Puppy Culture Potluck: Ep7 - Teenage Dogs

1
00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:02,160
I'm Jane Messineo Lindquist,

2
00:00:04,720 --> 00:00:07,080
and this is a Puppy Culture

3
00:00:07,080 --> 00:00:14,840
potluck podcast.

4
00:00:14,840 --> 00:00:18,200
You bring the topics,
we bring the conversation.

5
00:00:18,520 --> 00:00:20,520
Today's question

6
00:00:21,240 --> 00:00:25,240
was actually written into the show page,
and it's from Rochelle Fisher,

7
00:00:25,240 --> 00:00:28,200
and she actually asked
a couple of questions.

8
00:00:28,560 --> 00:00:31,920
But I'm going to tackle one of them today,
and then maybe

9
00:00:31,920 --> 00:00:35,280
the next one will be its own podcast.

10
00:00:35,280 --> 00:00:39,640
So let me read you the part that we're
going to be talking about today.

11
00:00:40,000 --> 00:00:40,600
Hi, Jane.

12
00:00:40,600 --> 00:00:44,160
I love your way of bringing dogs
into the human world.

13
00:00:44,880 --> 00:00:47,880
We currently have a 20 month
old female Doberman.

14
00:00:48,480 --> 00:00:51,880
The breeder used your Puppy
Culture methods to raise the puppies,

15
00:00:52,120 --> 00:00:55,320
and we continued with your suggestions
after she came home

16
00:00:55,320 --> 00:00:57,840
at 11 weeks old.

17
00:00:58,320 --> 00:01:01,520
I wonder if you could do a podcast
covering what you have learned

18
00:01:01,520 --> 00:01:05,560
works best regarding
how to frame the adolescent's mind

19
00:01:06,080 --> 00:01:08,680
and some general guidelines
around training

20
00:01:08,680 --> 00:01:12,680
and general standards we should be aware
of at this time in her development,

21
00:01:13,680 --> 00:01:16,840
you know, like with the puppies
at their different stages.

22
00:01:16,840 --> 00:01:20,560
In other words, okay now this is me
talking, what she's saying is,

23
00:01:21,000 --> 00:01:24,600
you know, the way that we went through
the developmental stages

24
00:01:24,600 --> 00:01:29,760
in Puppy Culture and gave you behavioral
markers and appropriate protocols per

25
00:01:29,760 --> 00:01:32,800
developmental stage,
she's saying, hey, can you kind of

26
00:01:33,360 --> 00:01:37,320
do that for adolescents?

27
00:01:37,320 --> 00:01:41,080
So I'm going to tell you
what I'm going to do is I'm going

28
00:01:41,080 --> 00:01:44,160
to give you some fairly

29
00:01:44,160 --> 00:01:47,760
just grab bag
kind of thoughts about adolescence

30
00:01:47,760 --> 00:01:51,680
and things that I've noticed
and that might be helpful to you.

31
00:01:53,480 --> 00:01:58,960
Before I reach into that bag,
I'm going to say the reason why I have

32
00:01:58,960 --> 00:02:03,160
not so far treated this subject globally

33
00:02:03,160 --> 00:02:06,240
like in a in a in educational product

34
00:02:07,000 --> 00:02:10,520
is the following.

35
00:02:10,520 --> 00:02:13,680
You know, the thing
about very young developmental periods,

36
00:02:13,680 --> 00:02:18,720
like with puppies,
you know, neonates into transitional

37
00:02:18,720 --> 00:02:23,520
critical socialization period, is it,
there are pretty, you know, like

38
00:02:25,320 --> 00:02:28,040
defined behavioral markers, okay.

39
00:02:28,040 --> 00:02:33,120
Which are going to be universal
across breeds and types of dogs.

40
00:02:33,160 --> 00:02:37,920
Now, how exactly when those

41
00:02:37,920 --> 00:02:42,080
developmental markers appear
is going to be genetically controlled

42
00:02:42,080 --> 00:02:46,440
and there's going to be some variation,
but the variation is is small

43
00:02:47,520 --> 00:02:49,720
because genetically they're all dogs.

44
00:02:49,720 --> 00:02:53,480
And whatever genetic difference
they have, it's it's not as great.

45
00:02:53,520 --> 00:02:55,400
You know, there's a lot of what I call

46
00:02:55,400 --> 00:02:58,320
genetic black boxes
that haven't come online yet.

47
00:02:58,880 --> 00:03:02,640
So, you know, neonate puppies
outside of physical limitations,

48
00:03:02,640 --> 00:03:05,240
they're all kind of like the more
or less the same.

49
00:03:05,240 --> 00:03:05,760
Right.

50
00:03:05,760 --> 00:03:10,560
And then as with each passing day
and week,

51
00:03:10,560 --> 00:03:13,680
you know,
the genetic trajectories push them apart

52
00:03:13,680 --> 00:03:18,000
and and the environmental trajectories
push them apart.

53
00:03:18,000 --> 00:03:18,360
Right?

54
00:03:18,360 --> 00:03:24,480
So what I'm about in Puppy Culture
and in all my educational products

55
00:03:24,480 --> 00:03:30,560
is finding the higher principle
that is applicable universally, right?

56
00:03:30,560 --> 00:03:32,920
So I try and find that top level
that there's a

57
00:03:32,920 --> 00:03:35,440
there's an applicable principle here

58
00:03:35,440 --> 00:03:39,560
and how you and when you apply it, here's
your behavioral markers to look for,

59
00:03:40,040 --> 00:03:43,520
you know, and know where you are
with your particular puppy.

60
00:03:44,560 --> 00:03:47,720
That becomes increasingly

61
00:03:47,720 --> 00:03:52,400
confounding as the puppy gets older,
if that makes sense.

62
00:03:52,400 --> 00:03:57,440
Because now you've got all those
genetic black boxes coming online.

63
00:03:57,840 --> 00:04:02,600
The puppies are diverging genetically,
the environments are very difficult.

64
00:04:02,600 --> 00:04:04,280
So different excuse me.

65
00:04:04,280 --> 00:04:09,160
So it becomes very difficult
to come up with universal principles.

66
00:04:09,160 --> 00:04:12,600
That's by way of saying it's
sort of a disclaimer as what I'm going to,

67
00:04:12,640 --> 00:04:16,600
what I'm going to hit you with here
are just the things at this time

68
00:04:16,600 --> 00:04:20,120
that I've been able to sort of pull out
of the bag and say, these are universals.

69
00:04:20,360 --> 00:04:23,760
These are the things you can look for
as far as adolescence goes.

70
00:04:25,040 --> 00:04:28,160
So it's not a whole course
or a dissertation on adolescence

71
00:04:28,160 --> 00:04:32,360
is just here some choice
things that so far I've been able to say

72
00:04:32,680 --> 00:04:34,520
universally are applicable.

73
00:04:36,000 --> 00:04:38,760
So I think the first

74
00:04:38,760 --> 00:04:42,360
transition from true puppy hood

75
00:04:42,360 --> 00:04:46,200
to adolescence
is probably around the time of teething.

76
00:04:46,200 --> 00:04:49,560
Okay, so you have the the the true

77
00:04:49,560 --> 00:04:52,480
baby puppy stage
and then you have that stage,

78
00:04:52,560 --> 00:04:55,960
you know, probably from 10 to 16 weeks

79
00:04:55,960 --> 00:04:58,560
where they're sort of like high schoolers.

80
00:04:59,440 --> 00:05:03,240
And then, you know,
they get to be 16 around 16 weeks.

81
00:05:03,240 --> 00:05:07,880
And there's usually a pretty profound
behavioral change.

82
00:05:08,520 --> 00:05:11,280
And it's it's

83
00:05:11,280 --> 00:05:14,400
usually couched
in terms of teenage rebellion,

84
00:05:14,400 --> 00:05:16,840
what they call teenage rebellion.

85
00:05:16,840 --> 00:05:22,400
And all it is is that the puppy that
previously just seemed to be so compliant

86
00:05:22,400 --> 00:05:26,280
and dying to be with you and do whatever
you say is so easy to train right?

87
00:05:26,280 --> 00:05:30,040
Every puppy we ever have is that,
you know, eight week at eight weeks,

88
00:05:30,040 --> 00:05:33,480
they're an OTCH MACH dog
and then they get to be 16 weeks.

89
00:05:33,480 --> 00:05:38,000
And all of a sudden it it does appear
like the puppies blowing you off.

90
00:05:38,000 --> 00:05:38,400
Okay.

91
00:05:38,400 --> 00:05:41,400
It's like and so understandably,
people say, well, this is teenage

92
00:05:41,400 --> 00:05:45,160
rebellion.

93
00:05:45,160 --> 00:05:48,200
But I want to reframe this
a little bit for you in

94
00:05:48,200 --> 00:05:51,280
evolutionary terms, because

95
00:05:53,200 --> 00:05:54,240
all it comes

96
00:05:54,240 --> 00:05:57,360
down to is a shift in reinforcers, okay?

97
00:05:57,360 --> 00:06:02,160
And it's a pretty hard shift that normally
does come around the time of teething.

98
00:06:02,160 --> 00:06:03,960
It's not a

99
00:06:04,480 --> 00:06:06,000
a rebellious stage.

100
00:06:06,000 --> 00:06:08,680
It's just simply an evolutionary shift.

101
00:06:09,280 --> 00:06:13,120
Let me back that up and explain.

102
00:06:13,560 --> 00:06:15,520
Up until,

103
00:06:15,960 --> 00:06:18,240
you know, the puppy is certainly

104
00:06:19,560 --> 00:06:20,760
eight weeks old.

105
00:06:20,760 --> 00:06:25,680
Let's say most breeds of domestic dogs,

106
00:06:27,320 --> 00:06:29,280
they're going to be fairly flexible.

107
00:06:29,280 --> 00:06:31,560
They're not going to have too high,
you know, they're going to be

108
00:06:31,560 --> 00:06:34,440
what we call the curiosity period,
sort of a fear trough.

109
00:06:34,440 --> 00:06:35,000
Right.

110
00:06:35,160 --> 00:06:39,000
That they just anything that they meet,
they kind of accept

111
00:06:39,720 --> 00:06:44,640
and they're very compliant
and loving toward their pack members.

112
00:06:44,640 --> 00:06:49,840
There's very low, you know, conflict
or aggression or independence.

113
00:06:49,840 --> 00:06:50,760
Okay.

114
00:06:50,760 --> 00:06:56,600
And it all makes sense, right, because
they don't have very high mobility.

115
00:06:56,600 --> 00:07:00,200
So the only things
they're probably really going to be seeing

116
00:07:00,200 --> 00:07:02,840
are their immediate pack members,
which is safe.

117
00:07:03,720 --> 00:07:10,680
And their real only chance of survival
is the approval of their pack

118
00:07:10,680 --> 00:07:13,080
because they don't have
any defense mechanisms

119
00:07:13,080 --> 00:07:17,680
and they can't even really retreat
or run away if there is danger.

120
00:07:17,680 --> 00:07:19,520
So their best bet is,

121
00:07:19,520 --> 00:07:23,000
for lack of a better way of saying it,
you know, to suck up to their pack.

122
00:07:23,800 --> 00:07:26,880
And, you know, that's what you're getting
with that puppy at eight weeks old

123
00:07:26,880 --> 00:07:30,600
that just, you know, is a prodigy
and you can train it to do anything.

124
00:07:30,600 --> 00:07:33,240
It's like, just tell me. It's fantastic.
I love it.

125
00:07:33,240 --> 00:07:37,200
You know, they they just
they would work for you for no food.

126
00:07:37,200 --> 00:07:42,240
That the pack approval
is a primary reinforcer

127
00:07:42,400 --> 00:07:46,680
to very baby puppies.

128
00:07:46,680 --> 00:07:51,320
But then what happens is 16 weeks,
they start getting their adult teeth,

129
00:07:51,720 --> 00:07:52,680
okay?

130
00:07:53,120 --> 00:07:56,160
They start getting their adult teeth
and their growth

131
00:07:56,160 --> 00:07:58,920
planes, planes have really slowed down.

132
00:07:59,280 --> 00:08:03,840
So where is up until 16 weeks
have just been really dramatic growth.

133
00:08:03,840 --> 00:08:08,280
I mean, an eight week
old puppy eats as much as an adult dog.

134
00:08:08,640 --> 00:08:12,440
I mean, it's this tiny thing,
a fraction of the size of an adult dog.

135
00:08:12,720 --> 00:08:15,640
And, you know,
it eats as much as an adult dog

136
00:08:15,640 --> 00:08:20,000
because that trajectory, that growth plane
is just like almost perpendicular.

137
00:08:20,120 --> 00:08:22,440
Okay.

138
00:08:22,440 --> 00:08:25,520
But then, you know, around 16 weeks old,
they start teething.

139
00:08:25,520 --> 00:08:27,480
So now they've got
adult teeth. They've reached,

140
00:08:28,560 --> 00:08:29,760
you know, somewhere around

141
00:08:29,760 --> 00:08:33,240
three quarters
or more or better of their adult size.

142
00:08:33,600 --> 00:08:34,440
They've got legs.

143
00:08:34,440 --> 00:08:36,920
They can run, they can defend themselves.

144
00:08:37,800 --> 00:08:40,480
So now they can get away
from their immediate pack.

145
00:08:40,480 --> 00:08:43,320
And now they really they
they need to learn

146
00:08:43,960 --> 00:08:48,200
to distinguish between what's safe
and what's not safe.

147
00:08:48,200 --> 00:08:51,720
So they're getting a much higher fear
level of novelty than they did

148
00:08:51,720 --> 00:08:53,760
when they were eight weeks, seven,
seven weeks

149
00:08:53,760 --> 00:08:57,120
old, going on to eight weeks old,
when they're in that curiosity period.

150
00:08:57,600 --> 00:09:00,000
Now, they can, you know,
their little legs are long enough

151
00:09:00,000 --> 00:09:01,200
to carry them into trouble.

152
00:09:01,200 --> 00:09:04,600
So they need a higher level
of mistrust and fear.

153
00:09:05,400 --> 00:09:09,240
And they also, frankly, don't need you
as much as they did

154
00:09:09,240 --> 00:09:10,440
when they were eight weeks old.

155
00:09:10,440 --> 00:09:12,680
And they don't need the other dogs.

156
00:09:12,680 --> 00:09:15,840
So it's very,
they come by it very honestly.

157
00:09:15,840 --> 00:09:16,080
Right.

158
00:09:16,080 --> 00:09:19,680
That all of a sudden
right around that period of teething.

159
00:09:20,160 --> 00:09:22,360
Yeah,
they're a little harder to work with.

160
00:09:22,560 --> 00:09:24,600
They're not,
all that stuff that you thought

161
00:09:24,600 --> 00:09:27,160
that they had learned that, you know,
you were there.

162
00:09:27,160 --> 00:09:29,360
You were you were
you were already doing everything.

163
00:09:29,360 --> 00:09:33,240
All of a sudden, it's
all falling apart for you.

164
00:09:33,240 --> 00:09:34,920
But this is natural. Okay?

165
00:09:36,240 --> 00:09:39,000
What you will find, and I do mention this
in Puppy Culture,

166
00:09:39,000 --> 00:09:42,360
is that a lot of animals that,

167
00:09:42,920 --> 00:09:46,840
puppies
that were very happy to work for you

168
00:09:47,160 --> 00:09:50,400
for for basically for nothing,
just for the joy of working with you.

169
00:09:50,400 --> 00:09:52,840
All of a sudden, you know,
they really want payment, they want food,

170
00:09:53,520 --> 00:09:57,080
and that is totally normal
that you may just have to re-examine

171
00:09:57,080 --> 00:10:02,880
your reinforcers when those puppies move
from true puppy hood starting adolescence.

172
00:10:02,880 --> 00:10:05,320
Okay,
Your reinforcer is going to have to be

173
00:10:06,000 --> 00:10:09,920
something better probably than just
the joy of working with you, because that

174
00:10:09,960 --> 00:10:13,000
that's not that's not really a reinforcer
for most puppies anymore

175
00:10:13,000 --> 00:10:16,560
at 16 weeks.

176
00:10:16,560 --> 00:10:19,560
And I'm not going
to get too deep into this because,

177
00:10:19,560 --> 00:10:21,120
you know, it's a course in itself.

178
00:10:21,120 --> 00:10:26,760
But this is why we really encourage
developing,

179
00:10:27,040 --> 00:10:31,360
doing a lot of free shaping games
and a lot of play

180
00:10:31,680 --> 00:10:35,400
relationship
kind of games with very young puppies

181
00:10:36,400 --> 00:10:37,080
because that

182
00:10:37,080 --> 00:10:40,120
taps into the hunting part of the brain.

183
00:10:40,120 --> 00:10:40,560
Right.

184
00:10:40,560 --> 00:10:44,200
Which it can supersede any of these

185
00:10:45,600 --> 00:10:49,200
evolutionary changes like that,
that hunting instinct, if you can

186
00:10:49,200 --> 00:10:52,400
sort of equate training with hunting

187
00:10:53,040 --> 00:10:55,760
and you do that by free shaping behaviors.

188
00:10:56,040 --> 00:11:00,360
So the dog is sort of always hunting for
the correct answer that can really help

189
00:11:00,360 --> 00:11:06,120
smooth out, smooth out that bump right
between puppy hood and adolescence there.

190
00:11:06,120 --> 00:11:07,360
That first,

191
00:11:07,480 --> 00:11:10,800
you know, when you have that switchover
of reinforcers from pack approval

192
00:11:10,800 --> 00:11:16,080
to independence and food being more likely
to be the primary reinforcer,

193
00:11:16,520 --> 00:11:20,560
if you've developed a play free
shaping training relationship,

194
00:11:21,120 --> 00:11:23,280
that's where that's really going
to stand you in good stead.

195
00:11:23,960 --> 00:11:26,720
The truth of matter is it's really hard

196
00:11:26,720 --> 00:11:31,880
to convince puppy owners
that they should do those things

197
00:11:31,880 --> 00:11:35,520
because it's so easy
to train the puppies else wise.

198
00:11:35,520 --> 00:11:38,560
You know, you don't need to technically
when they're puppies

199
00:11:38,560 --> 00:11:40,360
because they learn so easily.

200
00:11:40,360 --> 00:11:44,080
But it's sort of an investment against,
you know, the teenage years.

201
00:11:45,240 --> 00:11:47,520
So that's just one universal

202
00:11:47,560 --> 00:11:50,800
that I've seen, you know,
and it's a different experience

203
00:11:51,760 --> 00:11:55,600
in degree
for different breeds and different dogs,

204
00:11:55,600 --> 00:11:59,040
but it's pretty much universal
that right around that teething time,

205
00:11:59,040 --> 00:12:03,080
you're going to see your really compliant
puppy that you thought was perfect,

206
00:12:03,080 --> 00:12:06,840
you know, so-called fall apart,
become independent, become defiant.

207
00:12:08,520 --> 00:12:12,160
My advice for you
is not to worry about it.

208
00:12:12,160 --> 00:12:13,600
The customer is always right.

209
00:12:13,600 --> 00:12:16,720
And the puppies, the customer, if
they want to work for food, that's fine.

210
00:12:16,720 --> 00:12:20,880
If you have to draw back to less
distracting environments, that's fine.

211
00:12:20,880 --> 00:12:23,080
If you lose a little ground, that's fine.

212
00:12:23,080 --> 00:12:24,240
It's going to come back to you.

213
00:12:24,240 --> 00:12:27,120
If you if you've laid the foundation, it's
going to come back to you.

214
00:12:27,480 --> 00:12:33,080
You just have to be willing to sort of
ride out this this period with this puppy.

215
00:12:33,080 --> 00:12:34,720
So that's one thing.

216
00:12:34,720 --> 00:12:38,640
Another shift that happens
during adolescence

217
00:12:38,640 --> 00:12:42,000
is it's a shift in the way
the brain is wired.

218
00:12:42,000 --> 00:12:42,520
Okay.

219
00:12:42,520 --> 00:12:48,240
And I'm also going to say that
this is my hypothesis, which is, you know,

220
00:12:48,240 --> 00:12:54,120
somewhat based on circumstantial evidence
about brain development in young mammals.

221
00:12:54,120 --> 00:12:58,440
But it is my observation,
okay, that what we call

222
00:12:58,440 --> 00:13:03,120
the critical socialization
period is in fact, really the brain

223
00:13:03,560 --> 00:13:09,240
being wired preferentially
for classical versus operant conditioning.

224
00:13:09,600 --> 00:13:11,360
What does that mean?

225
00:13:11,360 --> 00:13:16,520
It means that the puppy
forms emotional associations

226
00:13:17,480 --> 00:13:20,960
very quickly with as little as one
exposure.

227
00:13:21,000 --> 00:13:22,800
Okay. It can be a yes or no.

228
00:13:22,800 --> 00:13:26,440
It's a good experience, bad experience,
one exposure, and it's durable.

229
00:13:26,440 --> 00:13:29,080
I mean, it's pretty much
the rest of their, their life.

230
00:13:29,880 --> 00:13:31,000
It's going to be that way.

231
00:13:31,000 --> 00:13:33,920
So if they meet a person,
they have a pleasant experience.

232
00:13:34,120 --> 00:13:36,480
They like people with hats and red hair.

233
00:13:36,520 --> 00:13:36,920
Okay.

234
00:13:36,920 --> 00:13:39,120
There's a person in a hat with red hair.

235
00:13:39,120 --> 00:13:40,600
It's a good experience.

236
00:13:40,600 --> 00:13:42,360
The puppy's under 12 weeks old.

237
00:13:42,360 --> 00:13:45,920
Probably the rest of that puppy's life
you pretty much check that box off.

238
00:13:47,320 --> 00:13:49,080
Now, why is that really significant?

239
00:13:49,080 --> 00:13:51,640
Well, because in an adult dog

240
00:13:51,920 --> 00:13:55,640
that has never met a person
in, you know, a hat with red hair,

241
00:13:56,280 --> 00:14:00,000
it could take 50 exposures to create that

242
00:14:00,000 --> 00:14:04,120
same emotional connection
that you can do in one, one

243
00:14:05,160 --> 00:14:07,800
exposure with a puppy at 12 weeks old.

244
00:14:08,160 --> 00:14:11,760
And it's not going to be durable
in an adult.

245
00:14:11,760 --> 00:14:12,360
Okay.

246
00:14:12,360 --> 00:14:15,840
That's one of the things about
classical conditioning with adult dogs

247
00:14:15,840 --> 00:14:18,840
and why it's it's a very important tool,

248
00:14:18,840 --> 00:14:21,600
but ultimately kind of a weak tool

249
00:14:22,000 --> 00:14:27,320
for dog trainers with adult dogs
is that you have to maintain that nexus,

250
00:14:27,320 --> 00:14:30,840
okay, between the conditioned
and the unconditioned stimulus.

251
00:14:30,840 --> 00:14:35,680
So, you know, the dog has to continue
to have good relationships

252
00:14:35,680 --> 00:14:38,880
or good interactions
with people with red hair, with hats.

253
00:14:38,880 --> 00:14:40,920
Otherwise it's going to wear off.

254
00:14:40,920 --> 00:14:41,280
Okay.

255
00:14:41,280 --> 00:14:44,480
It's not it's not going to be durable
in the same way it is

256
00:14:44,800 --> 00:14:46,920
with a six week old puppy.

257
00:14:48,160 --> 00:14:51,280
This is just the nature of what
the critical socialization period is.

258
00:14:51,680 --> 00:14:52,200
It's just

259
00:14:53,200 --> 00:14:54,120
a real

260
00:14:54,120 --> 00:14:56,920
hypersensitivity to emotional learning.

261
00:14:57,440 --> 00:15:00,000
But, you know, literally

262
00:15:00,000 --> 00:15:02,680
it's like that bandwidth, right.

263
00:15:02,680 --> 00:15:06,600
That makes the puppy so easy
to imprint on things and learn,

264
00:15:06,640 --> 00:15:08,760
you know, make good associations.

265
00:15:09,360 --> 00:15:14,000
That's at the expense of operant
conditioning or training, meaning to say

266
00:15:14,000 --> 00:15:20,080
puppies are just not able to assimilate

267
00:15:20,120 --> 00:15:22,960
if then kind of reasoning so easily.

268
00:15:24,440 --> 00:15:27,200
So consequences like,
you know, if I do this,

269
00:15:27,200 --> 00:15:29,280
then that happens and that's going to,

270
00:15:29,320 --> 00:15:32,080
you know, therefore I’ll
effect, my behavior, they don't have that.

271
00:15:32,080 --> 00:15:34,080
That takes a prefrontal cortex, okay.

272
00:15:34,080 --> 00:15:36,600
That takes a different executive function

273
00:15:37,200 --> 00:15:41,000
that puppies really have
in very short supply.

274
00:15:41,000 --> 00:15:41,520
So it's

275
00:15:41,520 --> 00:15:45,480
you know, if you just imagine the brain
like a circle and, you know, a big portion

276
00:15:45,480 --> 00:15:49,360
of that circle for those baby puppies
is taken up with emotional learning.

277
00:15:49,360 --> 00:15:53,040
And there's just less room
for that executive function that they need

278
00:15:53,600 --> 00:15:55,920
to to learn true behaviors.

279
00:15:56,600 --> 00:16:01,640
Now, I'm just going to step back here
and say at all times, at all

280
00:16:01,640 --> 00:16:06,320
stages in every dog's life,
you are working in both of those areas.

281
00:16:06,320 --> 00:16:08,400
Okay? You're always do.

282
00:16:08,640 --> 00:16:12,240
They're always doing emotional learning
and you're always training, you're always

283
00:16:12,400 --> 00:16:13,600
shaping behaviors.

284
00:16:13,600 --> 00:16:18,000
But the lion's share
of what you do with young

285
00:16:18,000 --> 00:16:21,680
puppies should be emotional learning,
which is why I always say

286
00:16:22,080 --> 00:16:26,360
how you teach something to a puppy is much
more important than what you teach.

287
00:16:26,360 --> 00:16:28,000
So to to that puppy.

288
00:16:28,000 --> 00:16:31,720
Okay, Because it's they're hypersensitive
to emotional learning

289
00:16:32,040 --> 00:16:34,560
and have limited capacity for

290
00:16:34,840 --> 00:16:39,120
for intellectual learning.

291
00:16:39,120 --> 00:16:40,680
But that changes. Okay.

292
00:16:40,680 --> 00:16:45,000
So that brain starts to the,
you know, the prefrontal cortex comes on

293
00:16:45,000 --> 00:16:50,520
and they start closing off their ability
to be flexible emotionally.

294
00:16:50,520 --> 00:16:51,200
Okay.

295
00:16:51,200 --> 00:16:54,800
And that's what you're seeing at the end
of the critical socialization period.

296
00:16:55,560 --> 00:16:59,280
Is that hypersensitivity
to classical conditioning,

297
00:16:59,280 --> 00:17:02,280
to being able to just,
you know, make emotional connections

298
00:17:02,280 --> 00:17:05,880
with as little as one exposure
and have it be durable for life.

299
00:17:06,200 --> 00:17:08,280
That's going away. Okay.

300
00:17:09,080 --> 00:17:12,480
It closes pretty hard and fast somewhere

301
00:17:12,480 --> 00:17:16,120
12 to 14 weeks,
and then it's a downhill slide from there.

302
00:17:16,920 --> 00:17:19,280
And what's happening, though, is that

303
00:17:19,280 --> 00:17:23,720
is that opportunity is closing
for you as a puppy owner.

304
00:17:24,960 --> 00:17:26,640
The puppies ability

305
00:17:26,640 --> 00:17:31,080
to learn behaviors is increasing,
you know, in proportion.

306
00:17:32,760 --> 00:17:36,640
So that's why in Puppy Culture,

307
00:17:36,960 --> 00:17:41,440
we didn't do for instance,
“Attention is the Mother of All Behaviors.

308
00:17:41,440 --> 00:17:44,720
That's something
typically I start with my puppies

309
00:17:45,000 --> 00:17:48,040
more around, you know, the

310
00:17:49,200 --> 00:17:51,960
12 week mark, okay,
maybe sometimes a little younger.

311
00:17:52,360 --> 00:17:55,680
But it's that if/then kind of of reasoning

312
00:17:56,280 --> 00:17:59,480
and a little bit more of your sport
training and stuff like that, I mean,

313
00:17:59,480 --> 00:18:03,400
normally they're going to do better
with it as they get a little bit older.

314
00:18:03,400 --> 00:18:08,240
So it's not a precipitous change,

315
00:18:09,120 --> 00:18:11,280
but it's a kind of a gradual change.

316
00:18:11,280 --> 00:18:14,840
And and to me, the tipping point

317
00:18:14,880 --> 00:18:17,520
when I really start

318
00:18:17,960 --> 00:18:22,960
prioritizing rules over experiences.

319
00:18:22,960 --> 00:18:26,320
Okay, So
like if then kind of household rules, like

320
00:18:27,120 --> 00:18:31,560
you cannot access this resource
until you do something for me,

321
00:18:32,280 --> 00:18:35,280
I do that when I feel that

322
00:18:35,800 --> 00:18:37,800
the balance has tipped

323
00:18:38,320 --> 00:18:42,320
to operant conditioning,
the brain being favored too

324
00:18:42,320 --> 00:18:47,480
for operant conditioning, or if/then kind
of training versus emotional learning.

325
00:18:48,240 --> 00:18:51,720
And the tip off for me in my household

326
00:18:52,080 --> 00:18:56,480
is when the puppy license
runs out with the big dogs.

327
00:18:56,480 --> 00:19:00,840
So what I've noticed
is that usually in our house

328
00:19:00,840 --> 00:19:05,640
it's around five months and it's pretty
much like clockwork that our big dogs

329
00:19:06,240 --> 00:19:09,800
will just all of a sudden say
no to puppies.

330
00:19:10,000 --> 00:19:13,040
They'll just. And now let me clarify here.

331
00:19:14,200 --> 00:19:15,160
I'm not

332
00:19:15,160 --> 00:19:18,200
talking about snarky, cranky adults, okay?

333
00:19:18,200 --> 00:19:23,280
I'm talking about good nannies and nanos,
what we call shapers versus correctors.

334
00:19:23,280 --> 00:19:25,040
These are shapers.

335
00:19:25,040 --> 00:19:27,680
These are dogs
that have had infinite patience

336
00:19:27,680 --> 00:19:31,480
with those puppies
from the time they knew them, though

337
00:19:31,520 --> 00:19:34,800
these are dogs that would let puppy
take food out of their mouths.

338
00:19:34,800 --> 00:19:38,000
These are dogs that would let puppies
hang off of them like earrings.

339
00:19:38,560 --> 00:19:42,320
And one day
these adults will just say to a puppy,

340
00:19:42,840 --> 00:19:45,560
No, my food can't have it.

341
00:19:46,000 --> 00:19:48,000
No, you can't hang off of me
like earrings.

342
00:19:48,000 --> 00:19:50,120
Whatever it is, it's just a no.

343
00:19:50,120 --> 00:19:51,240
And it's not a mean no.

344
00:19:51,240 --> 00:19:54,280
It's not a correction. It's just no.

345
00:19:54,280 --> 00:19:56,360
For me, that's my tell.

346
00:19:56,360 --> 00:19:57,520
Okay, the puppy's ready.

347
00:19:57,520 --> 00:20:00,560
I mean, the, when my big dogs say, “Yeah,

348
00:20:00,560 --> 00:20:05,040
the puppies ready to learn -
You can't do that”, I know my puppy

349
00:20:05,040 --> 00:20:08,760
now has shifted brain wise enough
that they can start learning some rules.

350
00:20:09,600 --> 00:20:12,120
So for me, that's
when I start working on things like crate

351
00:20:12,120 --> 00:20:15,200
games, you know, release games

352
00:20:16,440 --> 00:20:18,960
more what they call impulse true

353
00:20:18,960 --> 00:20:23,200
impulse control games like,
you know, sit before you get padded.

354
00:20:23,640 --> 00:20:27,120
Wait to be released across a threshold,
all that kind of stuff.

355
00:20:27,520 --> 00:20:30,960
So that for for us, that's around
five months old.

356
00:20:30,960 --> 00:20:31,280
Okay.

357
00:20:31,280 --> 00:20:36,280
Now, if you don't have a good adult dog
to kind of let you know,

358
00:20:36,560 --> 00:20:38,320
you know, or help, you know,

359
00:20:38,320 --> 00:20:42,480
I think, you know, five months is a pretty
5 to 6 months

360
00:20:42,480 --> 00:20:46,720
certainly is a pretty average age,
I'd say, where we can really start

361
00:20:46,720 --> 00:20:50,080
thinking about rules
more than experiences.

362
00:20:50,480 --> 00:20:53,880
I think up until that that age we’re

363
00:20:53,880 --> 00:20:57,800
more concerned with the emotional learning
of of the puppy.

364
00:20:57,800 --> 00:20:58,200
Okay.

365
00:20:58,200 --> 00:21:03,840
That the puppy is is having a good time
is experiencing things like I'm

366
00:21:03,840 --> 00:21:07,560
not going to not let someone pack my puppy
because they won't sit.

367
00:21:07,560 --> 00:21:10,560
You know, I'm not worried
about any of that because I'm just

368
00:21:10,560 --> 00:21:14,280
trying to frontload
all that emotional learning.

369
00:21:14,280 --> 00:21:18,120
But then and also
I feel like up until that time,

370
00:21:19,520 --> 00:21:22,080
because they have a limited capacity

371
00:21:22,720 --> 00:21:27,600
for intellectual learning,
but such a deep capacity

372
00:21:27,600 --> 00:21:30,960
for emotional learning,
if I come down on them like,

373
00:21:31,080 --> 00:21:34,240
like a ton of bricks,
you know, about rules.

374
00:21:34,240 --> 00:21:36,640
I mean, basically, I hate to say it,
they're just going to be like, “Well,

375
00:21:36,800 --> 00:21:39,480
you kind of suck.”
I mean, because they can't

376
00:21:39,480 --> 00:21:41,640
they don't have the wherewithal
to understand the rules.

377
00:21:41,640 --> 00:21:44,760
And I'm I'm, you know, given them a hard
time.

378
00:21:44,760 --> 00:21:46,840
And it's just, to me, counterproductive.

379
00:21:46,840 --> 00:21:47,200
Okay.

380
00:21:47,200 --> 00:21:51,800
So those are two things I'm going to say,
you know, the teething

381
00:21:52,200 --> 00:21:56,320
and then the puppy license running out
or failing that, around five months old.

382
00:21:56,320 --> 00:21:58,440
So the teething, you know,
where you're going to see the shift

383
00:21:58,440 --> 00:22:01,800
in reinforcers from pack approval to,
you know,

384
00:22:02,320 --> 00:22:06,120
traditional primary resources, reinforcers
like food

385
00:22:06,960 --> 00:22:11,680
and also, you know, around five months old
where you're going to see them

386
00:22:12,000 --> 00:22:16,240
make that switch from being predominantly
emotional learners

387
00:22:16,240 --> 00:22:19,920
to being predominantly
intellectual learners.

388
00:22:21,520 --> 00:22:23,800
So, I'm going to give you

389
00:22:24,720 --> 00:22:28,120
just one more,
you know, universal that I've noticed.

390
00:22:28,120 --> 00:22:31,240
And now, you know, we're sort of moving

391
00:22:31,240 --> 00:22:35,480
into, you know, what we call the teenage
period is really a pretty big period.

392
00:22:35,480 --> 00:22:42,560
But just I'm going to say from 16 weeks
probably to 18 months,

393
00:22:42,560 --> 00:22:45,880
I mean, definitely
that's that that's your teen period,

394
00:22:45,880 --> 00:22:48,880
although we really could divide that
into sub periods.

395
00:22:49,360 --> 00:22:52,040
But let's just say

396
00:22:52,040 --> 00:22:55,360
for the first year of any puppy's
life, really

397
00:22:55,360 --> 00:22:58,320
for the first two years,
but definitely for the first year,

398
00:22:59,760 --> 00:23:02,960
that teen period, it's very important

399
00:23:02,960 --> 00:23:07,160
that you prioritize
safety over anything else.

400
00:23:07,160 --> 00:23:08,040
Okay.

401
00:23:08,240 --> 00:23:14,520
Because they are extremely susceptible
to imprinting bad experiences

402
00:23:15,120 --> 00:23:16,720
in that first year of life.

403
00:23:16,720 --> 00:23:20,400
There have been studies
and what they found

404
00:23:20,640 --> 00:23:23,680
is with really a terrifying

405
00:23:25,600 --> 00:23:29,240
reliability that bad experiences

406
00:23:29,240 --> 00:23:32,400
in the first year of a puppy's life,
being scared

407
00:23:32,400 --> 00:23:35,480
by another dog or human

408
00:23:35,480 --> 00:23:40,920
does result in statistically
just much more dog

409
00:23:40,920 --> 00:23:43,920
and human directed aggression as adults.

410
00:23:45,360 --> 00:23:48,080
So it's a very sensitive time and

411
00:23:49,080 --> 00:23:53,400
it's again, very hard to impress this
on puppy owners because a lot of times

412
00:23:53,920 --> 00:23:57,760
the puppy is going to have a bad
experience and you're not going to see

413
00:23:58,200 --> 00:24:00,920
that that was a bad experience
because it's going to appear

414
00:24:00,920 --> 00:24:04,880
that the puppy has recovered
from the bad experience.

415
00:24:05,520 --> 00:24:08,200
But what it is is that because
of their developmental phase

416
00:24:08,200 --> 00:24:13,200
of still being,
you know, a junior or a teenager,

417
00:24:13,560 --> 00:24:17,440
they really haven't reached that defense
fight

418
00:24:18,040 --> 00:24:22,080
place yet genetically, they're still in
what we call defense flight.

419
00:24:22,480 --> 00:24:25,200
They're still in the part of their brain
where their instinct

420
00:24:25,200 --> 00:24:27,840
when confronted or scared is to retreat.

421
00:24:28,640 --> 00:24:31,960
But as they grow up
and they come into their full,

422
00:24:31,960 --> 00:24:35,520
you know, adult in full personalities,

423
00:24:36,240 --> 00:24:38,880
you know,
unfortunately those bad experiences

424
00:24:38,880 --> 00:24:42,520
sort of get bankrolled
and it can statistically wind up

425
00:24:42,520 --> 00:24:47,880
in increased negative attitudes
towards people and other dogs.

426
00:24:48,880 --> 00:24:50,960
So what does this mean in practical terms?

427
00:24:50,960 --> 00:24:54,800
In real terms, this means the first year
my dog's life for sure

428
00:24:54,800 --> 00:24:57,960
and probably for the first two years I way

429
00:24:57,960 --> 00:25:00,840
prioritize safety over experiences.

430
00:25:01,480 --> 00:25:04,960
I do not take my dogs,
my puppies under two years old.

431
00:25:04,960 --> 00:25:11,160
I never take a dog under two years old
anywhere where there is any possibility

432
00:25:11,360 --> 00:25:15,360
that there could be a dog off leash,
you know, it's up to you.

433
00:25:15,360 --> 00:25:17,680
Okay? I'm just telling you what I do.

434
00:25:17,680 --> 00:25:22,200
The last time I did
that was three generations ago.

435
00:25:23,480 --> 00:25:25,320
I had a lovely puppy,

436
00:25:25,320 --> 00:25:28,720
five months
old, got out super early in the morning.

437
00:25:28,720 --> 00:25:31,520
We have a wonderful rails
to trails over here.

438
00:25:31,520 --> 00:25:35,280
And I just was like,
Yo, I'm just going to get up really early

439
00:25:35,280 --> 00:25:38,520
before the palookas are up
and take my puppy for a walk.

440
00:25:38,520 --> 00:25:40,320
And, you know, so I'm walking

441
00:25:40,320 --> 00:25:44,280
and I see this guy with an off leash
dog coming and it's an old guy.

442
00:25:44,280 --> 00:25:46,200
And I said, “Leash up your dog”.

443
00:25:46,200 --> 00:25:48,680
And he said, “She's friendly”.
I said, “I can see it from here.

444
00:25:48,680 --> 00:25:49,560
She's not friendly”.

445
00:25:49,560 --> 00:25:50,400
“Oh, no, she's good”.

446
00:25:50,400 --> 00:25:52,560
I'm like, “She's stalking my puppy.

447
00:25:52,560 --> 00:25:53,480
Get your dog”.

448
00:25:53,480 --> 00:25:57,440
And I actually use an expletive,
which he took exception to.

449
00:25:57,440 --> 00:26:00,760
But sure enough, you know, he, his dog

450
00:26:00,760 --> 00:26:04,600
jumped my puppy,
alpha rolled her and growled at her. And

451
00:26:05,640 --> 00:26:06,560
you know, that puppy.

452
00:26:06,560 --> 00:26:08,560
I mean, she's seemed like she was fine.

453
00:26:08,600 --> 00:26:09,960
Didn't seem like it was a problem.

454
00:26:09,960 --> 00:26:12,480
But she did grow up to be
not good with other dogs.

455
00:26:12,480 --> 00:26:16,280
Now she's a bull terrier, so I can't say

456
00:26:16,800 --> 00:26:20,520
that was the dispositive event.

457
00:26:21,400 --> 00:26:25,760
But, you know, I just,
it made me really sick to my stomach.

458
00:26:25,760 --> 00:26:27,680
I'm like, what am I doing here like this?

459
00:26:27,680 --> 00:26:28,120
These dogs

460
00:26:28,120 --> 00:26:31,960
do not need to take a walk at the expense
of, you know, the rest of their life.

461
00:26:32,640 --> 00:26:35,320
You know, maybe not really being that
happy around other dogs.

462
00:26:35,320 --> 00:26:37,920
So I just don't do it anymore, you know?

463
00:26:37,920 --> 00:26:39,120
In fact,

464
00:26:39,120 --> 00:26:42,600
what I do with my very,
you know, my adolescent dogs

465
00:26:42,600 --> 00:26:46,880
is I'll take them to a college campus
or a city or someplace

466
00:26:46,880 --> 00:26:49,080
where I just, you know, people
people are not going to have

467
00:26:49,080 --> 00:26:51,240
off-leash dogs because I just
I just won't have it.

468
00:26:51,240 --> 00:26:54,000
I just
I've had too much heartbreak over it.

469
00:26:54,000 --> 00:26:55,040
I've seen it too much.

470
00:26:55,040 --> 00:26:59,120
So for what it's worth, I know a lot of
people are really big on off leash stuff

471
00:26:59,120 --> 00:27:02,120
and it being a decompression and important
and God bless you.

472
00:27:02,160 --> 00:27:02,720
You know, I

473
00:27:03,920 --> 00:27:05,840
everybody has to choose their poisons.

474
00:27:05,840 --> 00:27:08,400
But for me, I just I just can't.

475
00:27:09,120 --> 00:27:14,400
So now I just kind of want to circle back
more specifically to the original poster.

476
00:27:14,400 --> 00:27:17,440
The person who wrote in and

477
00:27:19,960 --> 00:27:22,120
makes some specific comments

478
00:27:22,120 --> 00:27:25,160
about her dog's age and breed.

479
00:27:25,200 --> 00:27:28,560
Okay,
so she's got a 20 month old Doberman and

480
00:27:29,720 --> 00:27:34,120
here's the really great news for you,
my dear, is of all the breeds

481
00:27:34,120 --> 00:27:38,200
I've worked with, Dobermans are absolutely

482
00:27:38,200 --> 00:27:41,960
the most mystically biddable animals.

483
00:27:42,000 --> 00:27:43,120
I mean,

484
00:27:44,000 --> 00:27:48,200
I don't even understand
how they know what you want them to do.

485
00:27:48,240 --> 00:27:48,880
I just.

486
00:27:48,880 --> 00:27:53,960
I love those dogs, you know,
You want them to do the weave polls.

487
00:27:53,960 --> 00:27:57,040
You just kind of look at them and
they're like, Oh, that's what you want.

488
00:27:57,040 --> 00:27:59,160
I mean, they're great dogs.

489
00:27:59,160 --> 00:28:02,160
Which what
it really means in practical terms

490
00:28:02,160 --> 00:28:05,680
is that Dobermans, for the most part,
it's a true working animal, okay?

491
00:28:06,480 --> 00:28:11,520
Which means that they bred them to enjoy
working for people so much

492
00:28:12,080 --> 00:28:15,720
that it's a primary reinforcer
really doing the job.

493
00:28:16,760 --> 00:28:19,160
So I would say your teenage

494
00:28:19,480 --> 00:28:22,560
years with your Doberman,
I mean, I think that

495
00:28:23,000 --> 00:28:25,880
if you have any pitfall,

496
00:28:26,000 --> 00:28:30,440
it might be that you rely too much
on the bid ability of your animal

497
00:28:30,440 --> 00:28:32,640
and you're not being honest about,

498
00:28:32,640 --> 00:28:34,880
you know, making sure
that you're always paying them.

499
00:28:35,520 --> 00:28:36,720
But that's a different story.

500
00:28:36,720 --> 00:28:40,200
I mean, I would just say in general,
I don't think that you

501
00:28:40,440 --> 00:28:43,880
you might experience
some other kinds of issues.

502
00:28:43,880 --> 00:28:47,520
I mean, everybody has their their own bag
of stuff that they have to deal with.

503
00:28:48,000 --> 00:28:50,680
But as far as training and bid ability,
I mean, I think, you know,

504
00:28:51,360 --> 00:28:54,000
you're not going to have a hard time

505
00:28:54,000 --> 00:28:56,080
getting there with your Doberman.

506
00:28:56,080 --> 00:28:58,800
The only other thing I can say

507
00:28:58,800 --> 00:29:00,880
is that at 20 months,

508
00:29:00,880 --> 00:29:04,800
you're sort of coming, you know, into that
young adulthood, right?

509
00:29:04,800 --> 00:29:08,080
I'd say you're really past adolescence
at 20 months.

510
00:29:08,080 --> 00:29:13,200
I mean, certainly between 18 and 24 months

511
00:29:13,480 --> 00:29:18,840
in in most dogs
that I've seen, there's a really big

512
00:29:19,880 --> 00:29:21,760
behavior, behavioral change.

513
00:29:21,760 --> 00:29:25,720
They really settle down like they can be
kind of intolerable at 18 months.

514
00:29:25,720 --> 00:29:29,280
In fact, you know, I'd say
just about every male I've ever had.

515
00:29:29,280 --> 00:29:32,040
I scheduled him
for neutering at 18 months.

516
00:29:32,040 --> 00:29:33,360
I just can't take it.

517
00:29:33,360 --> 00:29:36,720
And then at 24 months, miraculously,
they're just

518
00:29:36,920 --> 00:29:38,400
I don't know, they settle down.

519
00:29:38,400 --> 00:29:40,120
A lot happens and I don't know.

520
00:29:40,120 --> 00:29:41,760
I don't have all the explanations.

521
00:29:41,760 --> 00:29:45,200
But a lot happens now.

522
00:29:45,480 --> 00:29:49,200
Breeds can differ,
you know, normally by three.

523
00:29:49,200 --> 00:29:51,480
So, you know,
you have that young adulthood from

524
00:29:51,720 --> 00:29:55,560
I would say if I had to define it
just somewhat arbitrarily,

525
00:29:55,560 --> 00:29:58,920
16 weeks to 18 months is really your true
teenager.

526
00:29:59,480 --> 00:30:02,400
18 to 24 is sort of your young adulthood.

527
00:30:03,120 --> 00:30:05,600
And then 2 to 3 years old.

528
00:30:05,600 --> 00:30:08,440
By three years old,
they're really they've reached stable

529
00:30:08,720 --> 00:30:12,240
emotional maturity by three,
which is kind of interesting

530
00:30:12,240 --> 00:30:14,200
because it sort of tracks
with people, right?

531
00:30:14,200 --> 00:30:15,400
I mean, it's sort of like

532
00:30:16,440 --> 00:30:18,640
that that period from when you're 18

533
00:30:18,640 --> 00:30:22,440
to 24 versus 24 to 30 versus 30.

534
00:30:22,440 --> 00:30:22,960
And, you know,

535
00:30:22,960 --> 00:30:26,120
there's other obviously phases, but,
you know, if you kind of think

536
00:30:26,120 --> 00:30:27,440
of look back at yourself,

537
00:30:27,440 --> 00:30:31,720
if you're old enough to during those ages,
you kind of can put yourself

538
00:30:31,720 --> 00:30:34,960
in that period and say, oh, yeah,
this is kind of what this dog is.

539
00:30:35,600 --> 00:30:38,760
And it might give you a little insight
and wisdom into how to deal with it.

540
00:30:40,000 --> 00:30:44,880
Now breeds can differ a tremendous amount.

541
00:30:45,120 --> 00:30:47,760
Okay, with this stable emotional maturity.

542
00:30:47,760 --> 00:30:52,280
And I always raise the example
of Rottweilers because I just find it

543
00:30:52,280 --> 00:30:55,960
fascinating that it's really
like four years old for them.

544
00:30:56,120 --> 00:31:01,080
I mean, it's so much older and and I
notice a difference in males and females.

545
00:31:01,080 --> 00:31:05,520
I mean, I'd say my bitches by three,
I kind of know what they're going to be.

546
00:31:06,000 --> 00:31:08,680
My males really can have
significant changes

547
00:31:08,680 --> 00:31:11,680
up until four really pretty
significant changes. So

548
00:31:13,480 --> 00:31:15,240
I think though for me, the

549
00:31:15,240 --> 00:31:18,320
important thing is by three years old,

550
00:31:19,520 --> 00:31:21,360
I am less conservative.

551
00:31:21,360 --> 00:31:23,120
I'm always protective of my dogs.

552
00:31:23,120 --> 00:31:30,000
Okay, I'm always my dogs advocate,
but I am much less conservative

553
00:31:30,520 --> 00:31:33,400
about where I take my dogs,
like I will take my dogs

554
00:31:33,400 --> 00:31:37,000
for a walk on a trail where, yeah,
there might be an off leash dog,

555
00:31:37,000 --> 00:31:41,040
but by three years old,
I mean if my dog is good with other dogs

556
00:31:41,400 --> 00:31:44,680
having a bad experience, you know,
saving something really horrific,

557
00:31:45,160 --> 00:31:49,920
you know, just getting accosted by a dog
or it's not going to ruin them for life.

558
00:31:50,520 --> 00:31:53,840
But, you know, before that time,
you really kind of

559
00:31:53,880 --> 00:31:56,760
you're balancing
especially a dog under a year old.

560
00:31:57,400 --> 00:32:00,320
You're sort of balancing
like pretty permanent damage

561
00:32:00,320 --> 00:32:01,880
against that walk in the park.

562
00:32:01,880 --> 00:32:06,360
So, again,
I think it's a personal decision

563
00:32:06,360 --> 00:32:09,120
and I think some of
it is is breed specific. But

564
00:32:10,120 --> 00:32:13,080
I mean, if I had a dime for every story,
I heard about

565
00:32:13,080 --> 00:32:17,040
somebody who took their dog for a walk
and it got jumped or attacked

566
00:32:17,040 --> 00:32:20,240
or bitten or whatever, and now I can't
be around other dogs or other people.

567
00:32:20,240 --> 00:32:23,600
And they have severe behavioral problems
they have to deal with.

568
00:32:23,600 --> 00:32:26,000
You know, I'd be a millionaire, so

569
00:32:26,600 --> 00:32:29,880
I don't want to be Debbie Downer about it,
but, you know, be your dog's advocate.

570
00:32:29,880 --> 00:32:30,240
Okay.

571
00:32:30,240 --> 00:32:35,040
So that that's that's what I would say.

572
00:32:35,040 --> 00:32:38,880
So to sum it up, basically three things

573
00:32:38,880 --> 00:32:42,200
about adolescence into young adulthood.

574
00:32:42,560 --> 00:32:47,040
One is be ready for that teething,
you know, shift in reinforcers.

575
00:32:47,520 --> 00:32:48,640
It's not the end of the world.

576
00:32:48,640 --> 00:32:50,120
Your puppies not being rebellious.

577
00:32:50,120 --> 00:32:53,480
Your puppy is doing what that puppy
is supposed to be doing at that time,

578
00:32:53,480 --> 00:32:57,480
which is establishing its own identity
and no longer relying on you.

579
00:32:58,200 --> 00:33:00,000
It's your job to roll with it.

580
00:33:00,000 --> 00:33:02,960
Your little puppy
that was perfect at eight

581
00:33:02,960 --> 00:33:05,880
weeks is going to come back to you
if you just stick with it.

582
00:33:06,360 --> 00:33:08,040
So that's number one.

583
00:33:08,040 --> 00:33:13,520
Number two, prior, prioritize
emotional learning and experiences.

584
00:33:13,520 --> 00:33:16,440
Good experiences overrules

585
00:33:17,520 --> 00:33:20,920
up until
the point where the puppy's brain shifts

586
00:33:20,920 --> 00:33:25,800
from being predominantly geared
toward emotional learning to predominantly

587
00:33:25,800 --> 00:33:30,480
geared toward intellectual learning,
usually around five months old.

588
00:33:31,000 --> 00:33:33,600
I see my adult dogs change

589
00:33:33,600 --> 00:33:37,280
their attitude towards my puppies
around that time, and that's my cue.

590
00:33:37,280 --> 00:33:42,280
If you don't have an adult dog, 5 to 6
months old is a good a good rule of thumb.

591
00:33:43,080 --> 00:33:45,520
And third, prioritize safety.

592
00:33:45,520 --> 00:33:48,880
You know, definitely in the first year
of your puppy's life

593
00:33:49,400 --> 00:33:53,960
and potentially,
if you can for the first two years until

594
00:33:53,960 --> 00:33:57,920
and really
until they reach stable emotional maturity

595
00:33:58,320 --> 00:34:06,800
and it will pay off
in spades in the long run.

596
00:34:06,800 --> 00:34:10,880
If you enjoyed this podcast,
you'll love our puppy course

597
00:34:11,200 --> 00:34:13,720
at madcapuniversity.com.

598
00:34:14,280 --> 00:34:17,360
If you're a breeder,
check out our breeder course

599
00:34:17,520 --> 00:34:19,720
at madcapuniversity.com.

600
00:34:20,360 --> 00:34:21,960
Thanks for listening.

601
00:34:21,960 --> 00:34:30,720
Bye bye.