Best Way to Tire out a Puppy? Also, Suggestions on Games/Puzzles? (goldendoodle, labradoodle)
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So, it's Day 6 of having Charlie (goldendoodle) and his shyness has gone away and he is in full force of being a total rambunctious little thing. I'm trying to come up with ways to tire him out and also get in his daily exercise. He is still learning to walk around the community, as he is a little timid with all the smells and noises. I also can't take him off the leash yet to throw any toys around outside. So I'm trying to think of ideas of what I can do indoors.
For a puppy who is 4 months old, what is the proper amount of exercise he should be getting a day? I don't want to overkill it.
I will be taking him to a big dog park this weekend and a local water park is closing it off to people and allowing it to be used for dogs on Sunday. So he will be having a busy weekend coming up. I just need ideas on how to keep him entertained during the week, especially when the time comes to go back to work.
So, it's Day 6 of having Charlie (goldendoodle) and his shyness has gone away and he is in full force of being a total rambunctious little thing. I'm trying to come up with ways to tire him out and also get in his daily exercise. He is still learning to walk around the community, as he is a little timid with all the smells and noises. I also can't take him off the leash yet to throw any toys around outside. So I'm trying to think of ideas of what I can do indoors.
For a puppy who is 4 months old, what is the proper amount of exercise he should be getting a day? I don't want to overkill it.
I will be taking him to a big dog park this weekend and a local water park is closing it off to people and allowing it to be used for dogs on Sunday. So he will be having a busy weekend coming up. I just need ideas on how to keep him entertained during the week, especially when the time comes to go back to work.
I would be worried about using a dog park to socialize or tire him out at that young age. One mean dog that snaps at him or tries to attack him and he could be ruined socially for life. If you do go make sure he is up to date on all of his shots as dog parks are cesspools of doggy disease
Does he have a fenced in backyard he can play in? Perhaps a friend of yours has a dog you can bring over to introduce and play with the pup.
I would be worried about using a dog park to socialize or tire him out at that young age. One mean dog that snaps at him or tries to attack him and he could be ruined socially for life. If you do go make sure he is up to date on all of his shots as dog parks are cesspools of doggy disease
Does he have a fenced in backyard he can play in? Perhaps a friend of yours has a dog you can bring over to introduce and play with the pup.
Well, I was going to go with a friend, who has a pup around the same age. They get along pretty well. The park is pretty big and I believe has an area for smaller dogs. He has gotten all his shots, including kennel and rabies. Believe me, I'm not going to let any big dogs come up to him If I go and it doesn't look nice, I will take him home. But I always hear it is one of the best parks in the area.
But no, there's no fenced-in areas by us unfortunately...
We are moving in January where we will have more room for him, but of course, we won't have this issue of him with the leash and being a pup.
How big is your yard? You could do boundary training with him now. That is always valuable. It's the same kind of training you would do for an underground fence, but without the fence, and it is good for you to do together with your dog for bonding and for obedience. Boundary training with a clicker (and treats!) is a good walk, but it's also good mental exercise that can tire out a puppy. Just make sure to do short sessions, as puppies have little attention spans. Here is a good link about it from the Karen Pryor site, which is very good, IMO:
Clicker training for obedience and tricks can also tire out a pup, as can food puzzle toys and chew toys. He doesn't really have to be running around to be getting exercised. Sometimes the brain games are the most exhausting of all. Enjoy your pup!!
I have the same type of dog and he was a really energetic puppy once he hit 4-5 months old. I would suggest you try and set a goal of various commands to learn. Mental stimulation wears them out alot quicker than physical.
I also did alot of making him stay and then release for his treats. Also, making him find treats with his nose are good games to wear him out.
No there's nothing you can do indoors for that. Except a treadmill.
Several walks per day and at least one good run. The distance and length of time, you'll have to ask his vet or the breeder or someone, I really don't know. Even though I walked a ton of Doodles 5 month old and up puppies I was only hired for a half hour and they did NOT tire out in the 20 minutes of solid walking haha. But I never "ran/walked them hard" because of being puppies. We'd walk straight about 10 minutes then they'd get distracted, take a sniffing break or something then walk some more. Now chasing toys in the house or stealing slipper? Oh about 3 hours worth lolol. j/k. Actually they were FAIRLY calm after a 20 minute walk but I can't say for how long because I didn't come back for 24 hours.
The MOST IMPORTANT time is in the morning so when you go back to work especially, that he's in the routine and gets some energy out before being alone all day. I'd say 30 - 45 minutes. IN the ZONE not sniffing, urinating, jumping up and down, targeting people etc. Actually WALKING. He shouldn't be panting heavily just slightly at the end. Panting is sweating. (or having to go #2, or stress/anxiety, or pain).
The fact that he's sensitive to his surroundings just means he's still learning and needs more desensitization. make sure when he spooks that you don't "console" him..."it's ok, it's ok" in a sugary sweet tone..that sounds like fear and reinforcing his concerns. Just ignore it or nicely matter of factly say. "Come on let's go" and keep walking. If you see him about to "target" just correct him (try and pre-empt it) , a mild normal voice noise like shhht! or hey - getting his attention off the target and back on YOU. He's the type who's going to be easily distracted LOL.
You can buy a LONG cotton weave leash like these for playing ...they come in 30, 20 , 15 , 10 ft etc Obviously don't use it for walking - only for throwing balls etc like you mentioned and only in a very safe area and be careful because they are REALLY long! And he's still clumsy - puppy style.
Lastly, be VERY careful at any dog park. He has NO social skills to speak of other than what he's learned so far, and is a target himself. And other people will be willfully clueless. It's good he's going with a friend. So cute he's getting friends LOL.
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we won't have this issue of him with the leash and being a pup.
I don't know what you mean by this after only six days, but he HAS TO be leash trained and you'll be using leashes for the rest of his life. What "issue"? Even a back yard is a cage. He's going to use it as a toy right now. Don't think I haven't been there. And those little teeth are SHARP! He doesn't get to chose to not be on a leash it's MANDATORY
If anything, I would do little physical games that he may be capable of doing. Like agility "tunnel" and searching for things you hide. For all of the 5 minutes you have his attention hahaha. These are using his natural dog qualities of scent and helping him address new things like the tunnel.
Last edited by runswithscissors; 09-04-2013 at 09:44 PM..
If you have a treadmill or can buy a used one, they work well. Does your dog like water? Do it fetch? Is there a place you can take it to swim and fetch a ball thrown into the water?
4. The best way to tire puppy, is to train him. Training can be fun for the dog and uses the mind as well as the body. http://leerburg.com/pdf/markers-clickers.pdf Use training games such as "find me," fetch, follow the leader.
Disagree that a puppy that age needs a 30-45 minute work out every AM. Older dog, def., but not a baby.
I think you can do stuff inside. My dog will run up and down the hallway to get tossed balls or toys :-)
I think you've never lived with a Golden/LabraDoodle. They are super high energy. They will chew a toy awhile then grab your slipper to make you react. They will go after whatever gets the biggest reaction because they're bored. They will jump right ON you to get your attention and use their teeth like puppies do, lacking being interested in what YOU want them to be interested in. Then people will rough house and tug of war, the two worst things you can do. Then wonder WHY they're high energy.
Why would you think running up and down a hallway is proper exercise but they're incapable of walking outside? That's counter-intuitive, IMO. It's also TRAINING that crazy behavior INSIDE is what is normal. It's not.
Avoiding exercise outside because of other dogs in a complex is not a good reason to not train the dog to walk and be around other dogs. It's easy enough to keep walking and ignore them anyway. It's part of their development and allowing the dog to make these decisions is just reinforcing that weakness. Why encourage being timid? Someone has to be the leader and instructive. It's funny how different people are, though. Saying "work out" as if walking is a bad thing, or boot camp or something. where in reality it's the ONE THING all dogs love. And benefit from, psychologically and physically.
As a dog walker, I can guarantee you that every single person that tells me "my dog doesn't like to walk" ends up being the OWNER doesn't like to walk. I've never had a dog not want to walk. Except ONE abused Maltese rescued from living in a cage in a puppy mill for 7 years who's owner nurtured fear of the outdoors and always felt "sorry" for her instead of helping her get past it.
It's a WALK. It's not a series of pushups or pole vaulting. Plus, at this age a puppy is going to waste time on the leash fooling around needing to be redirected, stop for a minute to get them to settle, or chew the leash to get control of you, the owner getting faked out when they sniff the ground thinking they're going to eliminate etc etc.... so it's not like they're going to be steady walking in the zone pounding the concrete at some adult high pace for the solid block of time 30-45 min. While getting in the zone is the goal, this dog is far from that point.
The best advice in keeping a pup well behaved and healthy, is to give him plenty of exercise.
Puppies especially have LOTS of energy, and if they don't expend it through safe exercise -- then they are more likely to misbehave and be destructive at home.
Make a schedule for several daily walks, including one good run each day.
If you work all day - look into a local dog walker helping you out. Your dog will appreciate it. You will appreciate a more relaxed dog.
Google Labradoodle Goldendoodle hyper. By the time they are 8 months old people are BEYOND out of their wits with how to "fix" it. And I may be wrong but I'm reading into the OP stating some "problem" with a leash that she is on that road already, avoiding the challenge instead of training the puppy how to walk on one.
Last edited by runswithscissors; 09-05-2013 at 08:09 AM..
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If I go and it doesn't look nice, I will take him home. But I always hear it is one of the best parks in the area.
He shouldn't be panting heavily just slightly at the end. Panting is sweating. (or having to go #2, or stress/anxiety, or pain).
