Aiko the teenager

Hello all!

Sorry for not posting in a while, Aiko has now officially hit her teenager stage (dun dun duh!). She's going through her first heat cycle now, and she has become way more snappy, and vocal.

She is having a real problem with me getting anywhere near her hindquarters, and has been snapping and growling at me. I've been doing my best to correct the behavior, and give her lots of super high value treats when she is nice, but does anyone have any advice on how to deal with an intact Hokkaido?

She is still sweet about half of the time I would say, and she is still the little love who wants all the attention and loves playing with other puppies in the park. Even after snapping and biting episodes she will eventually calm down and seeks me out for cuddles. This is also the first dog I've ever kept intact. Thank you all for your help!

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Comments

  • edited August 2018
    We have gone through 3 heat cycles with Miko and the first one we tried to put the doggie diaper on her which did not last long as she was not too pleased. I will say this, and I do not know how this applies to other Hokkaidos, but she takes pretty good care of herself when she is in heat. A lot better than I was expecting.

    As far as getting near her hindquarters, mine is pretty protective of her back legs and everything else back there which is probably pretty much a natural instinct to any animal regardless if they are in heat or not. Miko still has her bitey/snappy moments, but I would not be giving her treats as a reward for being nice. I would like to think that Miko's sweet personality is attributed to her loving home environment and her inclusion into the family, but we fully aware that there is still some "feral" within her that will probably never go away.

    So at this point, I would use the treat as a distraction for whatever you need to do and focus the treat reward on behaviors that are not a defensive instinct. Might I recommend "Cheese Whiz" if you want a really good distraction.
  • @swwahokkaido thank you!!! these are great ideas, I will keep this in mind.
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