I have a puppy who will be 8 months old in 10 days. I love him to bits, he's gorgeous and lovely, friendliest dog I've ever met and very affectionate.
HOWEVER we are in the midst of his teenage bad behaviour (he's a Cavalier King Charles so will be fully grown at about 1 year). TBH it's not even just now that he's a teenager, I think it's partly just his personality. However he is in many ways still behaving exactly as he was as a 2/3 month old.
I can't leave him unattended, ever, unless he's behind a babygate in the kitchen or in his crate. If he's awake, he's destroying something/barking/jumping on everything/charging around. Everything that can be is put away but he will always find something else to investigate, steal, or destroy. You drop a receipt for 0.001 seconds and he's got it, he's ruined all the plants, he's chewed the underneath of the sofa, he's destroyed almost all of his toys, he tries to play with the sofa cushions, leaves, wicker baskets, wires, EVERYTHING. He's not teething anymore his teeth have all come through.
We have practised 'no' and 'leave it' over and over again- I say no and I take him away from the thing, give him a toy and praise him when he plays with the toy. Leave it I put a treat in my hand and when he stops sniffing it he gets the treat, or he gets a treat when he leaves a ball, toy etc.
None of it seems to have gone in whatsoever. He doesn't listen to anything I say. He's bright enough, he picks up commands and can do sit/down/paw/roll over etc etc. I also can't let him fully off the lead (use a long line and let it trail on the ground so I can grab it if needed) as he loses his mind so much outside that I can't get him back to me, he won't so much as sniff even the highest value treats like sausages, cheese or chicken when he's outside. Won't come back for toys, a whistle, affection, or a chase, if there's another dog or human around.
If I don't give him attention for a minute he barks at me. He wants attention and to play fetch all day every day.
He's doing great with other stuff like house training and being in the car, he sleeps through 10pm-8am, has no seperation anxiety. Just wondering if at 8 months it's normal that I can't leave him for a minute still? I have to put him in his crate/the kitchen and shut the door every couple of hours because I'm so knackered, he will only sleep if he's made to, not if he's out in the living room.
He gets the maximum recommended exercise for his age each day, fed good food, played with many times a day, does training every day, has games and puzzles etc to tire him out...nothing seems to make any difference. He's my 3rd dog so I'm not a novice but he's a whole different kettle of fish to my old dogs!
Any suggestions? Thanks!