Are You Suffering from Puppy Amnesia?

Originally posted 01/01/2020

"Our old dog NEVER acted like this!"

I wish I had a nickel for every time I heard that sentence from a new puppy owner.

Time has a funny way of changing our memories, it seems.  Most of us fondly remember our adult dogs' puppy days as full of puppy breath, puppy snuggles and fun.

Oh sure, there were the occasional potty accidents, and chewed shoes.  But faithful old Fido never was as much of a handful as our new puppy!

Or was he?

Whether Fido is still with us, or he's crossed over the rainbow bridge to the land of endless dog bones and tennis balls, we remember his puppy days through rose colored glasses.

What is puppy amnesia?  It's what happens when we get a new pup, and find ourselves surprised at the amount of mischief the new dog gets into, and how much work raising this new little canine is!

It's completely normal for dog owners to have 'puppy amnesia' about raising their last dog - especially if it's been a long time since they've raised a young pup.

At it's worst, puppy amnesia includes comparing our new dog to our old dog - forgetting all the trials and tribulations that came along with raising our old dog into the wonderful companion we cherish so much.

As a professional dog trainer going on 34 years in the business, I have had the bittersweet privilege of having clients return to train their new dog with me, after the first dog I trained with them has passed away.

It's all too normal for me to hear,

"This new puppy is so much work!"
"He's always into something!"
"Our old dog was so much easier to train."

I have to smile when I hear these laments.  Because I was often right there for the training and raising of the older dog.  And, because I'm a bit of an email pack rat, I sometimes even have old email exchanges about the old dog - full of many of the same puppy raising challenges and questions and complaints.

So, the next time you catch yourself pining for the puppy days of your old dog, keep in mind that no dog is perfect...and puppies are almost never 'easy'.  

We're just lucky that Mother Nature paints our memories rose & gold when it comes to easily moving on after the stress of puppy raising is past.

But, those precious moments of puppyhood are all too fleeting - so enjoy your pup while he or she is young and full of mischief; because the precious moments with our dogs pass by in a flash, and all too soon we will wonder where the time has gone when we're looking at the graying muzzle and clouding eyes of our beloved senior dog.

Want to learn more about how to have a better relationship with your dog?  Call us today and schedule a training session!

Jennifer Hime is the Owner & Dog Training Director at Front Range K9 Academy in Wheat Ridge, CO.  She can be reached at:  k9counselor.com