Socialisation in adolescent dogs can be a tricky period for new owners of older puppies where you missed their social puppy stages or adolescent dogs who may have had an alternative start in life. This can mainly be applied to recently adopted rescue dogs but useful to know for owners of all dogs going through adolescence. Socialisation is usually a term used for puppies. The typical period for socialising puppies is between 4 and 16 weeks. This is called ‘the fear period’ and when all dogs decipher behaviours around new and different things or situations. It is when they build positive associations and confidences. When dogs miss out on appropriate socialisation during this fear period, they can develop undesirable behaviours later on in life. Adolescent socialisation happens after the puppy fear period and is all about exposing dogs to new situations or things in a safe way.
Adolescence can be tricky as dogs tend to develop fears and phobias they may never have had before and even take steps back on training you’ve already covered. Here is how you help your dog through this tricky period;
You can help your dog through this difficult period by being their safety advocate for example if they are fearful of people, don’t let strangers pet them while out and about.
▪︎ increase sniffy time on walks for decompression
▪︎ allow for more canine enrichment so they learn impulse control and learn they can be in charge of their own choices and outcomes
▪︎ Keep them motivated when you need their focus, by using high value rewards and exciting things like flirt poles and tug toys
▪︎ train, train, train; training is how you maintain a bond with your dog and keep communication open between you both, training teaches your dog you are their safe place with whom to explore the world and direction comes from you! Even just five minutes learning a new command or spending time practicing commands they know like recall every day is ideal for an Adolescent dog.
