10 months old - gone backwards in behaviour

Hi everyone!

Some may have seen i wrote a post about my muppet the other days in regards to his appalling behavior when coming inside the house.. We have tried suggestions on there and he's still mental as ever but we're trying to remain positive and patient with him.. My other issue is this behaviour is now becoming more apparent than before both inside and outside the house... He was normally quiet calm, hypo at times like any lab but was content with his surroundings and listening to us. At the moment he is completely different, he's destroying beds (just lost number 4), he's pulling washing off the line while i'm standing there hanging it out which he's never done (we have it guarded off normally), he gnawing on my arms, legs, feet and even his toys are copping it (surely he can't be teething at 10 months), he's jumping way more than normal, won't listen to commands which he always has listened too and feels that every time we open the door to go inside he will ignore us and come rushing in and run away so we can't put him outside. The only way we have managed to put him outside is with a treat and slowly walk with him to the door and gentle push him outside, which i feel is praising bad behaviour. Nothing different has changed in our routine, we have breafast, he gets a bone, we go for a walk in early afternoon, have a game later than afternoon then dinner around 5.30 before being settled into bed for the evening.. He also repeated all this bad behaviour at my parents house yesterday when he too pulled washing off there line, nearly knock my father over from jumping up at him and wouldn't listen even to a deep mans voice.. He is desexed, and is getting a good decent walk everyday, only thing i can put it down to is slight separation anxiety, yet there is no whinging or crying like he has when he was a small pup, or his brain is on holidays..

Any help would be greatly appreciated

 

Re: 10 months old - gone backwards in behaviour

Hi there, the first thing to say is that much of this behaviour is completely normal for a ten month old lab. Chewing and biting is not just about teething, in fact it isn't even mostly about teething. It is more about play, boredom, excitement and just plain love of chewing. And destructiveness in Labradors often reaches a peak just before the first birthday. My young Labrador has her last bed destroying event when she was nearly two, and has slept on 'vet bed' ever since.

You need to make sure your dog can't get at things you don't want him to have, including washing, unless you can supervise him. And it sounds as though you would benefit from having him on a house line in the house and garden, whilst you sort out some basic training issues.

Do you have a regular twice daily training session? This would help keep his brain stimulated and relieve boredom. You can clicker train him to go in and out of doorways on command, but it is pretty unusual for a dog to not want to go outside so it may be he is keen to spend more time with you. Outdoor training sessions/ball games etc would help him see outdoor time as fun rather than a time to be isolated.

 

Re: 10 months old - gone backwards in behaviour

I completely agree with Pippa. This is normal behaviour for many labs at this age.

So often you hear of puppy owners who have pups of 7/8 months thinking of getting another pup because theirs is so good, doesn't jump, chew, mouth, walks nicely on the lead and doesn't run off. Then they hit 10/12 months onwards and it is a different story. In my experience there is definitely a phase where they try to push boundaries, ignore your commands and their behaviour goes downhill. This phase will probably last a good few months, sorry

I agree with all the suggestions Pippa has made. I would make sure you set boundaries to what is acceptable behaviour, be firm and be consistent. But also don't set him up to fail by giving him access to things that you don't want him to destroy. A crate would also help with calming him down if he has got over excited as it forces them to chill out for 5 minutes. If either of mine got too carried away they would spend 5 minutes in their crate to calm down.

Hope this helps.

 

Re: 10 months old - gone backwards in behaviour

yes i would agree with what others have said i was putting milly in the car with her lead on for months untill one day she chewed thruogh it while we were on the way to the woods no reason i can think of but she still trys to grab it in her mouth now i have had several problems with milly but also remember that every dog is different as are babies they dont all get good at something at the same age hang in there there have been lots of times when i felt like i could not keep trying but it does get better

 

Re: 10 months old - gone backwards in behaviour

Hi there, don't despair, you will sort this out. I would suggest a fun morning training session perhaps in the garden for 10-15 minutes and again later in the day, as Pippa has said. I'm guessing your pup is bored - and a bored 10 month old Labrador is a recipe for disaster, as he goes on the rampage looking for things to entertain himself! Just a couple of short training sessions a day, in addition to his afternoon walk, will help keep him occupied and his mind busy. Good luck, and do let us know how you get on.

 

Re: 10 months old - gone backwards in behaviour

There is a reason that 9-10 months is a prime time for re-homing of Labradors (I got my boy at 9 months!). They are adult sized, puppy brained, and feeling like adventure should be theirs. I agree that training sessions are probably the best thing to occupy that mind (the best way to wear out a dog).

It will probably take a little while before your dog seems to have returned to some kind of sensible state, but you really will get there Hang in there and keep us posted - we understand!!!

 

Re: 10 months old - gone backwards in behaviour

I've lost count on the number of times I've repaired by dogs' bed. Even with a cover made from the same materiel as the Orvis anti chew bed. Although this materiel does hold up better to chewing it is not chew proof!

Patience and perseverance is the answer I'm afraid and being consistant.

Completely my own fault but I have two brothers so double trouble and even now they are three they can still get up to trouble although they are much calmer.

It does get better honestly and the best way is to keep them occupied as much as you can and tire them out physically and mentally . A 10 month old pup given the opportunity will get upto mischief. ;D

Good luck

 

Re: 10 months old - gone backwards in behaviour

My dog, Tatze, started eating her leads, harnesses and collars at 10 months old. She has eaten (swallowed) three harnesses, a collar and a lead (whole!). I had som sleepless nights worrying about what they were doing to her insides. Luckily, all came out one way or the other! I have now learned to keep dog walking equipment of any kind well out of her way - took a while eh? :

I think your dog may dislike being outside because he is on his own. In my view it's fine for dogs to be on their own for a while, but I think this needs building up to so that he doesn't feel 'banished'. I would start again, keep him inside and make sure trips outside are for play and treats. Then start builing up a time outside, maybe in a cosy den, for half an hour at a time.

 

Re: 10 months old - gone backwards in behaviour

You've had some great advice keely,i just wanted to say hi and welcome to the site x

 

Re: 10 months old - gone backwards in behaviour

Hi and welcome to the forum.. from me and another (nearly) 10 month lab! ;D

 

Re: 10 months old - gone backwards in behaviour

Thank you everyone for your advice I really appreciate it. I've never done anything with clickers are they better than food rewards or work best in conjunction. I wish I knew how to put photos up cause the cheeky devil I let inside following everyone's advice and after about 20 mins was as cool as a cucumber and was snoring soundly at my feet! In a training session do you just go over things you have already begun to teach or introduce some new commands to keep things interesting? Thanks again

 

Re: 10 months old - gone backwards in behaviour

Oh that sounds good! I don't do clicker training so can't comment on that, but definitely introduce new training ideas to keep him interested, as well as keeping the old commands up. You can do a spot of retrieving in the garden too, or hide his toy and let him search for it, etc...

 

Re: 10 months old - gone backwards in behaviour

Keely, a clicker is not a reward (like food is) it is just a communication device to indicate to the dog the instant that it got something right (aka an 'event marker' or 'reward marker'). The click (or event marker) is followed up by food as a reward. The advantage of an event marker like a clicker is that it allows you to tell the dog exactly when it got something right (so it is more precise than simply dragging out food and shoving it at the dog). Basically it makes it much clearer and easier for the dog to understand what you want. The use of an event marker also allows you to work at a distance from your dog (you 'mark' the moment the dog got the behaviour right and then you have a few seconds to get your food to the dog).

Hope that makes sense. Here are a couple of articles on the subject:

http://www.thelabradorsite.com/reward-markers-help-you-train-your-labrador/

http://www.thelabradorsite.com/clicker-training-whats-it-all-about/

 

Re: 10 months old - gone backwards in behaviour

Hello from me and my 10 month old Lab Molly.

Yes, adolescence with a dog is awful, but it is not as bad as with a human (here speaks a mother of 3) and luckily it doesn't last as long.

I have found that exercise and training seem to keep her more chilled. I am finding that at ten months she seems to be able to pick things up very quickly.

My trainer told me that 10 months was the worst time - puppy brain, but near adult body. I think there is a lot in that.

One of the problems is that Labs are big dogs and when they misbehave (mine was jumping around me like a thing possessed yesterday in the street) it looks appalling. If a smaller dog behaved in the same way it would either be ignored or look comical.

So you are not alone. I've been there before, didn't enjoy it, but survived it

 

Re: 10 months old - gone backwards in behaviour

I am in the same position as yourself.

Nero turned 10 months old this week and over the last few days he has been a little terror! Biting for attention, barking in our faces when we are trying to watch TV! If we dont give him attention he will grab a pillow (which he knows he is NOT allowed to do!) and run around the house until we chase after him. He is a large dog too at 28.5kgs!

Also he will not go in his bed at night time anymore. He used to be good, when saying 'go to bed' he would go into the kitchen and lay in his bed like a good boy...all of a sudden he has become very stubborn and will not move off the sofa!

We are holding on and hoping that this phase will pass soon

 

Re: 10 months old - gone backwards in behaviour

Oh my. Pongo is eight months old next week. And I thought we were doing so well.... :-\
Waiting now in trepidation for the terrible tens....

 

Re: 10 months old - gone backwards in behaviour

And I also was feeling quite smug and happy that Cooper, at five months, was more calm, obedient, "good doggy" ......so you are telling me that I have the ten month "craz doggy" to look forward to???!!! Now he is 45 pounds....by 10 months he will probably be 90 pounds......Oh, my! At least I am forewarned!!!
Good luck to us all!

 

Re: 10 months old - gone backwards in behaviour

I'm starting to feel the same sense of impending doom! Daisy is four months today and is being such a sweetie... hard to imagine her turning into Destructo Dog! I'm hoping that the presence of my two older dogs will also help take off that edge of "crazy". Daisy and the younger dog (Henry is a 40 pound 3.5 year old Golden mix) play and wrestle constantly and I have to believe that will help! On the other hand, Henry was super-destructive when he was 6-12 months old (5-6 dog beds, multiple sets of work gloves, blankets,.....), but he was also very young, with two older dogs (at that time, I had a 11 year old Lab and a 14 year old Husky mix). Neither of the older dogs would play with him, so boredom really did play a role. I'm hoping that won't be the case with Daisy when she hits the terrible 10s!

 

Re: 10 months old - gone backwards in behaviour

Hello from me and Molly, who will be one year at the end of this month. I've found Molly needs lots of attention. I take her out 3 times a day and have at least two training / play sessions with her in the garden. (And still she digs up the grass : ) However she is becoming calmer and more gentle every day now. I definitely think dogs like to be with us - Molly is lying by my feet chewing a rawhide bone as I type.

 

Re: 10 months old - gone backwards in behaviour

Hi from me and Disel my 10 month old charmer who also needs lots of attention and is very easily bored. His recent favorite activities are barking as much as he can in all situations, pulling on the leash as much as doggedly possible and forgetting most commands at least once daily. I am constantly running out of ideas to keep him occupied but the forum really helps. We have tackled jumping up, humping and excitement and I am now working on speak and quiet..he is mostly speaking though! I have faith that he will calm down the little bugger at some point. Teenagers are so fun My mantra sounds like this: "The training will pay off, patience, patience"