All dogs are created equal, but certain dogs are created more hyper than others. I have three very energetic dogs, two Siberian Huskies and a Shiba Inu, so I have had my fair share of hyper dog challenges.
Here are some important lessons I learned, on how to calm a hyper dog or a hyper puppy.
1. Try to Remain Calm
One of the most important things to remember, if we have a hyper dog, is the best medicine for a hyper dog is calm energy.
If I lose my temper, get frustrated, or become angry, my dog will pick up on that energy and become even more hyper. When my dog is over-excited, I do my best to remain calm, and project calm energy to him.
2. Make Our Dog Work for His Food
I follow the Nothing in Life is Free program with all of my dogs. This means that they have to do something for me first, before I give them something in return. NILIF is a great way to –
- Motivate my dogs to follow house-rules,
- Help them learn that people are the source of good stuff, and also
- Redirect their hyper energy into positive pursuits.
I use part of my dog’s daily food for good behaviors throughout the day, for being calm, for following commands, for walks, grooming, and more.
Whatever food is left over, I put in interactive food toys, so he has to work for that as well. Interactive food toys are a great way to exercise my dog mentally, and to keep him engaged in a positive activity. Some food toys that I use include the Buster Cube, Premier Busy Buddy Collection, and of course Kongs.
Frozen Kongs are great to keep my dog occupied when he is in his crate, or to help calm him down before bed-time. I put some wet food into a classic Kong and freeze it. My dog has fun licking and chewing at it, and has less time to get into trouble. 😀
Variety is the spice of life, therefore, I try to figure out new fun ways, to deploy my dog’s food. For example, I may put his food on some paper, bunch the paper up into a ball, and then push the paper ball into a Holl-ee Roller toy. Sephy has a fun time figuring out this food puzzle!
Another thing that works pretty well with my dog is the Egg Babies toy. These toys have openings to give us access to the squeaker balls within. I open up the compartment, take out the squeaker balls, and put some food into the toy. Sometimes I stuff a regular ball into it, to make the toy more challenging. The Egg Baby is a soft-toy though, so some dogs may try to chew or shred it.
It is important that we are around to supervise our dog when he is working on a toy. We want to make sure that he does not swallow pieces of paper, soft-toy fabric, or rubber.
If our dog likes swallowing paper or soft toy fabric, then *do not* give him such toys. With rubber toys, make sure he cannot tear chunks off, because they may become a choking hazard.
3. Play Fun Games with our Dog
A game that my dog absolutely loves to play is the flirt pole.
A flirt pole is a simple pole or handle that is connected to a rope, with a toy at the end. We may create our own flirt pole or simply buy one.
I made my own flirt pole by getting a drain-plunger and detaching its wooden handle. Then, I drilled some holes in the handle and tied some rope through it. Finally, I attached the other end of the rope to a Premier Tennis Tail Toy
. This Premier toy works well with my homemade flirt pole, because my dog loves chasing the fox-like tail on the toy.
However, it is only appropriate if we use regular rope, and not bungee or elastic cord. If we use an elastic cord, there is a high probability that the toy will bounce around a lot, and it may hit us, our dog, or others. As such, we should only use a very soft and light toy.
With this game, we may exercise our dog while not having to overly exert ourselves. Other fun dog play games include soccer, catch, fetch, and tug-of-war.
I always set up a consistent set of rules while playing with my dog. This helps to keep everyone safe, as well as helps my dog learn positive play behaviors and self-control.
4. Do Obedience Training Every Day
Enroll in a dog obedience training class or get a good positive reinforcement dog training book. Then, have short (10-15 minutes) training sessions with our dog, several times per day.
This will help establish us as pack leader, improve the bond with our dog, exercise our dog’s mind, and provide us with effective tools to control him in the house.
5. Daily Walks or Hiking Trips
Neighborhood walks are a great way to exercise our dog, and socialize him to people. Walking can also help with obedience and bonding.
We may walk our dog on a loose leash or in a heel position. Personally, I keep my dog on a loose leash most of the time. I only put him in a heel position when I need greater control, for example-
- When I see another dog, cat, or squirrel,
- When young children are around, or
- When my dog starts to get reactive.
Dogs enjoy roaming around and smelling social markers (dog urine) left by other dogs. They can easily do this on a loose leash. Being in a heel position all of the time, is probably more boring than death for a dog. Therefore, to provide a fun walking experience for everyone, relax, give our dog some freedom, and stop to smell the roses.
In addition to neighborhood walks, it can also be fun to go hiking on nature trails.
Note that different parks, or different trails within a park, may have different leash rules (on-leash or off-leash). We may have to try out a variety of parks and park-trails, before finding one that suits us and our dog.
Hiking can also be a relaxing way to socialize our dog to both people and other dogs. Unlike enclosed dog parks, hiking parks are larger and have a lower density of people and dogs. In hiking parks, owners are usually more engaged with their dogs, and are better able to control them. Hiking trails also offer an interesting environment for a dog to explore.
If we are too busy, consider hiring a dog walker to exercise our dog. Many dog walkers offer group-walks, where they will take a small group of dogs to a nearby off-leash park. This is a fun activity, and a good way to tire-out our furry friend while we are away at work.
6. Organize Play Sessions with Another Dog
One of the best ways to drain energy from a hyper dog, is to organize play sessions with other dogs. I invite social dogs over to my house, to have one-on-one play sessions.
Other possibilities include dog daycare centers or enclosed dogs parks. I prefer daycare centers because they usually screen a dog before admission, therefore, they usually have more social dogs. In addition, a good daycare will have dog playgroups that are well-supervised, as well as structured by size and energy, which makes things a lot safer.
Enclosed dog parks are open to all, so there may be aggressive and anti-social dogs. In addition, owners may not supervise their dogs well, because they are busy socializing with the other people at the park.
In my experience, it is difficult to find a good enclosed dog park. In addition, there is always an element of danger, because all it takes is one irresponsible dog owner, for a dog fight to occur. More on my enclosed dog park experiences.
While Dog Parks can be fun, they also bring plenty of NEGATIVE interactions by forcing your pet to come up against dogs that might be overly stimulated, short-tempered, outwardly aggressive or otherwise badly managed. Smart Socializing means keeping your friend dog-tolerant, and that involves AVOIDING dicey situations where conflict can spark.
~~[Smart Socializing]
I recently took in an older dog (female Sheltie) who is completely hyper. We go for walks, try to play with toys, practice obedience, you name it and she is so hyper she can’t do any of it. On a walk she darts in front, behind, between my legs and the only way to prevent this is to hold her so short she can’t. She has no interest in a toy–she will grab a chew but immediately spits it out and takes off pacing around the house/yard. She is loving, loyal and wants to please so bad but she honestly can’t stand still when you are sitting on the floor with her holding her leash. I think she is losing her hearing though she does hear–doesn’t always seem to know where the sound is coming from. Also, her sight is bad on and off. She relies heavily on her head to search you out and tries to keep her head on my leg. I think her years of confinement and life style have probably left unrecoverable scars but as I said she is so kind and loyal and I just want her time left to be quality and know we love her. She adjusted to our other dogs well and occasionally she will play with one of them but for the most part she just paces back and forth in the yard when out there. She does the same in the house and never stops. Do you know of anything “natural” that might slow her down or maybe even a script we could try and then try to wean her down slow at the same time working with her? It’s so sad to see her so worked up all the time. She is quiet when in a crate for the night.
Thanks for any help you might have.
Hmmm, it sounds like perhaps it could be anxiety. Given her hearing and vision issues, it is likely stressful to have a big change in her environment and routine. Does she show other signs of stress in addition to the pacing? What is her body posture like?
The last time we moved, our Shiba got a bit stressed so I set up a fixed routine for him right away, I set up very consistent rules for at home, and I also made sure that he had a peaceful place that he could go to rest, where he won’t be disturbed by my other dogs or by people. I also led him all around our house and backyard (on leash) together with me, so that he can get accustomed to the layout, in a calm manner, with me there to redirect and offer encouragement as necessary. I make sure the other dogs don’t bother us during this time.
I played his favorite games with him so he had an outlet for his stressful energy, and we went on longer walks, just the two of us, in quiet hiking trails where there are very few people and very few dogs.
Here is a bit more on dog anxiety.
It may also be helpful to see what a vet says about her hearing and vision, as well as overall physical condition. With my dogs, I have found that their physical condition can greatly affect their behavior, and sometimes in unexpected ways. My Husky Shania, for example, really does not like showing weakness or pain, so it comes out in other changes in behavior. I know her well, so I can usually tell when she is not feeling her best.
Big hugs to your pack. Let us know how it goes.
My Australian Mix 2 year old is still jumping and is way to hyper to have inside. We also have a 4 year old Lab mix. My mom said we could have our lab inside but my auzzie is too hyper. So I have them both outside. At night they sleep in the kennels at night. I am trying to find ways to calm my auzzie down so she can be inside also so I don’t have to give her away. she jumps way to much and hurts my little brothers sometimes. I told everyone to ignore her when she jumps but when she jumps towards my mom, my mom scolds at her saying no over and over. Do you have any tips or anything that I could try?
Here are some things that I do with my dog to teach him not to jump on people-
http://shibashake.com/dog/stop-your-dog-from-jumping-on-people
Hi, I have an eight month old neutered male Bichon Frise. He is extremely hyperactive and is still biting and pulling at clothes. He is also constantly chewing the furniture despite having access to rawhide chew bones. An elderly member of the household is constantly roaring at him and whacking him with a newspaper. I think this is making his behaviour worse as he defies them and stands barking at them. I am at my wits end. He can be a really sweet dog most of the time but seems to be especially hyper in the morning and evening. I give him a half hour walk every day, because I read if you walk them too much they get arthritis.
Yeah, I think you are right. My dog picks up on my energy, so if I get angry or frustrated, he will pick up on my unbalanced energy and act out even more. To calm him down, I need to stay calm myself and teach him how to behave.
This is what I do to teach my dog not to bite on me.
http://shibashake.com/dog/how-i-trained-my-husky-puppy#bite-training
Here are more puppy biting tips that I use.
As for arthritis, it is best to ask your vet about it. This UCDavis article on arthritis may also have some relevant information. I like UCDavis because they have some good articles on dog health, and they are ranked highly for Veterinary Medicine. Some excerpts from the article –
Love it worked
Excellent suggestions! All of these ideas sound like they will help keep my very rambunctious puppy happy and more occupied!! Thanks for taking the time to put these ideas together.
I have a lab Shepard mix who is 1 year old. Whenever I take her on a walk she seems to become very hyper when she sees other people and/or dogs. She is never aggressive but she will whine and lunge at them and it is difficult to get her back under control and continue our walk. She also becomes very hyper when we have people come to our door (jumping, whining,etc). We have another puppy who is 5 months and we thought having a friend would calm her down but nothing yet. I just need her to be a little more relaxed or at least respond better to training commands we’ve taught her.
Yeah, my Shiba Inu Sephy was the same way. Here are some things that I do with Sephy.
Hello. I have a seven month old Boxer and Australian Shepherd (mamma was a pure bred boxer and daddy was an Aussie Shepherd. gotta love it when breeders live right next door to each other lol) mix puppy.
I’ve been keeping him for about a month now. My family wants him gone because he’s always whining or extremely hyper.
I usually walk him 2 or 3 times a day, but I’ve been sick for the last week so haven’t been able to. I still play with him, though I’m not as active with it as I was.
For the last week he has been tearing things up, digging, and barking at the neighbor dog. I have 2 other dogs that he is fine with, but they are older and can’t keep up.
I was walking and playing with him pretty regular but as I said, I’ve been sick with walking pneumonia. I can’t really punish him for the digging because no one sees him doing it to catch him and let him know it’s wrong( he’s not the only one digging, just the one with lots and lots of evidence, the other dogs just have dirt covered noses…Zeus is covered in dirt and his paws are caked with it.) We never catch him destroying anything either, but he is always there caught with the evidence when he was the only one outside.
So I think it’s mainly due to my not being able to take him on his after meal walks and I haven’t been able to take him to the park for a really good long walk (dogs must be on a leash at all times so there is no free run and play there which really suck)
His whining has gotten a little better, but not much.
My family wants me to take him to the shelter, but they are pretty much a 3 days and your done place out here.
I need to be able to curb his behavior while I’m sick or I’m gonna lose my dog.
Any idea on how to get this excess energy siphoned off without being able to be as physically active as I really should be?
I’ve had him since he was 5 weeks old and He is not going to be neutered because I don’t hold with that after having several dogs who were, they just weren’t the same after. When I take him for walks and things, he is not as bad, still tears things up when he’s left alone, but the digging stops.
Could a lot of this be him going through puberty?
I know at least some of this is because I can’t take him out and play with him as much as I should.
I don’t know what to do right now.
Hello Mike,
I am so sorry you have walking pneumonia. I am currently fighting off a bad flu and it really sucks. Luckily my other half is taking good care of the dogs and making sure everything runs smoothly.
Puppies need a lot of exercise, supervision, and direction. It sucks that nobody in the family is willing to step in. Other possibilities are to –
1. Send him temporarily to dog daycare.
2. Hire someone to help for the interim (pet sitter, dog walker).
3. Get a neighbor or friend to help out.
Fetch can be a lower people energy game, but that still requires that we be outside, and the dog needs to be taught how to do Fetch.
Hope you get better soon.
I have two young dogs, a 2-year-old French bulldog, and a 11 month old pit terrier mix. The Frenchie is and always has been hell on wheels. He is not mean or very destructive, but he has endless energy and is sort of anxious and very excitable and whines for attention constantly. I simply cannot drain through mental or physical exertion. I have resorted to benedryl on quite a few occasions just to get him to calm down sometimes, and have taken him to daycare on a weekly basis for over a year now. He just comes home from the daycare like it was nothing and actually wants to play more. It’s ridiculous. And recently we adopted that pit puppy as a playmate for him too, she isn’t high energy like him but is able to keep up since she’s a puppy. But even now after having her for 3 months, I notice he is still surpassing her energy levels and wearing her down even.
Recently we went on vacation to the seashore and rented a house with others. We had many distraction and smart toys for them like kongs and puzzles, and we took them for SEVEN WALKS a day, 45 minutes to an hour each at least. We wanted to make sure they were good tired house guests. But as soon as they would go back to the rental house, they’d get zoomies and want to wrestle and chase each other, fight and tug over toys, etc. Or the Frenchie would walk around whining because the puppy wanted a nap, and/or all the vacationers were just sitting around relaxing.
The dogs play roughly and loudly when they do play. At home I don’t mind this so much usually, but I could tell that the other people at the house were very irritated by it. We had to leave vacation early because of this behavior, I was so upset. I feel imprisoned by them, I cannot take them anywhere, especially the Frenchie. What is going on and what can I do about it? I have talked to my vet about it and he doesn’t believe me that the Frenchie is this crazy. No one believes me. It’s like he is CONSTANTLY BORED no matter how many walks, games of tug, flirt poles, clicker training, puzzles toys, etc we do with him. My husband and I are at our wits end, our lives literally exist around tiring this dog out every single day or else he makes our lives a living hell. A girl at my work has a husky and it just like “wow” when I tell her all the activities and things we have to do with him.
Basically, this is like a behavior thing, right? Does this sound like a condition or something mental with him? I know you cannot diagnose, but I need to start somewhere. He is not bi-polar, but almost neurotic/obsessed with playing. Does this sound like something you know of or have heard of? I have never had a high energy dog before. I know french bulldog isn’t a high energy breed at all, but for whatever reason that is his personality. I have had dogs before but none like this, so I am just not sure what is normal for hyperactivity versus a real problem, versus just being a young dog.
With Sephy, having strict rules and a fixed routine helped a lot during his younger crazy puppy days. I make sure his routine includes enough exercise, games, training, etc., but we stick to the routine. I also introduce a lot of structure into each activity (i.e. consistent rules) so that he knows exactly what I expect from him and what he can expect from me in return.
All these things help to reduce stress and help him to calm down because then he *knows* what to expect from his environment and the people around him.
I also make sure *never* to reward him when he whines – with play, attention, or anything else. I usually ignore whining and just tune him out. If he whines outside, he loses his backyard privileges and has to come inside the house. If he starts getting destructive, then he temporarily loses his freedom and goes to timeout. At the same time, I make sure to reward him *very well* for following house rules and for calmness.
I follow the Nothing in Life is Free program with all of my dogs.
During play-time, I supervise my dogs closely and manage their excitement level. I make sure to have clear play-rules and I throw in many play breaks so that they do not play too rough or get over-excited.
http://shibashake.com/dog/second-dog-introducing-a-second-dog#play-time
Getting help from a professional trainer can also help with troubleshooting specific problems. The trainers we met first start by doing an evaluation session with Sephy. Here, they observe his behavior, environment, temperament, etc., while engaging him in various test exercises. Then they talk to us about what they think the issue is and how we should proceed.
http://www.apdt.com/pet-owners/choosing-a-trainer/
My dog is a 1 and 7 month old Shepard lab mix. She is very hyper and she tries to test her dominance on me. How do I get her to know that I’m the boss
Here are a few articles on dog dominance –
1. Dealing with dog dominance.
2. Dominance and bad dog behavior.
3. Dominance and aggression (UC Davis)