The One Year Old Dog - Can You Get Past This Destructive Stage? [Part 1]

My son was at a birthday party recently when one of the moms wanted to know if she could ask me a dog question. (This happens quite often actually. Once someone finds out that I train dogs, they almost always want to ask my advice... which I'm happy to give.)

She wanted to know what to do about a dog that was starting to chew things up. My question was, "Is your dog a year old?" She looked surprised and said yes. 

I can't tell you how many times I am contacted by owners of a one year old dog (or close to a year old). Just when people think they are past the crazy puppyhood stage and their dog is in his or her now mostly grown body and therefore must surely be starting to act like an adult dog, whamo! Surprise! Your couch is gone! Your new shoes are in shreds. Your sprinkler system is in pieces. You have a new hole to China in your backyard. Your remote control has been molded into a new shape by canine teeth. I mean, c'mon, a remote control? How could a dog possibly find that tasty?

One of the first things I tell people who own a young puppy, like 4-5 months old, is that the stage they are in is called the teething stage... goodbye sharp puppy teeth (yay!), hello dull adult teeth (yay... for the moment!). But this is NOT the worst stage. This is NOT the chewing, destructive stage. Save that for the one year old dog. 

Ever been to an animal shelter? Ever looked into the eyes of the eternally hopeful, wondering what they did wrong, why their families abandoned them? Ever noticed that the vast majority of those dogs are around 1-2 years old? Most people don't realize how destructive dogs can be at that age and simply put, they are unwilling to accept it or do anything to help solve the problem. Bye bye, Fido! You ate our kitchen cabinets and now you can be someone else's problem... and that's if you're lucky enough to get out of the shelter.

The most important thing to realize is that almost all dogs will chew and be destructive. (I mean, there are web sites dedicated to Dog Shaming so you know if you own a destructive dog, it's not just you!) But it won't last forever! There is a light at the end of the tunnel! And although you may not be able to bi-pass this stage completely, you can get past it with minimal damage if you do the right things. 

To find out how you can survive this stage, stay tuned for Part 2 of this blog. 

Starting a Dog Blog

Okay, I'm doing it... starting a blog. Unfortunately, I'm starting it with a bit... okay, more than a bit... of frustration. I wrote my first post (yay!), then went to view it and it had old text I had written and my new text was gone. So my first post... gone! Breathe. Is it too early for a glass of wine?

Let me see if I can start this again and with better success.  Rather than write my first post all over again, I think I'll just start with some background information about myself and how I came to be a dog trainer.

We've always had dogs and cats in my family and my love of furry, four-legged friends started at an early age. We had a Black Lab when I was a toddler that unfortunately, my parents had to give away. Boy, do I wish I could go back in time to give them advice about that situation. Our 2nd dog was a sweet, but accident prone Irish Setter who was hit by a car. So far, my parents don't sound like ideal pet owners... but they did improve! It was our next dog that really made an impact in my life.

We got Penny, a Golden Retriever/Lab mix, when I was five. She was such a wonderful dog, a beloved member of our family, and we all mourned her loss when we had to put her sleep at age 14 1/2. To this day, I am a huge lover of Retrievers. I always thought my first dog would be a Golden, but it was a Black Lab puppy that came into my life and stole my heart. More about that later.

I remember, at some point in my early adulthood, thinking how great it would be to be a dog trainer. As a dog trainer, I could balance having a family and still find a way to work with animals. I took a different path for awhile, but it's funny how things work out. After volunteering for three years with a dog rescue organization, I was invited to work for the founder who had his own dog training/boarding business. I worked for many years both with the rescue organization and as a dog trainer and manager for the dog training/boarding business.

Eventually, I had two kids and decided that staying home with them was the most important thing to me. But of course, there was my dream, looming right in front of me... I could stay home with my kids and still train dogs! So I started my own dog training business - 3 Dog Training.

And now, I've started this. The blog was actually my husband's idea. Wait until I make him read all my posts. He may regret it! I'm already full of so many ideas and information about dogs that I'm happy to pass on. Now to find the time...