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#1
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The Hows and The Whys
This one is directed to people who enjoy their puppy experience, or like their dogs to be little firecrackers. Just how do you do it, and why? The reason I am asking is that Titus has been with us for a week now, and I will admit that I am exhausted, the dogs are exhausted, and even my neighbor's two kids, who are home because of spring break, are exhausted from giving him a workout. The only one not exhausted is Titus. Typical of what we've been doing - Rajesh took him for an off-leash walk in the morning, about 45 minutes. He covers about 3 miles, Titus about twice that, and at full speed. After breakfast, and a little chew session, I went out in the garden to work on Spring clean-up and building my new flower bed. The dogs are of course out with me, and basically my two took turns running around with Titus and playing wrestlemania. By then, my neighbor's two kids came out (ages 7 and 10), and they played with him, pretty much non-stop for the rest of the time we were out there. All told, we were outdoors for about 4 hours, during which he did not sit or lie down at all. After we came in, I assumed that Titus would take a nap. WRONG! He chewed for a bit, and when Jade came over, continued to play with her inside the house for the next 45 minutes. Then we went to the dog park (around 4:30), and just got back, and the little Munchkin is sitting there, chewing away at a bone. I believe that he will go to sleep around 10:00 tonight, after we have had his training session, and a ball playing session (up and down stairs). The only time I've seen him truly exhausted was on Saturday, after keeping up this kind of schedule for 4 days in a row. So for those of you who enjoy this sort of stuff, how do you do it? And why? Oh yeah, lest you say that there is a lot of physical work-out, and not a whole lot of mental stuff, keep in mind that in addition to dedicated training sessions 5-10 minutes at a time, several times a day (talk about attention span of a gnat), I am taking every opportunity I get to teach him things a good dog should know. Tomorrow, it is supposed to rain all day long. *shudder* Suja |
#2
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Handsome Jack Morrison wrote:
I can exhaust the little rascals pretty quickly, too, and never even spill a drop of my beer. Maybe this is harder because he is an older puppy (10 or 12 months old) who has gone too long with no training or guidance? Besides, how long does it take to exhaust the pups your way, Jack? Titus is getting somewhere between 6 and 8 hours of exercise, with at least half of it being the full-out running variety. He does play fetch with a ball or frisbee, but that doesn't do a darn thing to put a dent in him. I generally lose either my patience or my arm strength long before he gives out. Besides it being so much fun? Besides having the chance to put my own stamp on the pups? Besides having the chance to earn their trust as soon as possible? Besides the joy derived from giving them the best possible start in life? Besides helping to prepare them for their life-long pursuit of "things" that fly? Etc. Etc. Etc. Maybe this is different because most of the above don't apply. While I am getting one hell of a good workout, my ankle has given out from all the soccer playing. And to me, there is no fun in throwing something over and over and over and.... Besides all that, I don't know. Maybe because I'm nuts? I figured there has to be at least a little bit of that involved. And I would react to rain in the forecast with a: Yay! A chance to socialize the pup to rain! Trust me, he has no problems with rain. Nothing really fazes him. Not for long anyway. I'm worried about little ole me. I am generally okay with rain, but spending 8 hours in it at a time is most definitely not my idea of fun. Then again, some of the busier trails will most likely be empty tomorrow, and we can go on a nice long hike. Suja |
#3
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Suja wrote: So for those of you who enjoy this sort of stuff, how do you do it? And why? Oh yeah, lest you say that there is a lot of physical work-out, and not a whole lot of mental stuff, keep in mind that in addition to dedicated training sessions 5-10 minutes at a time, several times a day (talk about attention span of a gnat), I am taking every opportunity I get to teach him things a good dog should know. You know how I did it? Crate. Cala slept fine--if I put her in a crate. Whether or not she liked it. I taught her from very early on that she never, ever got out of the crate if she was noisy. As soon as she learned that, she would crash immediately after I put her in it. For young, very active dogs, finding an off switch can be difficult. And if they're easily stimulated, they'll fight it. It sounds like you are such a *fun* house that Titus simply can't succumb to tiredness. So you help them find that switch by putting them in a nice, cushiony crate for at least an hour or so, a couple of times a day. And at night too. My bet is, once you do that he'll very quickly fall asleep. |
#4
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Robin Nuttall wrote:
For young, very active dogs, finding an off switch can be difficult. And if they're easily stimulated, they'll fight it. It sounds like you are such a *fun* house that Titus simply can't succumb to tiredness. That's possible. I spoke with his foster today, and she was saying that he stays on the couch a lot more when he is with her. She is definitely not as active as I am, and he probably learned quickly that nothing is going to happen. He is a hell of a lot more obnoxious and ill behaved with her though, and I am not sure if that is just the lack of training/guidance, or if the lesser amount of exercise plays into it. So you help them find that switch by putting them in a nice, cushiony crate for at least an hour or so, a couple of times a day. And at night too. My bet is, once you do that he'll very quickly fall asleep. He sleeps great at night if he has had adequate exercise during the day. Otherwise, I'll wake up at 5:00 in the morning with a cold nose poking at me, and big brown eyes asking if it was time to start some fun again. I will admit that I am a little afraid of confronting a well rested Titus. I had house guests on Sunday, didn't have those extra 2 or 3 hours to spend with him, and paid for it big time. He caught up on his sleep, and was all set to go at 8:00 at night. Thank goodness for stairs - he played fetch for an hour, at which point I got too bored to continue. Then, he woke me up at 4:45 in the morning, all set to go, by standing on my face. He is learning quickly that some people don't appreciate having 20 pounds of dog attached to their face at ungodly hours. Whenever I leave the house, and he catches up on his sleep, I have to run him *hard* when I get back to make sure that he is reasonably mellow at night. Lastly, I am stubborn. Hell if I let a little 20 pound monster puppy beat me. I will swallow my pride and try to tone things down a bit tomorrow - 8 miles total is all I have planned for the day. My ankle is shot at the moment, so I may not have a choice. Suja |
#5
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"Suja" wrote in message news:AY30e.5568$Z37.1263@lakeread06... Maybe this is harder because he is an older puppy (10 or 12 months old) who has gone too long with no training or guidance? Besides, how long does it take to exhaust the pups your way, Jack? Titus is getting somewhere between 6 and 8 hours of exercise, with at least half of it being the full-out running variety. He does play fetch with a ball or frisbee, but that doesn't do a darn thing to put a dent in him. I generally lose either my patience or my arm strength long before he gives out. I find that simply running and playing will not wear out my dogs anywhere nearly as quickly as training, even in short sessions. A good balance between physical exercise and mental exercise should help keep everyone sane. Christy |
#6
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On Tue, 22 Mar 2005 19:18:59 -0500, Suja wrote:
This one is directed to people who enjoy their puppy experience, or like their dogs to be little firecrackers. Just how do you do it, and why? They're little sponges. They make me get up and enjoy the day. I love to watch them learn, I love to teach them. I love to watch them change and grow. I love to mold them to my lifestyle and my schedule and watch them learn really quickly. I like experiencing new discoveries through them. So for those of you who enjoy this sort of stuff, how do you do it? Impose rest with a leash or a crate. DOWN time is something really important and a lot of puppies are just having too much fun to do it themselves. And why? See above. I love having puppies around. Tomorrow, it is supposed to rain all day long. *shudder* OMG is it pouring! Good luck to you. Use that leash and crate - everyone will benefit. -- Janet B www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/bestfr...bedience/album |
#7
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On Wed, 23 Mar 2005 00:52:41 GMT, Handsome Jack Morrison
wrote: And I would react to rain in the forecast with a: Yay! A chance to socialize the pup to rain! Franklin adores rain. I don't adore the mud that comes along with it right now! -- Janet B www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/bestfr...bedience/album |
#8
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On Tue, 22 Mar 2005 20:59:42 -0500, Suja wrote:
Maybe this is harder because he is an older puppy (10 or 12 months old) who has gone too long with no training or guidance? That's not a puppy - that's an adolescent. Very different needs. And really a need to impose some settle time if he's never learned it before. THAT is the great advantage of little puppies - they DO sleep and learn to settle and play and work with your lifestyle. You have a teenager who doesn't know how to self soothe ;-D. Besides, how long does it take to exhaust the pups your way, Jack? Titus is getting somewhere between 6 and 8 hours of exercise, with at least half of it being the full-out running variety. He does play fetch with a ball or frisbee, but that doesn't do a darn thing to put a dent in him. I generally lose either my patience or my arm strength long before he gives out. My dogs would play, retrieve, swim, etc, all day. That isn't an option most days. Some of that needs to be taught. Like with small children, an adult human providing constant entertainment is NOT a good thing. -- Janet B www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/bestfr...bedience/album |
#9
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On Tue, 22 Mar 2005 21:32:53 -0500, Suja wrote:
I will swallow my pride and try to tone things down a bit tomorrow - 8 miles total is all I have planned for the day that's ridiculous. I have a very high energy dog. He spends a lot of the day sleeping on the couch or at my feet. He gets play and training sessions, but if I challenged myself to "wear him out", I'd be in big trouble. STOP entertaining this beast and stop jumping through hoops for him. He needs to be responsible for himself. As I and others have said - make use of a crate - suddenly the choices become YOURS. -- Janet B www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/bestfr...bedience/album |
#10
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Suja wrote: Robin Nuttall wrote: Then, he woke me up at 4:45 in the morning, all set to go, by standing on my face. Sorry, but I so do NOT allow puppies (or any dog!) to do this to me. When I'm sleeping, they are to LEAVE ME ALONE. That's the rule. The dog doesn't get to decide when we get up. I do. The dog doesn't get to dictate the exercise either, I do. Honestly, I'll go back to crate, crate, crate. If he's crated at night he's not going to be standing on your head unless the crate is too.... |
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