Is there something wrong with my puppy?

[Shavy]

Hi all,

I haven't posted here in awhile and I hope you'll forgive me for posting a non-GSD question, but this is a pretty prolific and knowledgeable board and there really isn't one for my breed, soooooo...

I picked up an aussie pup from a breeder several days ago. Vet check went fine, and breeder vacc'd/wormed him before I took him home. I live in farming country and he is a farm dog breeding and was raised outdoors.

Since I've gotten him home, he has been a puppy dream. He will NOT go potty in the house, and will hold it and cry to be taken out (granted it has to be frequent trips, but still). He doesn't chew very much on anything, when he mouths during play he does it fairly gently (no alligator teeth), he doesn't tug on his leash when we go out, and he cries initially in the car or crate but settles down within 10-15 minutes and just sleeps.

This afternoon I went to take a nap and decided to leave him out while I napped. I have a pile of laundry in the bedroom for him to lie on, and when he woke me up an hour later to go out to potty, I saw that he'd dragged the family's collection of shoes from the front entry into his laundry pile to sleep with, not chew on.

And while this is all great and cute and I totally adore him....what the heck? Aussies, like GSDs, are fairly high energy dogs. Puppies are always high-energy, from what I remember. But he just....isn't. I don't think I'd consider him "lethargic", since he will follow me from room to room (and then want to lie at my feet wherever I am) and will climb all over my kid to wrestle and give kisses whenever kid is sitting on the floor. When I take him out, he doesn't just sit, he follows me or investigates the snow to potty. He has an appetite (unfortunately not much for his puppy food...my fault for choosing Wellness when I know how often dogs just don't like it), is drinking, and explores the house (albeit at a leisurely pace). He just isn't a bundle of energy.

It's been so long since I had a puppy in the house that maybe I'm misremembering and the first few days are always like this. Or maybe puppies can (very rarely) be so mellow that they act like adult dogs? He sleeps an awful lot it seems to me, but maybe that's his age? He's slightly timid around new things (normal) but warms up quickly and seems curious.

Am I just being paranoid, or do you think there really is something to be concerned about with an 8 week old herding pup that doesn't zoom around the house and destroy whatever it can?

[LaRen616]

Oh my goodness!

Look at that adorable baby!

[Lilie]

Just like GSDs, Aussies can have different drives. If you've already had your pup vet checked, then I'd just adore the cute little bugger and thank your lucky stars.

I've had different Aussies with different drives. My heart dog Aussie was much like yours. He was very easy to train and if I could figure out how to teach him something, he'd do it for me.

[bocron]

If he's only 8 weeks old, then you are still in the puppy narcolepsy stage. Most of our pups seem to be in sleep mode for most of the day up until about 12 weeks, then they start to wake up and take on the world.
Not all of the herding breeds are quite as high drive as a GSD pup can be. Border Collies, Beaucerons and ACDs all seem to pretty crazy as pups, but most of the other herding breeds we've dealt with around here are a bit less so.

[msvette2u]

Adorable

[catz]

No advice but wow he is just stunning! I think I'm in love so be sure to post plenty of pic's of your little man

[Shavy]

Originally Posted by catz

No advice but wow he is just stunning! I think I'm in love so be sure to post plenty of pic's of your little man

I have about 60 of him sleeping; the rest are a blur.

[Catu]

Originally Posted by bocron

If he's only 8 weeks old, then you are still in the puppy narcolepsy stage. Most of our pups seem to be in sleep mode for most of the day up until about 12 weeks, then they start to wake up and take on the world.
Not all of the herding breeds are quite as high drive as a GSD pup can be. Border Collies, Beaucerons and ACDs all seem to pretty crazy as pups, but most of the other herding breeds we've dealt with around here are a bit less so.

My GSD pup was a mellow pup at 8 weeks old, then he became more energetic until about 5 months old, when he only wanted to sleep during his growth spur. I wouldn't say he was really what you'd expect from a working line until 8 months old.

[KZoppa]

Shasta, even as a puppy (GSD) was pretty mellow. She's perfectly healthy and we've never had any problems with her. She's almost 2 and still very laid back and chilled out. She has her moments where she suddenly seems to lose her mind and she's spring loaded but otherwise, she's never been the crazy all over the place landshark we hear about.

If your vet cleared the pup as healthy and he's good to go, I wouldnt worry about it. I'm sure he'll catch you off guard a couple times at least lol. Honestly, after Shasta's easy puppyhood, I have no idea if i'll be able to handle an actual landshark type personality!

In one of the obedience classes i'm a student trainer in, we have a 1 year old Aussie. His owners had NO idea what they were getting into and are actually very harsh with him in terms of training. He blows them off. However, when myself or my mentor get him, he's absolutely amazing. He knows full well what we're asking of him and he is very compliant. Pass the leash back to mom or dad (whoever brings him to class at the time) and you just see the marbles in his head come loose and its all over with. His male owner is VERY heavy handed with him. Female owner is too easy with him. They havent figured out they need to balance out before he'll listen 100% to them. In class he will just be vibrating with energy.

Be glad you have a more mellow puppy! Though i'm sure, the couple in my class would probably gladly switch your mellow pup for their drives them insane energy pup! Or you could give him to me!

[1sttimeforgsd]

He is totally cute, thanks for sharing.