He's absolutely uncontrollable!

This adolescence is really hitting us hard! This week so far Woody has been a total punk. He doesn't listen to anything we tell him to do, he jumps up at everything, when you say no after about the 3rd time he tries to bite (not hard as he has a soft mouth, but still!) and he's walking around as if to say "**** you, I can do what I like". He's even barking at night in his crate when he first goes in it.

He's turning into a Chav *wail*.

What can I do to get through this? It really is as if everything we have worked hard to teach him has gone out of the window. Should I keep telling him ''no'' as this just makes him frustrated and snappy or should I just ignore him? Shall I keep training him? It's hard to keep his focus and attention at the moment.

Help!!

Welcome to the terrible teens

Murphy still behaves like this from time to time... last night I told him off and he stood in front of me, hackles up, barking at me like I was an intruder. He tried to grab my hand in a police-dog style, but I ended up smacking him round the chops instead

I find the best way to deal with it is:

• Ignore as much as you can - even telling him off is rewarding as it is attention
• Take his training 'back to basics' - if he is not compying with simple requests, don't let him get away with it
• Make sure he doesn't get away with stuff because you are so tired/worn out
• If need be, put him on a house line, then you can reel him in when needed
• Use a higher value treat when training, to focus his attention. Chicken, though expensive, works wonders for Murphy when he is being a bad boy
• Don't panic too much, he is still lovely little Woodchip. Max has calmed down now, and he is three!!

He can be someone else's little Woodchip today, free to a good home!!n ;o)

Thanks for the advice. I've noted it all down. It's so hard not to shout and I dragged him into the kitchen earlier for time out and felt so bloody guilty!! I gave him a frozen kong as a treat and to try to mental stimulate him away from chewing wires (he's chewed my husbands phone charger) and he kept jumping on the sofa with it. He knows not to do that and never normally tries, but today he felt like he wanted to. Little ****!

ETA: the only thing getting me through this is knowing that we've done it before so we can do it again, it's just harder the second time round!!

Max has calmed down and he is 3?!!!!! HELP!!! I also have a terrible teen!! Coco is 8 and a half months, a boxer darling!! but a little devil, tries it on with me but I ignore her, and she hates that, she also hates it when I get cross, which helps a weeeeny bit!! I agree, chicken is a great reward for good behavior, you must be firm Pidge, any other advise you get I shall be reading too!!

Hehehe, Boxer's generally don't get very calm anyway! The boys' Uncle Norman is 9, and still gets giddy and silly...

Max is only calm when he wants to be! Over the weekend, OH was outside doing some carpentry for me, and the boys kept stealing his tools, offcuts of wood etc. I found Max halfway down the garden eating some sandpaper

OH was getting really mad with them, so I ended up taking them on a looonng walk so he could get his stuf finished.

I'll try and post some pics of them being mental in the garden so you can see what I mean!

I wonder if it's twice as hard when you have a breed that is already crazy!! ;o)

Sometimes it seems as if he just screams through the house with frustration (not literally, just trying to create a visual). He's not too bad on walks, unless he picks up a stick, God that drives me mad. I do not want him to have it and now he's in this ''stage'' he WILL not give it up!

I'll ignore as much as possible but fear for his safety and my sanity.

God help me through this ;o)

Look forward to seeing the photos!! I have a digger, plant destroyer, and a general lunatic, cant rake or sweep, she grabs either, cutting the edges is a nighmare, how her face is still intact?!! but we adore her, and its so easy to forgive when you get a big sloppy kiss!!

Pidge, I think you have to go back to the basic commands again, and rewards are different to before, Sit, Stay, Drop, and we use come, when we call Coco, Woody is trying it on with you, as all teens do, try to stay calm, easy said I well know!!

Murphy is a thief, digger, destroyer and a thug...

Max is also a thief, but more subtle than Murphy, and he is a digger, but he is also a chicken-bully and a Murphy-bully as well

I can't use a wheelbarrow or trolley in the garden without one of them trying to bite the wheels; yet they are fine with prams, bikes etc?

I think Springers, Boxers and other slightly mental breeds are quite a handful, as you are never sure whether it's bad behaviour, or a normal breed-trait!!

Have you thought about 'swap' if he has something you don't want him to have?

You need something REALLY high-value/of interest to swap with, but it can be done!