# When is adolescence the worst?



## Maya's Mom

I have a delightful 7 month old puppy and I keep thinking that bratty adolescence must be right around the corner. So far we've avoided it. :crossfingWhen have you found is the peak of the bratty phase?


----------



## LuckyPup

my vote is kinda skewed. I adopted Luck when he was 9 months old. 10 months he was a nightmare! Heis calming down now (probably because of training and I actually have ways to stop him)

I have NEVER had a dog this young before (typically adopt at the 4-5 year old range) so I do not know for sure if this is normal


----------



## esSJay

Molson was about 5 months old when he was his worst (so far). It's when he discovered how to escape from his crate and expen :doh: and when he still had his pointy little shark teeth. Overall he has been a great puppy so far! Almost perfect  He is still just 9 months old so I hope there's nothing around the corner for him!! 

My mom's dog, Skoker, on the other hand... holy heck was he a *BAD PUPPY*!!! :uhoh: he was SO bad... biting, barking, hyper, chewing EVERYTHING in sight, you name it. I'm surprised everyone survived through his puppyhood! :doh: All of a sudden he hit a year old, discovered his *obsession* of tennis balls and he has been the perfect little angel ever since!


----------



## Cam's Mom

Maybe (my)aging is clouding my memories, but I don't recall any undue brattiness with any of my dogs. Each stage brings it's charms and challenges. I do remember often revisiting the obedience basics around 8-10 months

Now Taegan who is 4 years is a brat, in an adorable way...bouncy, wiggle butt champ.


----------



## LibertyME

WE adopted Lexi at 9-10 months old.
The humane society told us that they when a Golden comes through the door...they can almost count on them being 9-10 months old...
Too bad their owners didn't realize if they worked with them for a few more months - they could have a great dog for a lifetime....


----------



## pt83

I got Iris when she was 5 months old, and i don't recall her being bratty at all. She chewed our living room wallpaper twice when she was left at home alone for a couple hours, but thats about it. She was practically a model dog (at least to me). I miss her so much. 

Derryl is still 2 months, so hopefully he doesn't get any brattier than he already is right now!!!


----------



## Laurie

Austin is just 10 months and really hasn't gone through a bratty stage but he is still very much puppy....however he listens well so not much of a problem there...On the other hand, Lincoln is just 8 months...he still is not permitted to run through the house as he is like a bull in a china shop and while he sleeps in our bedroom with the other dogs, he is on his pillow in an excercise pen. He can also be quite destructive in the yard....he rearranged my plants and trees many times this past summer. However, they're just things and we love him to death, so we just chalk it up to puppyhood!!


----------



## Loboto-Me

I have no idea when the adolescent stage happens. Both my dogs are a year old and I don't recall them being any worse at one age than the other. They still get together and cause mischief, but I think it has nothing to do with age and everything to do with trying to have some fun. One dog I got at the age of 7 weeks and the other at the age of 7 months.


----------



## EvilNessCroft

For Molly it's 10 month old! And she still is a handful at almost one year old! Sometimes I think she'll never grow up and be all gentle and kind like my other golden was... But I still love her so much!


----------



## Marley´s Mommy

Marley is almost 8 months (on the 27th) and I am going with 7-8 months as his bratty stage! When will the destructive chewing stop! He´s a darling ... and I love him to bits, and know puppy hood is just a stage ... my other dogs were a lot easier... btw, he´s only destructive when he´s left on his own (which is never more than 4 hours) ... any ideas on what I can do? I got him a kong toy which worked for a couple days but the novelty of it has worn off and he I can´t leave him with any other toys because he rips them to bits and then eats the pieces!


----------



## esSJay

I see that I already voted for 5 months as being the worst, but now that Molson just turned 10 months, the past few weeks have been the worst. Unless he has gone deaf and decided not to tell me, he hasn't been listening to anything I say... all of the obedience training and manners that we've taught him has gone down the drain it seems! It might have something to do with my mom's dog Skoker living with us for the past week and next 2 weeks, but they have both been getting into big trouble!


----------



## Marley´s Mommy

Hi Beth - please do share with us your ways of stopping Lucky!


----------



## Amerz

from about 8 to 18 months he was hell on wheels. We used to called him the Yellow Demon Dog. He was so sweet, but SO naughty. Granted, he is part Labrador, but he chewed anything he could sink his teeth into. The more expensive the item, the better. Leather shoes were a favorite. Shame on me for not putting them away, I know! :doh:

We still laugh when people compliment us on what a nice, well behaved dog we have. We can take him to outdoor restaurants and he sits and behaves. Its a HUGE pride moment for us. If you knew how this dog was back then, you could see why.  He's a good boy, but it definitely took some time and lots of training to get there.


----------



## Elisabeth Kazup

Is it possible for a dog to NOT go through adolescence? Or was she such a brat all along that we didn't notice?

Our Penny has gotten better and better. She was always a monster at play but never chewed on anything that wasn't hers. (She considered us as hers :doh: ).

But in her first year, we never noticed her 'back sliding' in her behavior or getting 'bratty'. Never rebellious. Maybe we just got lucky?


----------

