Exercise for the pup

1515 Views 12 Replies 7 Participants Last post by Jeepnick, Jul 29, 2008

Jeepnick

Discussion Starter · Jul 25, 2008

Hey all. We picked up our German Shepherd puppy the past Sunday (the 20th). He seems to be adjusting well and just loves being around us. He is very loving and affectionate.

What I'm wondering is, how should I exercise him?? Its summer here in Phoenix - 100 degrees even at midnight, and upwards of 110 during the day. We take him outside often to go potty, but as soon as he is done, he wants to go back inside...He wont chase a ball outside or anything. Inside is sometimes a different story - He will chase a ball about 50% of the time.

Walking him has been interesting. He seems to tire or perhaps not be interested in going for walks. After some initial leash reluctance, he is now doing pretty well. But on walks (early morning or at night) he just does not seem into it...almost like we are forcing him to go. He will just stop and sit down and we have to give him a gentle tug on the leash and some verbal encouragement to continue walking.

While inside, he seems quite content with idle chewing on toys and laying on the floor chilling out. But yesterday my sister brought over her puppy (who is like this furry ball of pure energy...my god he wouldnt sit still) and they both played and romped for a good two hours....it was the most energy expense and activity I've seen our puppy put out since we brought him home.

Any ideas? I want to be sure he is getting enough exercise, but I can't force him to chase a ball. And if he decides that he has had enough on a walk, its tough to carry back a 35 pound puppy.

Background on him - he is 13 weeks old, about 35 pounds, comes from good lined dogs with even temperaments. He has an undescended testicle (the reason we got him as a pet, since he was originally the pick of the litter) but is still intact (until he matures).

I'm going to the breeders house tomorrow for puppy kindergarten and I will be talking with her about what she suggests, but I thought I'd toss it out there for you all as well. Any input is appreciated.

Thank you.
Nick

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Jeepnick

Discussion Starter · #2 · Jul 26, 2008

I just got back from walking him...we did about a 10 minute walk. I practically dragged him the entire way.

I know he must have energy in him...he was cooped up most of the day in his crate while I was at work....4 hours in crate, 1 hour out (while im at lunch) 4 more hours in the crate.

I'm at a loss...I thought puppies were supposed to have lots of energy?

I did pull a tick off his neck tonight (I got the whole thing...its still alive in a ziplock baggie... I don't know how long it had been there, but it wasnt fat yet. I'm going to get him on something for that in the next couple days...frontline maybe. Need to see the vet and ask.

I'll also be spraying the yard and the house with pesticide...just have to figure out what to do with the pup while it dries/airs out. Tips on that front?

Thanks.
Nick

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Kayla's Dad

· #3 · Jul 26, 2008

Hello Jeepnick and

on your new family member.

Puppies sleep a lot, so if yours is showing some bouts of energy during the day and then wants to take another nap-that would not be abnormal. Add to that the hot weather, and I'm not surprised that the pup wants to nap more.

As far as exercise, that sounds like a challenge for you guys in the hot weather.

How much are you working on teaching obedience commands- and tricks? Being inside during the hot times, may give you a bit of time to add more 5 minutes sessions during the day. Practice heeling in the hallway. It may be boring for you, but you want to work in one-two-three steps increments to strengthen the by you/loose leash position. Working on sits and downs? Teach "shake" hands and leave -it commands. Work on the watch me.

While I'm throwing these out there, you do not want to go too fast adding too many commands-you do want to strengthen the basic obedience commands-maybe with repeatetive sessions while you guys are stuck inside.

Curious where you and your pup are at working on basic commands. Let us know-someone may be abel to give you some next steps suggestions to up the excitement and fun as well as strengthening the effectiveness of those commands.

As far as a puppy with high energy? Be careful what you ask for!

Good Luck.

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doggiedad

· #4 · Jul 26, 2008

was your pup bred in Arizona? it might be to hot for him. i would think he'll get use to it.

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BlackGSD

· #5 · Jul 26, 2008

Is there any way you can get a "kiddie pool" for the pup to play in? A lot of dogs and pups LOVE to play in water, and it gets them exercise AND helps keep them cool. Just remember to put fresh water in it everytime, since it won't take long for the water to be too hot for him with the temp being that high. You dont' even need to fillit up. Just a couple of inches of water would be enough, and then it owuld be easy to dump out and re-fill.

The not wanting to go for walks to totally normal for a baby puppy, usually you DO have to "force" them to go on walks. If you read some of the older posts, there are a LOT of them on that very subject. And they will give you some ideas of how to encourage him to walk with you willingly.

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StGeorgeK9

· #6 · Jul 26, 2008

Excellent advice Tracy, a wading pool would be great! Ava loved to play in a kiddie pool

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Jeepnick

Discussion Starter · #7 · Jul 28, 2008

Thanks for the suggestions! I will look into getting a kiddie pool tonight. I'll also see if I can find some of the old threads about walking puppies. I haven't had much luck with the search function in the past.

Nick

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BlackGSD

· #8 · Jul 28, 2008

You don't have to use the search function. You can just go back a page or 2 in this section and look at the topics.

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MaggieRoseLee

· #9 · Jul 28, 2008

Jeepnick, for some reason both my GSD's when they were puppies really didn't like leaving the house/yard for walks around the block. They'd stand in the doorway and seem to be thinking 'see ya when you get back mom!' and then be content to stay home.

Since I hated dragging them, didn't feel that was helping the situation at all

I worked out a compromise.

All the quick poops/peeps were in the yard and then we'd go back into the house or just play in the yard.

But for EXERCISE, I'd either pick up the puppy or walk them to the car (which ever the pup was up for) and off we'd go. In a NEW place with NEW people and sights/sounds, it was like I had a different pup. Would stay right with me, no dragging on the leash, happy to meet and greet new people. Hiking, long walks in the park, Main St USA for visiting. Going to friends homes with healthy dogs (good with puppies) or homes with children or just other homes.

If I did this every other day, my pup got all the exercise she needed. AND (maybe more important) I got her all the vital socialization many of our pups miss their first few months.

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zekemorgan

· #10 · Jul 28, 2008

Originally Posted By: Everett54
How much are you working on teaching obedience commands- and tricks? Being inside during the hot times, may give you a bit of time to add more 5 minutes sessions during the day. Practice heeling in the hallway. It may be boring for you, but you want to work in one-two-three steps increments to strengthen the by you/loose leash position. Working on sits and downs? Teach "shake" hands and leave -it commands. Work on the watch me.

While I'm throwing these out there, you do not want to go too fast adding too many commands-you do want to strengthen the basic obedience commands-maybe with repeatetive sessions while you guys are stuck inside.

Curious where you and your pup are at working on basic commands. Let us know-someone may be abel to give you some next steps suggestions to up the excitement and fun as well as strengthening the effectiveness of those commands.

Hey Everett54. Our (Jeepnick and I) dog, Anubis, knows come, sit, stay, heel, place (crate), and lay down.

The ones he knows very well are come and sit.

He will stay as long as he sees my hand motion up, but when I lower myself or I lower my hand he usually comes. I'm trying to use the command more and the hand motion less to fix this problem.

He knows Place very well and will spend time in his crate as long as we are in the room (otherwise he leaves the crate, or if its closed he will bark like crazy. Especially at night. Any solutions to this?)

Heel is a work in progress too.

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MaggieRoseLee

· #11 · Jul 29, 2008

Quote: He knows Place very well and will spend time in his crate as long as we are in the room (otherwise he leaves the crate, or if its closed he will bark like crazy. Especially at night.

zekemorgan, how much do I LOVE giving an easy answer! The fix for this is so simple you will get to sleep this very night with a crated dog.

A crated dog BESIDE your bed! That way YOU get all the advantages of the crate training. And your puppy isn't frantic cause you've 'abandoned' it and they have to keep reminding you they are over here, right here, come get me, can't you hear me, how about louder, I"M OVER HERE!!!!

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Kayla's Dad

· #12 · Jul 29, 2008

Originally Posted By: zekemorgan
Hey Everett54. Our (Jeepnick and I) dog, Anubis, knows come, sit, stay, heel, place (crate), and lay down.

The ones he knows very well are come and sit.

He will stay as long as he sees my hand motion up, but when I lower myself or I lower my hand he usually comes. I'm trying to use the command more and the hand motion less to fix this problem.

He knows Place very well and will spend time in his crate as long as we are in the room (otherwise he leaves the crate, or if its closed he will bark like crazy. Especially at night. Any solutions to this?)

Heel is a work in progress too.

Sounds like you have a great foundation to build on. BTW, Puppy = Work in Progress. Always!

Lancer is in a similar place-trying to extend the sits and downs with him at this time. I use "crate up" for going into the crate as I plan on using "place" to have him go to open mats or beds outside of the crate area.

Curious if your breeder suggested anything different than the suggestions here?

I'll go back to suggesting that you put some tricks and other fun stuff in that mix you've got going so far. Here's a link to a thread on what some members have taught their dogs:

What tricks have you taught your dog to do?

Do you use a clicker?

Here's to cooler days in your area.

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Jeepnick

Discussion Starter · #13 · Jul 29, 2008

Thanks everyone for your great responses. We took Anubis to the Biltmore last night (an outside mall that is dog friendly). It was just as was suggested...We got him out of the car and in this new and different environment, he was happy to walk right by our sides on the leash with no pulling needed. We encountered a few dozens people and even a few dogs. Anubis met and was petted by at least 10 people. He was a bit shy at first, but quickly warmed up to them when he realized they wanted to pet him. After about 25 minutes, we hopped back in the car and went home.

As for the howling problem when he is crated at night, we finally moved his crate into the bedroom last night (no small feat considering the crate is 30"x48") and when we put him in for sleep last night, he was out like a light with not a peep all night long. THANK GOD because I needed some decent sleep after 8 straight nights of howling and yipping. I've been like the walking dead at work.

As for the training, we are not using a clicker...this isn't so much a conscious decision...but rather that neither of us has ever used a clicker for training. We have been using kibble to lure him into obeying commands, and that seems to be working well.

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