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Adolescence 6–24 months

Your dog got harder after the move or the new baby, and the routine is the first thing to rebuild

A new house or a new baby takes away everything your dog could predict, and predictability is what you can hand back this week.

The boxes went, or the baby came home, and your dog stopped being the dog you had a month ago. More barking, less settling, and cues that worked in the old kitchen.

This is one of the more explainable rough patches in adolescence. Almost everything your dog used to predict changed at once.

Safety note

Never leave your dog and a baby or small child together, not for a moment, however gentle your dog has always been. Use a gate or a closed door instead of supervision alone.

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Why a move or a new arrival lands this hard

A move removes every familiar smell, sound and sleeping spot on the same day. Your dog is being asked to relearn the whole map while adolescence is already making things harder.

A new baby changes the household's timing rather than its address. Walks move, evenings get louder or quieter, and the attention your dog could count on now arrives at unpredictable times.

Behaviour change is built from management plus reinforcement, and that does not change because the house is upside down. Reward-based methods are what is recommended for training and behaviour change.

Give the day back its shape

  1. Pick 3 anchor points and hold them at the same times for 2 weeks: the morning walk, the evening meal, and a settle after it.

  2. Rebuild the sleeping spot before anything else. Same bed, same blanket, in a quiet corner away from the front door.

  3. Drop your training criteria back to where your dog can succeed. In a new house, ask for the version you would have asked for at 6 months old.

  4. Walk the new streets on a long leash with no agenda for the first week, so sniffing does the settling.

Around a new baby, manage before you train

  1. Set the gate up now, so your dog can be near you without being next to the baby.

  2. Hand out a chew in that spot during feeds and naps, so the baby's routine starts predicting good things.

  3. Pay your dog attention before they ask, not after they bark. 10 seconds, 6 times a day, beats 1 guilty hour.

  4. Keep 1 short walk that belongs to your dog alone, even if it is only 10 minutes.

What is worth a veterinary call

Sudden behaviour change warrants a veterinary examination, and a stressful month at home does not rule pain out. Pain frequently presents as a change in behaviour rather than as obvious lameness.

Safety note

Get help now if there is growling, snapping or any bite, at any person. Get help now if your dog growls at, stiffens near, or moves away from your child. Speak to your veterinarian first, then a qualified behaviour professional.

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Today's version, in one line: rebuild the sleeping spot tonight, and put 3 anchor points in tomorrow.

Where this comes from

  • Behaviour change is built with management plus reinforcement, and sudden behaviour change warrants a veterinary examination.

    American Animal Hospital Association (2015). AAHA Canine and Feline Behavior Management Guidelines.

    aaha.org

  • Pain frequently presents as a change in behaviour rather than as obvious lameness.

    American Animal Hospital Association (2022). AAHA Pain Management Guidelines for Dogs and Cats.

    aaha.org

  • Reward-based methods are recommended for training and behaviour change; aversive methods carry welfare and behavioural risk.

    American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior (2021). Position Statement on Humane Dog Training.

    avsab.org

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