Teen Wolf: A Survival Guide for Puppy Puberty

Puppy Puberty 101
Puppies enter puberty around 6-10 months of age and during this time, they may uncharacteristically test boundaries, become more independent, more fearful, more energetic, or all the above! Generally, the first couple of months are the most challenging, but with time and patience, puppies mature into lovely adult dogs. Pups who have not been altered may have additional hormonal behaviors to watch out for, but even pups who have been altered early will go through adolescence.

Why It’s Important
Being prepared for adolescence helps keep pups out of trouble. As puppies navigate this developmental stage, remember that this is normal! Be kind to yourself and patient and consistent with the puppy. Adolescence is temporary – use your management tools to set you and the puppy up for success!

Teen Pup Management Toolbox
Managing a teen pup may look a little different than managing a youngster. It’s important to continue socializing pups in new places so they continue to develop in confidence and adaptability. However, if a pup shows a drop in confidence, it’s important to use desensitization and counterconditioning outlined in Explore Together! Socialization to Build Confidence to help them through it.

To encourage a pup to maintain focus around distractions, you may find that increasing the frequency of food reward and using extra tasty snacks (high value food rewards) helps an adolescent pup ignore temptations in the environment. Use the Rules of Three to monitor their progress with distractions and fearful behavior.

Additionally, you may need to go back to basics at home. If they start to show interest in household items, countertops, or have more trouble settling than they did as a younger pup, reduce freedom and increase supervision at home. Use baby gates, tethers, crates, and drag lines to prevent unwanted behaviors from becoming habits. Teenage puppies may also need more exercise than they did as younger pups! Short training sessions are also a great outlet for some extra mental stimulation.

Raising Intact Puppies
When raising an intact dog you may notice additional adolescent behaviors as they reach puberty:

• More distracted by odors (especially pee-mail!)
• Increased dog distraction
• Attempts to mark on walks or in the home
• Investigative and hormonal behavior with other dogs

Be prepared to supervise dog-dog play more closely, and proactively utilize your management tools to proactively engage the puppy’s attention when walking in areas with a lot of dogs or dog smells – especially our young studs around popular bushes or fire hydrants! You may also find it helpful to relieve pups in a completely flat area if the pup is starting to explore the possibility of lifting a leg to mark on vertical surfaces.

She’s All That: Caring for Intact Female Dogs
Before coming in season for the first time, females will show anatomical changes and increased licking to their nether regions. As she enters her season, she’ll develop a vulvular discharge that will last 3-4 weeks. During this time, she may become more affectionate with you and other family members and be less active.

Females in season need to be kept separate from intact male dogs. Depending on where you live, she might need to stay home more often instead of joining you on busy errands and outings in places you might run into intact dogs. But that doesn’t mean she has to be bored! You can offer more physical enrichment like playing recall and retrieving games in the yard and plenty of mental enrichment like offering snuffle mats, lick mats, or food puzzles if she’s spending more time at home. For more information on keeping intact females in season, be sure to review Females in Season.