Is my dog going thru the terrible 2s??

[delfin]

Do you think dogs go through the terrible 2s? Our 2-year-old mixed breed, has been so much more demanding lately... jumping up, barking, etc. It's funny. Our little pom, who's just 1, looks at her like, "What's up with you?" If you use the 7 dog years = 1 human year formula, that makes her a teenager. So do dogs go through a difficult phase in their "teens?"

 

[LauraMax]

In my own experience there is most definitely a "terrible 2" period for dogs. Of course, I spoil my dogs rotten so this period has typically lasted for years.

In all seriousness, I've had 3 dogs in my adult life, 2 retrievers & 1 pug. None of them really "grew up" until they reached about 6 or 7 years.

Oh, & I'd heard the 7/1 dog year ratio had changed since medical advances enable dogs to live longer just like humans. I'd heard it was now 5/1, but when I asked my vet he said there was this new formula where it was like 5 years the first year, 3 years the next two years, yadda yadda yadda. I'm not good at math so I'm just sticking to the 5/1.

 

[Poochy]

It could be jealousy of the younger dog .. he is probably wanting your attention .. good or bad ..

Mine went thru that when we got the female puppy .. LOL .. he had to go thru puppy bootcamp all over again .. LOL

IA w/LauraMax .. I do think dogs don't really mature until they are around 5 or so ...

Hang in there ... :7

 

[andtckrtoo]

My last Aussie was trained in Search and Rescue. We start them young so they have more time as an active search dog, but we were warned that sometime between the ages of 1.5 and 2 they bcome teenagers and get rebellious, and oh yeah, Tucker did. It will last only a few months, and as long as you're consistant with what you expect, your dog will be back to normal. But yeah, it's very typical for dogs to do that.

 

[hiitdogs]

I don't know, I guess it varies. My Labrador Jake started his "terrible twos" at the age of 8 months and never grew out of it until he was 9.5 years old We spent a gazillion $$ on dog trainers, what can I say, two of them dumped us and one got Jake to behave when she was around, but it made no difference after the training session.

I have to say I have learned a lot since then and I don't have any problem whatsoever with my Mini Aussie, Pepper who just turned 2 years in December. I am much stricter with them and I make it pretty clear who is the boss and it's not her (or her other two friends) :+ . The other two are a little over 1 year, and with all of them, I make them work for their food and I make it clear what is expected, and jumping and barking is not an option for them, nor is it acceptable behavior. I snip my finger, or touch them to get their attention and say "ahah". If someone comes in to visit, I will make them sit and wait politely, works most of the time.

What I really found is helpful is plenty of exercise, I used to go to the dog park every morning (can't right now because we have puppies and we skip the dog park because of parvo as a precaution) and walk them on a leash. So now, I walk them twice a day, make them heel and sit, and they are not allowed to walk in front of me, only at my side or behind me.
I found a tired dog is a good dog

I agree with Christine though, consistency is key!

Carola