3 months old, Suddenly has LIMITLESS energy! Is this normal?
I work from home, but it's hard to get much done when he's asking for my attention so often. I foolishly thought / hoped that he would be content with a walk after each meal, plus a good hour or two of play each day, but it seems like if he had his way, we'd be playing and exercising every other hour during the day. Is this pretty standard for a pup this age? How much exercise should a 3 month old OES get per day? Right now I include 30 second sprints in our walks because he has so much energy. He seems to love it, but is this safe for his hips? Also, besides peanut butter Kongs and playing fetch, are there any good indoor activities to burn energy? Thanks, One tired OES daddy. |
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| I can't answer your puppy energy question as I have no experience with that, but I wanted to say it might not be the best thing to be exercising a sheepie after a meal. "Bloat", or an acute twisting of the stomach, can be triggered by exercise after a meal, especially in large breed dogs with barrel-like chests.
If I'm mot mistaken, they also suggest not feeding for 1/2 hour after vigorous exercise, but I might be wrong about that. |
| Hi Kevin,
I have sent you an e-mail giving you some tips that I hope you will find helpfull. Just remember, he is a puppy and yes, they do want all of your attention at that age. You need to set a schedule for both playtime and rest time. Too much exercise at this age is not a good thing. And Ron, you are right. After we feed our dogs we wait an hour before they are exercised. |
| Our dog just laid there for over 4 months. Didn't do a thing. What an angel he was....
Then the same thing happened. He turned into a hyper dog. We exercise the dog a good amount. Plus he has kids playing with him and another dog. With all that, he's a little over one and totally a devil. He's just NOW getting into chaos (ignoring bones, toys and going for parts of our house and pretty much has destroyed anything near him). So yeah... I'd say it was normal. With our first dog, she calmed down at 2. |
| Our dogs' routine is to rest 1 hour after eating before even going outside to do any business. Also, I make sure they don't eat right after any vigorous exercise. I've even been known to make them wait an extra 30 minutes before eating if they start to carry on about a meal too much. If they are going to be jumping & barking to remind me it's dinnertime then they have to wait to eat. |
| Don't forget you can make use of a crate. If he is panting, pawing etc, I wouldn't assume he needs more exercise. Panting, probably needs a drink, pawing etc yes looking for attention but that doesn't mean you always have to give it to him. Doing that now means you're putting him in control.
If he is running around like a maniac, which all oes pups do from time to time, and you don't have time for that right then I would just crate him for a bit. He can rest and settle down and you'll have the time you need too. |
| this is also a great time to work on some simple training. We learned early on that the training tires them out physically as well as mentally. So if they pups go a bit crazy? 15 minutes of practicing come, sit, and down would cool their jets pretty good. |
| oh they are right! the crate helps a lot and the pup gets needed rest. also did the obedience training (sit, down...) the pups love it and it tires them. |
| Three months is still an infant really. But I have found too much exercise gets them sort overstimulated and cranky. Like a baby that doesn't get a nap. Lack of napping and sleep makes them even more crazy. My female would NEVER rest unless I put her in her crate - kept in the kitchen so she would still be with me. The minute I put her in, she went off to sleep...Like a baby going in a crib for its nap. Even now, 3 year old and 1 year old, they still get their naps in the afternoon or they are out of control when I get home!
And I agree...no exercise at least one hour before a meal and I try to go two hours after....Of course with a pup that young, waiting that long after a meal to potty is probably too long. Put him on a leash and let him do his business only, then back in and rest before running/playing. |
| Hi everyone.
Thanks Ron + Amber for the warning about bloat (And Amber, for your email. Very helpful!). I'd read about it before we got Trousers but since forgot about it. This weekend we've started following your advice and waiting at least an hour after he eats before exercise. We also took him to puppy classes yesterday morning, and that WORE HIM OUT! It was wonderful. I think it's absolutely true that mental stimulation physically tires pups. Additionally, yesterday afternoon and this morning I tried taking him for one 40 minute walk, rather than several 20 minute walks, and that seemed to help too. We also got a bigger crate for him today, since he outgrew his old one. I'll try crating him sometimes when he won't leave me alone but has had water, food, exercise, attention, etc., Thanks again to all who shared their experiences and advice. I'll try to write a follow up in a week or two, especially if anything seems to particularly help. - Kevin |
| Sounds like you are on the right track. My OES in 10 months now, and typical for his breed he has a lot of energy. We have a pattern where we go outside for a short walk, he eats breakfast, rest for about an hour, play and do tricks in the house, go out side, inside free time he usually chews on a bone or sleeps, etc. Seb is starting to be able to cuddle with me on the couch and will take naps on my bed now with me. He always has to be around me, and follows me around the house as I'm doing my chores and activites. I try to vary things up for him, sometimes we go on errands together. OES's like to be active and like to interact with people that's just the way they are. |
Welcome to the sheepie indy 5000, no longer the wee baby and the batteries dont run out  
Around 2-3 they grow out of it, well we hope   |
lisaoes wrote: Around 2-3 they grow out of it, well we hope
They do  |
| he sounds lovely. His food is not making him hyper is it? My yorkie is a tazmanian devil when she has chum complete!! |
ChSheepdogs wrote: lisaoes wrote: Around 2-3 they grow out of it, well we hope They do My Luna definitely calmed down around 18 months, and mellowed more around 2 years. Tonks has not calmed down at all, and can often rile Luna back up to puppy-like spaz-outs.  |
| With "bloat" in mind (and work for reward syndrome) I always make my OES "work" with a reasonable or long walk before feeding him and then letting him settle down tired and fed! Seems to work!
Nik  |
Ours is now 18 months and FINALLY is toning down, a little. We found that a daily routine of exercise, training and enforced (crate time) naps made a world of difference. Puppies need more sleep than we think! And, now that she is older - part time doggy day care about 3 times a week does the trick. (And I work from home, too, and the respite is marvelous!)  |
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