I recently paid a visit to a good friend of mine and her 6 month old Pugalier ‘Queeny’.  My friend has been quite ill over the last few years and a lot of time and energy was spent getting better. 

Now thankfully she is doing great and with renewed energy and a zest for life, she decided to welcome tiny ‘Queeny’ into her home.  The first few months have been fun-filled and a welcome distraction for my friend.  ‘Queeny’ is great company and gives my friend the motivation to get out of the house and back into exercise on a daily basis, with frequent visits to the park and other dog friendly zones.

So the other night when I arrived at my friend’s house, I was surprised and concerned to see her tired, stressed and just plain worn out.  It seems ‘Queeny’ is no longer the fluffy little puppy that makes you giggle and want to cuddle…. She is now ‘Queeny’ the teenager who is Queen of the Castle – demanding constant attention, going crazy when anyone comes to the door and getting naughtier by the minute.

When puppies reach the 6 month stage they are now officially ‘teenagers’ in the animal kingdom, and as with humans, this can be the most challenging period in the life cycle of your beloved dog.

On previous occasions I had noticed that my friend was allowing ‘Queeny’ up onto the couch and other chairs, and had recently mentioned that ‘Queeny’ would often accompany her when she took a nap – in other words would lie in bed beside her.

In the wolf and wild dog kingdom the Top Dog is ‘High and Mighty’.  He will reinforce his position of authority and dominance over others by displaying body language which accentuates its height and indeed putting himself in an elevated position (such as on a ledge) to gain extra height.  Think of the movie ‘The Lion King’ where Mufasa the regal, commanding and majestic great King surveyed his kingdom and underlings from a height.

In my friend’s case, ‘Queeny’ got used to be being on a par with her owner by being allowed to share the elevated positions of the couch and bed with my friend.  So in ‘Queeny’s’ mind, she is either equal to or above in the pecking order in her pack.  In time if this is not nipped in the bud, she’ll assume the position of ‘Top Dog’ and her bad behaviour will continue to intensify which is not good news for my friend.

I offered to help my friend out with correcting this ‘incorrect pecking order’ and she gladly accepted my offer.  I sat on the couch and predictably ‘Queeny’ immediately jumped up to share my elevated position.  I immediately stood up and shooed her off the couch, placing her gently but firmly on the floor.  I then sat back down and immediately ‘Queeny’ jumped up to join me once more. 

The key to training dogs is consistency and patience, so I repeatedly placed ‘Queeny’ on the floor with a sharp ‘Ah-AAh’ warning another 17 times, before she then accepted her position and curled up in a comfy position on the rug and fell asleep.  For the next two hours, myself and my friend enjoyed an un-interrupted, enjoyable chat and never once did ‘Queeny’ attempt to jump up on the couch again.

My much relieved friend has vowed not to allow ‘Queeny’ up on to the couch and chairs in future, and although she will miss the company, she will not be allowed to sleep in the ‘Top Dog’s’ bed again.

So the moral of the story is “Dogs need consistency”.

If today you allow your dog on to your furniture but tomorrow, for example due to visitors arriving you decide not to allow the dog up – this ‘inconsistency’ is confusing and can lead to the dog being aggressive.  Inconsistencies have got to stop.  Be consistent, be the Top Dog- but not aggressive, be kind - but DON’T spoil.