10/12/2025
🤯Hormones and Adolescence...Why This Stage Feels So Hard
Adolescence is a tough time for both owner and dog, and one of the biggest contributing factors is hormones.
For the boys, life often becomes all about smells. Appetite can drop, hu***ng can increase, focus can disappear, and their brains are very clearly working from the wrong end.
During adolescence, males can have up to six times more testosterone than they will as adults, so it is no surprise that they struggle to cope with the world at times.
For the girls, hormones fluctuate constantly. Pre season sensitivity, heightened emotions, and post season blues are all very real. Appetite, mood and tolerance can wax and wane, making them feel unpredictable and sometimes difficult to work with.
Hormones are natural and normal, and they bring health and mental benefits, even when it does not feel like it in the middle of adolescence.
If you are able to hold off on spaying or neutering to allow those benefits to do their job, many dogs truly gain from it.
Almost every female I have seen come through my classes has benefited from being allowed to have a couple of seasons, and testosterone can also support males physically and mentally.
Yes, adolescence can be challenging, but do not jump too quickly to removing hormones. They are not the sole cause of adolescent behaviour, even if they complicate life for a while. With patience, flexibility and understanding, this phase does pass, and life becomes much easier again.
