SURVIVING CANINE ADOLESCENCE

As I have no doubt mentioned in previous articles, the pounds, shelters and rescues are full of dogs between the ages of 5 months to about 3 years. They are surrendered by their families for a number of reasons. Don’t have time, too rough with the kids, too destructive, neighbours complaining about the noise, and the list goes on. Read between the lines and what you will see is “adolescence.” These poor dogs are being abandoned (too harsh? Yeah nope.) just because they are doing what is normal. Developing!

So why is this happening? Lets have a look at the neurobiology of adolescence. In an adolescent dog, the connectivity between the frontal cortex (the decision making part) and the amygdala (the emotional part) decreases. The brain is busy creating new pathways. Add to that, changing sex hormones and you have a pup that is struggling to process information it is receiving from its environment including other dogs, traffic, noises, pretty much anything that is around them. We can expect to see increased risk taking and or sensitivity to fear. Basically, what was once no big deal for them suddenly becomes scary and what was easy becomes stressful!

All this while trying to learn and understand “human” speak. No wonder they can often seem to “forget” commands/routines that they were doing well just a short time ago!

Your pup’s inner world can become intense, even chaotic. This is NORMAL! Human kids go through it too. Its just that human kids have a lot more time to become adult. Dogs do it in a few very short years. You could look at it as this development is more “concentrated” in the canine world. Add to all this the owner’s impatience and frustration which only adds to the pup’s inner turmoil, and you have what appears to be an out of control dog. Now given that some of the larger breeds can at this stage be weighing anything from 20 to 40 kg, the emotional pot for human and dog alike is pretty much boiling over.

So, what can you do to help your pup develop and retain your sanity?

Stay calm. Give your dog the time and space to observe what’s going on around them at a distance when on lead. Continue training your various skills. Break them down into smaller steps if necessary. Don’t fall into the trap of repeating yourself when giving commands. Be gentle but firm. Did I mention say calm?

Give them a safe quiet place to sleep after exercise so that they can consolidate memories effectively. Here is where crate training is an absolute bonus! It is also handy when your pup goes over his excitement threshold which again is very normal. Just calmly and gently pop him in his crate to calm.

Make sure you give them “sniff” walks at least once twice a week. Go to a place that’s interesting to your dog like a park, bush walk etc and let them just do what they do. The only rule I place on my youngster is that he’s not allowed to pull. Apart from that, if he wants to sniff a single blade of grass for 5 minutes then that’s what he can do. I guide the general direction I want us to go but he’s allowed to check out any tree, shrub whatever he wants for as long as he wants. I start these sessions with the command “have a look” this is his signal to start decompressing. That is exactly what happens. When the pressure is taken off them and they can go at their own pace, they decompress. Studies have shown that sniffing is a workout all on its own. You will be surprised just how much calmer your pup is after a nice long sniff session.

By knowing what is happening to our pups and what they are experiencing, we gain greater compassion and understanding. Approaching adolescence with patience creates a predictable and gentle environment for our pups to grow into the best version of themselves.

Most importantly, enjoy and smile at your pups antics. They grow up very fast!

Cheers for now.

QUIZ answers

1a – From the Latin Sept meaning seven

2a – Sahara Desert

3b – 9

4a – Yellow, blue and red

5d – Margaret Court

Scoring.

6b – Numismatist

7a – Mars

8b – Frederick Banting

9b – Short Fine Cover

10c – Stephenie Meyer

- Marie

0–2. Struggle Street. First of all, congratulations on doing this quiz. That’s about it really. There’s not much else I can add. If you had picked answer (a) each time you would have least got four correct.

3-5. Bland Street. Well done! You are the person that everybody else measures themselves against. You are the rock in the ocean of knowledge. No, I don’t know what it means either but it sounds good.

6-7. Above Average (sort of). Well done on another abnormal performance. According to the Oxford dictionary, you are exceptional, irregular and deviating from type. Ask your friends if that sounds like you.

8-9. Smarty Pants. You’re among the best of the best although, unfortunately, you’re not the very best. You shouldn’t have changed your mind on that wrong answer. Always trust your initial instinct.

10. Genius. Words can’t express my admiration for your achievement. That’s it, there’s nothing more to say.

Murchison Primary School

We’ve had so much going on at Murchison Primary lately, lucky we have holidays coming up soon!

While it wasn’t ideal conditions for our House Athletics Sports, students did not let muddy conditions slow them down. We love that we once again got to use the Murchison Recreation Reserve for this event. Students had to wait a few days to find out who had won. Congratulations to Goulburn on their narrow win and to the age group champions on their success at the House Sports. Thanks to all who attended the athletics and our assembly to support our students. A group of students from the senior area got the wonderful opportunity to attend the Picasso exhibition in Melbourne at the NGV. Everyone had a great time and enjoyed the experience of seeing such masterpieces in real life. Students also had the opportunity to create their own portrait prints. Thanks to Karen Vraca for organising this experience for our students.

Our Book Week Parade and celebrations were again a resounding success. We headed to the park to show off our costumes and share some stories read to us by Mrs Goodwin and our Grade 6’s. Princesses, Cowboys, Witches – you name it, I think we saw it! Our Staff also took part, I am glad the Green Sheep was found!

Our wonderful Chappy once again led us in our Father’s Day celebration. The sun was shining and Chappy had the BBQ fired up for a wonderful morning with dads, grandfathers and families. It was a great opportunity to celebrate the importance of these great role models in students’ lives. Students also got the chance to make some heartfelt and creative gifts for their fathers.

Thanks to the students and their parents for enduring the chilly conditions at the Murch East Upgrade Celebrations. Once again, our talented students impressed the crowd. Thanks to Ms Thorne who travelled back from an excursion in Melbourne to lead the band.

We are excited to offer families in the area a new service. Murchison Primary is running Vacation Care during the September Holidays. It will be running Monday to Friday, 7:45am-6pm for all Primary School aged children. Cost $80 per day, CCS rebates available to those who qualify. Please contact to the school on 58262391 for further information and to make bookings.

Tatura Cubby News

This month at the Cubby we have been focusing on Healthy Eating and have made an information board in the entrance area with example of sugar content in common foods. Parents have commented how surprising the sugar content of some food are.

The children have been practicing drawing, tracing, and writing with chalk. Who would have thought learning your ABCs could be so much fun?

Everyone had a blast making handprint clay bowls and handprint posters for Father’s Day and from the feedback we received, the fathers did too.

With the break in the weather, the children flocked to the sandpit. A café was quickly setup and yummy food was being severed to everyone. It just fantastic to watch their imagination go wild.

If you are interested in childcare for term 4, don’t hesitate to contact the Tatura Community House if you would like to have a look around and get to know our childcare staff. Please note: on some days, we might only be able to offer a spot on our waiting list but there are a few spots left on Thursdays so get in quick and book your place.

The Cubby Occasional Care is open Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, 9am2pm in the orange building on Kerferd Street. The Cubby is a Child Care Subsidy provider, making it an affordable choice for families. Ph 5824 1315.

- Tom Boocock, Manager

Tatura Mens Shed

The Tatura Men’s Shed is open on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 9am. Don’t forget the Tuesday lunches. Drop in for a chat and a cuppa on these days.