Recall & The Teenage Phase

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Yoyolut Icon representing the flag French
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Hi everyone,

I’m coming to you again about my Australian Shepherd who is now just over 7 months old.

Unfortunately, for the past few days, I've noticed he’s really struggling with his recall. I’m wondering if he’s just starting that "terrible teens" phase.

At home or during training classes, he responds instantly. Not long ago, it was the same story outdoors too, with just a few exceptions (cats, other dogs, people).

Up until now, I’ve been very careful to praise him every time he comes back, give him a treat, and make sure I don’t put him back on the lead every single time so he doesn’t associate the recall with the walk ending.

But now, I’m the one who ends up chasing him around using the GPS tracker when it's time to head home. And the only time he actually responds to the recall, he gets put back on the lead because I have to get back. (I won’t lie, it’s so frustrating not being able to play with my dog because he’d rather just bolt into the woods...)

Do you have any advice? Is this just a typical adolescent phase? Should I keep him on a lead until this period passes?

Have a great day,

Yo

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    • Energiesolaire
    Energiesolaire Icon representing the flag French
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    I’ve always thought it was better to have a dog who loves people too much rather than not enough.

    There’s been a lot of talk lately about the differences between socialisation and training.

    Here’s a prime example. Actually, it’s easier to distinguish between socialisation and training when the context makes the two concepts mutually exclusive (essentially, where they clash with each other).

    I’ve got a world champion "People-Jumper" on my hands. And I’m proud of it!

    In that respect, she’s very poorly trained, but very well socialised.

    She absolutely loves people; they’re a source of pure joy for her. And I wanted it that way. I played a part in that side of her upbringing. I raised her to love people. But, she is poorly trained.

    To give you an idea, here she is at her first birthday party:

    [youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BeGqyzYyFps]

    From a "training" point of view, the behaviour shown above is awful. It’s the absolute worst thing you could let a dog do. From a socialisation point of view, it doesn’t get any better (especially for a Shiba, a Chow Chow, or any other breed that’s naturally wary of humans).

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    Y
    Yoyolut Icon representing the flag French
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    I think I’m going to have to find some boarding for the next few months... either for him or for me...
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    ?
    Anonymous user Icon representing the flag French
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    I’ve had some right stories with my girl too! :-D

    You’ve just got to try and see the funny side! I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to apologise with a massive grin on my face because mine had bolted to go and lick the neighbours' kids during their breakfast (she’d completely fallen in love with them last summer), or she’d jumped up at a passer-by, or chased after a bike... I used to tell myself it was better to have a dog who loved people too much rather than not enough.

    For my part, it meant I had to do a lot of smiling for a few months (mostly to soften the blow for the victims of her affection).

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    Y
    Yoyolut Icon representing the flag French
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    Hi Lorna,

    Yeah, that's right, he's my first dog. I was warned about the "teenage phase", but I've got to admit, I've no idea how to handle it.

    My wife's just told me she's had a nightmare of a lunchtime with him: zero recall, he bolted as soon as the delivery driver turned up, and he's damaged a bit of the wall (the one we only just redid this weekend...).

    It's basically the total opposite of everything we've had from him up until now :-S

    If we've just got to grin and bear it, then I guess that's what we'll do...

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    Anonymous user Icon representing the flag French
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    Is this your first dog too, @Yoyolut? That teenage phase is well-known and people had told me all about it, but when my girl started playing up—since she was my first as well—I obviously thought it must be me getting it all wrong, or that I’d just ended up with a dog who didn't give a toss about her owner, lol ^^ But eventually, after a few months, things settled down. I’ve actually just got back from a really lovely walk; she was listening so well that I was able to get all the way home without even putting her back on the lead. So yeah, I think when it's your first dog, at the slightest hiccup you immediately think you’ve mucked it all up haha (well, we tend to over-dramatise things a bit, don't we?), but from what you've described, I think you’re doing a great job!
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