin practicing the skills they'll need later. However, they do it right there with mom in sight, so mom can protect or help as necessary. They instinctively know they aren't able to take care of themselves, so they stick close.

The eventual goal is, of course, adulthood. Complete independence. Mom won't be there to make decisions -- or to alleviate them of responsibility for their mistakes. The real world will be applying consequences, and those can be harsh (even fatal). The animal will, perhaps, become a parent herself, and must have all the knowledge and skills to raise the next generation. Adolescence is the transition between the safe practice of childhood and the independent, butt-on-the-line reality of adulthood. Adolescence is the time when "Because I said so" simply isn't good enough anymore -- Nature *demands* that they test boundaries and consequences and decide for themselves what decisions they want to make. It's not dominance or rebellion. It's growing up.

Yes, even pet dogs *have* to go through this period. "But he won't be making decisions -- I will," you protest. Actually, I doubt it. Unless you're planning to be there, directing his every move 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, you need your dog to know how to make decisions. More importantly, you want him to make the decision *you* want. And you want him to make this decision even when you're not there to back up the decision.

So back to the question -- how do we survive this period?

Pups are usually *soooo* good prior to this first adolescent burst that we relax our management and begin extending their freedoms. The first thing to do, then, is tighten up on your management. Off-leash probably needs to be restricted to fenced locations. Restrict the dog to the room you're in (again!). Make sure to crate the dog (or confine it in a place where you *absolutely* don't care if there's damage -- including to walls, molding, and floors) anytime you can't actively watch him.

The second thing to do is make sure the dog is well-exercised physically and mentally. They're going through a growth spurt, in addition to massive mental development. They need to exercise ALL of those muscles. Get that up out to a safe place where it can truly run. Play games like fetch and retrieve that really work the dog. If you've got a doggy daycare, put the dog in daycare once a week and let him play himself silly (as well as learn to speak dog fluently!).

It's imperative to continue dog-dog socialization through adolescence. They are going through massive changes, and they need to learn to relate to their species on a different level. Lots of dog-dog aggression shows up in adolescence not because the dogs are innately aggressive, but because they are changing mentally and physically and haven't learned to communicate effectively as a teenager.

Train, train, and train some more. When the dog is at his "worst" go back to basics -- set him up to succeed. You may not make a lot of progress as far as reliability and precision during this time -- at least not on the surface. But you *can* make a lot of progress as far as setting a foundation for future learning. This is when you teach the dog that you are the giver of all things and that making the choices you like results in GREAT things. This is when you build a reinforcement history for basic choices, so he will choose those behaviors when you're not there to watch and control.

Be patient in training. There will be lots of times he won't be able to concentrate. Work through it by focusing on the basics. Or, instead, choose something new and fun that *will* catch his interest. Do tricks. Do discrimination exercises. Just don't worry about precision for a couple of months.

Be consistent during this time. Control the resources (and therefore the consequences). This is a GREAT time to institute "Leading the Dance" or "Mind Games" - two excellent methods of establishing leadership. Most of all, maintain your sense of humor, and chant the adolescent-dog-owner mantra: "This will end." Only time will "cure" the demon-spawn behaviors, but truly, you *can* manage and survive.