Adolescent Dog Survival Thread - welcome to the teenage wasteland

[Bupster]

Buckled (under instruction 😄)

I don't think you're derailing at all @VanGoSunflowers . You seem to fit in very well here, so even if you wander off for a while, I hope you'll return when Pablo hits adolescence.

Thank you for your kind words @CoubousAndTourmalet and thanks to all for the support thus far, and for being so welcoming and gracious. It’s made a huge difference! 😘

Think K pissed someone off in the woods today. As we were heading back towards the car park, she ran off to explore a particularly exciting patch that they'd both investigated at the beginning of the walk. I turned left, carried on walking and left her to it. When she ran to catch up, a woman walked past along the bottom path, carrying her dog and glaring my way. She then walked parallel to us, with her little fluffball on an extendable lead. Normally in the parking area, everyone says hello to each other. She bundled her dog in her van and gave K the dirtiest look I have seen since leaving the playground. Oops. 😂

Ha I wonder what she did that was so bad @SpanielsGalore😄

@VanGoSunflowers don’t worry, I was you in the past when everyone graduated to this thread and I just followed even though Vinny was about 4 months old 😂

I’ve realised I’ve not practiced any of the training from our class last week so need to make an effort tomorrow. Although it’s very basic things like walking to heel, whistle recall and a simple retrieve. We have our 1-1 next week so I need him to be a star pupil and redeem himself!

@SpanielsGalore Snacking on human poo again?

@YorkshireFelix - I really hope your 1:1 goes well! I’ll be lurking about for updates!

@YorkshireFelix fingers crossed for your 1-2-1!

Lovely cold morning today! I’ve already been out and done a quick dog walk. Now it’s on with socialisation. Today…the mop, the hoover and Satan (who I’ve been assured is bringing coffee). Yesterday was the extractor fan and BIL (who arrived without coffee and was nearly sent away again)!

😂😂 No. That was her disgusting sister. K only eats other dogs. Perhaps she ate little fluffballs. 😳😂

@YorkshireFelix I imagine she went to say hello with her usual enthusiasm. And I know an off lead dog approaching an on lead one is a cardinal sin, but you kind of have to accept it happens when walking in woods with windy paths and blind turns.
Hope your training goes well.

@LandSharksAnonymous I was going to brag that it's a lovely day here. But despite the blue sky and sunshine and me thinking it is warm, my phone tells me it's 14°.
Hope today's visit goes well. And the socialisation too. My pair are still frightened of both the hoover and the mop, although K is getting better.

I have two vet appointments today. P is having a blood test to check her kidney function and N (foster dog) needs her yearly vaccinations.

Good Morning
Nicely cool here too. My partner volunteered for the morning walk, because he's off on leave this week and I have my CAT session this morning.

I had another difficult walk yesterday and feeling a bit defeated by the whole adolescent boisterousness. And people say girls are easier 🙄Jeez. Yeah, this one doesn't know she's female. Indeed, wherever we go we are asked "what breed is he?" what's his name?" "how old is he?" "Wow, he's a big lad!" etc etc. ad nauseam.

Ugh. Hate being disabled atm. Hate being pitied. Hate being told I'd be better off with a smaller dog. Probably would, to be fair, but it isn't nice when people point it out. Partner has admitted that he "forgets" I'm disabled, but he was walking behind me last night, and this morning he told me to stay home while he walks her 🤔Now I'm terrified that he'll say no to a second dog because I'm so pathetic atm.
(Sorry for whining)

@CoubousAndTourmalet Sorry you are having a hard time lately and Brie is being a little boisterous.
Other people should mind their own fucking business though. When I was getting K, I was continually told I should get a different breed. No thanks. I want a cocker spaniel. They are my breed. I know what to expect from them, warts and all. Just as PMDs are your breed.
People just assume genders on dogs going by looks. Our first two male cockers were black and gold. Everyone assumed the black was male and the gold female, as he was prettier.
I hope you have a better day today.

@CoubousAndTourmalet I echo @SpanielsGalore sentiment! People need to mind their own bloody business.

I’m sure he won’t say no - he must know how much joy (even when she’s being a knob) Brie brings you 😊and double the PMDs is double the joy!

I’ve had people tell me I have too many dogs and that I can’t be in control of that many of them…yes I can. It takes all my diplomatic experience (not much) to not tell them to piss off!

Thanks @SpanielsGalore ❤

You're probably right about looks. We had two Maine Coon cats that were brothers, one was long, lean and black, the other was chunkier, fluffier and blue. Everyone always thought the blue was female.
With Brie I suppose it's the size and the big ruff that confuses people, but, to us she feels more like the boys did to walk.

I'm probably too self conscious about my age these days, but the neighbour's son did ask me if I'd considered getting a Westie 😳 I'm not insulting WHW's in any way, they can be cute, but my MIL had two and I don't quite feel it's my breed.

😂😂😂 That's hilarious. Does he think you just like white dogs?

PMD to Westie is quite a change 🤣

Not sure if he thinks a PMD is just a supersized version of a Westie, or if it was a way of hinting that I'm giving off old lady vibes...😆 (again, apologies to all the under 60's that have terriers, it's just public perception...)
I can see the funny side though. To be fair, I probably should size down, but maybe not quite that far.

I do sometimes ponder over what breed is medium sized and very calm, not high energy or high prey drive, but haven't really come up with the answer.
I do quite like the Bouvier, but they seem to be rarer than hens teeth these days! I suspect I'm working/pastoral orientated more than hound/gundog/terrier/toy. That said, I adore Deerhounds but it's not exactly scaling down that much from a PMD.

People just assume genders on dogs going by looks

I used to think people just assumed all black labs were boys, but it must be slightly more nuanced than that as I often get asked if my two are brother and sister. Admittedly, the older one does cock her leg to wee out and about but most people haven't witnessed this when they ask.

I do think some of it is attributing boisterous behaviour to boys (whether consciously or unconsciously)

@tizwozliz Is the 'brother' bigger than the 'sister'?
My black cocker was bigger than my gold one, and had a squarer shaped head compared to the gold one's daintier features.

There's not much height difference between them but the 'boy' is a bigger build and about 4kg heavier (I call her fatty affectionately). I think she's far too beautiful to be a boy personally 😂

She's also the one doing spinnies in front of their dogs to try and initiate play

I got rid of my magenta pink lead because everyone used to think Vinny was a girl 😂

So I took him down to the field we usually go to, but since his discovery of the bunnies that hang out in the bushes, he now is a nightmare on there. But there’s not really anywhere else flat and soft I can take him off lead (at the physios request) so I think I’m going to have to put him back on a longline on there to do any sort of training with him. We moved onto the canal path and he did a few whistle recalls and sit/stays then we sat on a bench and watched a load of birds for a few minutes. He was really good once I got him off the field. I tried to do a couple of retrieves with the squeaky fluffy thing on a loop I bought, but he just picked it up then dropped it and wandered off bored… I’ve ordered two 1/2lb dummies to try instead.

I do worry that I am never going to manage to be able to train him like I want him to be. I don’t have loads of time and I always end up getting a bit stressed about it. The trainer sent us loads of stuff to practice (which is great) but I feel like I need way more time to go through it all. The days pass so quickly then I realise I’ve not really done any real ‘training’ with him all week!!

Thanks 😊 I'm not giving up hope of a second dog just yet, but still out to prove I can cope with Briellezeebub. I wished he shared your sentiment about double the joy but atm he's saying double trouble 😬

There's a photo on the wall, upstairs, of me walking 3 PMD, but sometimes it feels surreal, like it wasn't really me at all. I'm not the same person any more.

Therapist tells me to stop beating myself up about not doing enough (are you listening to this @YorkshireFelix ?) but I'm feeling like a failure. Urgh. Seriously I don't remember adolescence being this hard with the others. This one is a real wild child.

@YorkshireFelix
You are being hard on yourself I think. They all find it difficult to focus at this age, they're just kids. Wait for your 1-1 training sessions, he might be like a different boy. x

@YorkshireFelix I do very little training with mine. In my head, I aspire to have a dog that walks perfectly to heel, doesn't pull on the lead and has good recall. In reality, I have dogs with good recall, unless deer and rabbits are involved.
None of mine have been interested in doing retrieves on walks, except the two rescues who had been taught to be ball obsessed. The others will only retrieve in the garden or in training classes.
I teach practical things like leaving the house calmly, waiting to be told to get out of the car etc. I haven't taught them to 'work' and walks are very much their time to have fun.
That's not to say I haven't done stuff with them. P has been to agility, obedience, gundog and hoopers training classes. K has only done puppy classes so far, which were a waste of time.
A dog trainer once told me she didn't need her dogs to be highly trained. She just needed them to be sociable.
Try not to put too much pressure on yourself and enjoy spending time with V.

I bought K a pink harness so people would know she's a girl. 😂
Although P in purple still confuses people.

@YorkshireFelix what does he do with/around the bunnies and in their zone? Just wondering if you can channel that into something good – as you know I have long used rabbits as a training device.

I know what you mean about the days going by quickly and you haven't done anything though. This morning I had to walk at 0630 (!!!) to go to London which was absolutely outrageous but we still managed literally five minutes of hunting and that's all she'll get today. Five minutes is better than nothing and she was keen even at that hideous hour! So don't beat yourself up AT ALL. Little and often.

Thanks all @CoubousAndTourmalet@SpanielsGalore@brushingboots I probably am putting too much pressure on and like you say about yours @SpanielsGalore, he is a pet and not going to be out working. But have said here before that I feel like I have a point to prove (to absolutely no one because I don’t think anyone actually cares!) that I am not just an another idiot who has bought a working breed dog and doesn’t know what to do with them.

@brushingbootshe fucks off into the distance totally deaf, and scurries about in the undergrowth for ages until he’s satisfied and comes back out again. I think technically I should go after him and let him know it’s not acceptable but he’s so bloody fast and it’s all brambley spikey stuff that I can’t really get through. I do worry too as that’s where he pulled his leg again a few weeks ago so I think there must be a ditch around there somewhere.

I think ideally he needs to learn some steadiness/self control, which is what we are going to work on with the trainer, so he CAN go mad in the bushes but only when I tell him it’s ok to. It’s frustrating that he just does as he pleases but I know it’s because he’s a bloody teenage spaniel.

Sorry I think my tagging has gone a bit odd there as I’m on the app and it’s rubbish!