We Have A Teenager

As with all things, time stops for no one. Time with Zeus growing up is flying by and he is now entering the lovely (not!) doggy teenage years. As of January 14th he turned 6 months old and we are really starting to notice just how much things are changing with him. First of all, as always, he is still growing and getting bigger. We went into the vet for a weigh in and our little chunker is 60 lbs!

Bottom right is when we first got him, bottom left is November, top is few weeks ago

According to Dr. Holmes he looks great and all is on track with his growth. We have also booked in for his neuter for March 1st. This is a choice we did not make lightly. I spoke to many other OEB (Olde English Bulldogge) owners and two different vets about whether or not we are making the right choice. Many dog owners, regardless of the breed, think that you should wait at least a year before neutering a dog so that they can grow properly. Some research suggests it helps prevent certain diseases and temperament issues. However, there is a lot of research that also suggests neutering a dog before a year helps with temperament issues right away and diseases later in life. There is so much research on the internet you can go crazy trying to make sense of it all, but in the end I feel that you have to do what is best at the time for your dog and your family. After speaking with professionals on the subject we decided that it is best not to wait the full year to neuter Zeus because he has started to show us some signs of aggression towards other male dogs in his class. This is the second thing we have noticed as Zeus reached his teenage years. That pesky testosterone has peeked and is making him very much a male bulldog (so much more stubborn). Our trainer noticed it as well, not only in Zeus, but a lot of the males in the class. She did not notice the same changes at all in the females, in fact, all the males had no issues with any of the females, just with each other and very randomly. For me, at first, this was a big hit on my emotions. I was looking for a social dog, one I could take any where and do anything with. Zeus had been so wonderful up until the last 3 lessons when all of a sudden, out of the blue, he went at another male. The first time it happened I was all over the place with my emotions: shocked, devastated, heart broken, worried, stressed. You see, after losing my Titan who was so wonderful with everyone and everything, I was desperately trying to find that easy going dog again, and so far Zeus was right on par with everything on that checklist. He wasn't my Titan, but he was close. So when Zeus went at another dog it brought me back to thinking I would have to use the same training I got for my Ares, who has people and dog fear aggression. We have to be very careful as Ares' past abuse at the hands of humans has lead him to act out towards other dogs and people and I am unable to take him with me to the same places I did with Titan. So to think I would have another dog I could not take places and would have to be on guard with all the time really threw me off. I spoke with the trainer and she felt very confident it had to do with Zeus' age and helped me see I was not the only person in the class dealing with this issue. She said that at 6 months males get another serge of testosterone and that is most likely what was going on.

"According to a study by Pathirana IN et al 2012, the levels of testosterone in dogs starts to rise in dogs just prior to puberty, around the ages of 4 to 6 months old, and then reaches a surge once the dog reaches puberty, generally when the dog is an adolescent between 6 and 12 months." - https://www.dailydogdiscoveries.com/effects-of-testosterone-on-dog-behavior/

As Zeus is still wonderful with all people, big and small, has no issues at all with us or Ares, and he was still responding well to his training our trainer felt we were on the right track with him and helped talk me through everything I was feeling about the situation. In the end I realized I don't need to jump to conclusions about how his future will be just yet. Once we get Zeus neutered we will see how his temperament goes and after that figure out what training will be needed at that time.

This is one of the males in the class he had issue with, but not at this moment. It's very random.

On that note, Zeus has now completed his second round of lessons and is an Intermediate class graduate! For his exam he had to do a sit-stay while I walked a circle around him, a down-stay while I walked a circle around him, and a leave it for ten seconds after I dropped a treat in front of him from a distance. Those he aced no problem! Finally, he had to walk up and down an isle at a heel and this was the hardest part of the exam. You see, Zeus has been getting better with his walking skills, but slowly. So not having the loose leash walking down 100% yet means the "Heel" command was hard for him to grasp and taking a bit longer for us to master. However, as Zeus has always done, he surprised me by heeling very nicely for his exam and he passed with flying colours! I have to say that Zeus is getting much better with walking lately. He still does not want to get ready to go, and looks so sad when you put the leash on him, but once we get going he seems to enjoy himself. There is much less pulling with the new harness and he is picking up on commands we use while out and about such as "this way" when he goes on the wrong side of a tree or pole, "wait" when we are waiting to cross a busy road, "leave it" when he starts sniffing something he shouldn't, and continuing all the other fun commands we have learned in class. So overall our loose leash walking has gotten much better. He is even learning to walk by people a little better and tries not to pull as much towards them for attention.

Compare of his puppy class grad vs. intermediate class grad

The next step in training if we wanted to carry on is called Advance Class. This is where you learn to do a heel command but with no leash and with more distractions. Mike just looked at me when the trainer told us this and said "good luck" and chuckled. But I have confidence that in time Zeus would get it. It also includes training for manners when out and about which I feel Zeus would benefit from if my goal is to take him with me everywhere. I am unsure if we can participate in the classes yet because of my work schedule, but the class would only be another $120 which I find very good for what we are getting out of the classes. Here is the list of classes that are offered:

https://services.petsmart.ca/training

The third thing we are noticing about this teenager stage is the independent thinking that is developing now. When we give commands, Zeus thinks about it a bit more as if to say "how much do you really want me to do this". Of course we don't let him get away with that, we make sure he follows through with all commands, and thankfully he doesn't do this often. But when we give the command "Come" some times he ignores it to keep barking at something or play with the toy he has, so the old saying comes to mind "practice makes perfect". A thought I had is to do my own training with Ares, Kelly, and her dogs to keep everyone refreshed and even teach some new tricks. There is no classes offered at PetSmart for older dogs to do this, so why not start my own thing and see where it goes. Plus an hour worth of training will be great for everyone, lots of mental stimulation which is sometimes better then just physical stimulation for tiring out the dogs.

Speaking of mental stimulation I have discovered some wonderful toys for Zeus who happens to be a powerful chewing breed. Lately we have had some very cold weather and as Zeus already does not like going outside for walks and he is a short fur breed we have had to find other ways to keep him busy. One of the ways to do this was take him to the pet store and walk him around there and let him meet people. I also picked up a toy called Everlasting Treat Ball (which also had a bulldog on it that may have helped me pick it out) by a company called Starmark. What the toy does is hold two disc treats that are tough enough to hold up to chewing on either side and is very hard to get out of the virtually indestructible rubber. Zeus went crazy for this toy and he spent hours and hours playing with it and tired himself out. He loved it so much I went and got another toy by the same company called the Treat Dispensing Chewball. Basically you fill it with what ever treat you want or kibble and let your dog go crazy trying to get it out. Again Zeus went nuts for this toy and played with it for hours. And he has not destroyed either after a week of intense playing and chewing. I can't recommend them enough!

Doesn't he look just like the one on the package?

Another thing we noticed is that Zeus has started to "protect" the yard and house more. Recently he has started to bark when people walk by the back yard or if he hears noises from the front yard. I don't mind this as I want protection while I am home with the boys, but we will have to work on listening to mom when I say enough. I have been keeping an eye on when people come over, he does bark at first but once the person is inside he is nothing but loving, which is great. Just enough to alert me that someone is here but settles down if I say the person is okay.

All and all we are enjoying learning about this breed as Zeus grows and he is teaching us a lot too. Every dog so far has taught us something new to carry on to the next one so I can only imagine what Zeus will have in store for us next as we really get into the teenage stage. I will leave you with some more cute photos and videos of Zeus as he continues to grow and enjoy life.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iL6URwuoUmo - training

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txJzYq5BkBE - playing with Ares

He got a new sweater as he got too big for his jacket and looked so gangsta with Ares

Such a happy dog

Looking up to his older brother

Learning how to be a plumber with grandpa

Giving mom shit because I took Ares to the vet and Ares wasn't happy

Eating together so nicely

Everyone loves to bug dad

Buds

Smile!