# Hello all and advice welcome!



## The_Fredster (Jan 30, 2015)

Hello all, 

I am completely new to this forum and have already read many a thread which has been so very helpful to me already so thank you to the contributors. 

We have had Freddie since November and he is a lovely little puppy, he is taking well to toilet training, he sleeps through the night now (thank goodness) and is learning a number of commands sit, down, off, lie down, paw, high five, belly, rollover and so on. 

My only concern is the biting/puppy crazies we have every night. I have read this is a phase but sometimes it feels like it will go on forever! It has got particularly bad in the last week - but I really think he is going through the teething stage! So he is biting a lot. We have a lot of chews and toys to help but I think this combined with perhaps overstimulation/tiredness can result in an hour of crazy barking and nipping. 

We walk him for a good 40-50 minutes every evening after work and then try to play games and do training with him - but this combined with the crazy time can be quite tiring!

I hate to put him into his quiet zone in the evening as obviously want to be with him - but just want some advice on whether it is the right thing to do? When I do give him 'timeout' he does tend to either go crazy with his toys for a while or gradually sleep and then settle enough to come back into the lounge with us. Just checking this is ok? any advice would be appreciated. 

I should mention I have grown up with dogs but cannot remember the puppy stage at all and all I remember is sweet, fairly calm, non bitey dogs!

Thanks, 

M


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## Miss Lilly (Sep 12, 2014)

Hi and welcome to the forum!

Your pup sounds adorable but we need pictures!!!

You don't mention how old he is, but young pups need lots and lots of sleep about 20 hours per day!!) and when they don't get it, they often get a bit over stimulated and 'crazy'. That said, a bit of 'doodle dashing' is the norm, but it doesn't usually last longer than a few minutes and seems to be a way of releasing nervous energy for them.

There's a five minute rule for puppy walking (on lead): generally, its 5 mins for each month of their life until they are adults and their plates have fused etc. Off lead is a different matter and running and playing with other doggies is what will help him burn off energy, learn about the world and build his core muscles.

45-50 minutes of walking followed by games and training sounds like a lot to me. Training should be about 5 mins several times a day and games as and when he's awake and in the mood! Its also not a bad idea to let him occupy himself a little (with a Kong or similar) as you probably won't always be there to play and engage with him.

Teething is a difficult stage for any puppy and can be really painful. Sometimes, ice cubes or a knotted dish cloth soaked in water and then frozen can really help to soothe those poor gums.

Hope some of this helps - written at speed as should be working!!


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## The_Fredster (Jan 30, 2015)

Hi Miss Lilly, 

Thank you so much for your response! Sorry forgot to say Freddie is 18 weeks. Perhaps then we are walking him for too long? During the week he is on a leashed walk but on weekends he runs free in the dog section of the country park. 
My worry is we both work so he is left for periods of upto 3-4 hours max (my partner goes home for lunch to feed and let him out and check on him). He usually sleeps for most of this time (we have had a puppy cam on him). I guess perhaps I am trying to overcompensate when I get home with the long walks and lots of attention. But the issue is during the week he just will not settle in the evenings so is awake from about 4.30pm until 9.30/10pm. At intervals during this time he has some mad dashes but then hides under his favourite chair and barks/bites - which I take for being too tired. I encourage him to settle but he often wont until I put him in his quiet area. 

Thanks for your ideas on the dish cloth and ice cubes! I will definitely try that. 

Just hoping he learns to chill out a little more in the evening with us!


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## susanb (Jan 19, 2012)

I had forgotten the frozen tea-towel idea.....we used one when Gisgo was teething and it was fabulous....If I was doing it again, I would set 2 aside for this - one in the freezer ready and one that he was using, as they do soon defrost and warm up and then lose the benefit. It seemed to really help him, and is such an easy idea.


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## The_Fredster (Jan 30, 2015)

I will definitely try freezing things! thanks for the advice on doubling up Susanb - also Miss Lilly as per your request a few pictures of Fredster!


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## Datun Walnut (Oct 15, 2013)

Sorry to report that he sounds perfectly normal to me. I remember trying to hold a snappy furry blur to calm her down and despairing a bit. It will pass.
It's just hard when the doodle dash coincides with the time of the day when you are at your lowest ebb.


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## fairlie (Sep 7, 2013)

Sounds normal to me too.  Is the stuffie with the heart a pig or a cow or a ? Whatever it is it is your puppy is adorableness on steroids.


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## Lindor (Feb 3, 2014)

Normal behavior for a puppy. Maggie was very energetic in the evenings too. Now at 11 months she is content to curl up for a sleep on my knee while we watch tv. Fairlie, looks like a piggy to me. What is it M?


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## Miss Lilly (Sep 12, 2014)

The Fredster is officially gorgeous! 

And it's obvious that he is absolutely adored by you. 

I'm just wondering though: you say that he sleeps pretty much all the time when you are out and then won't settle till pretty late in the evening. It seems to me that he has already done a lot of his sleeping by this time and, without a good run around, he will have a lot of energy to burn off!

When Miss Lills was little, she would sleep for a few hours, come and play for 20-30 mins and then she'd be done in again for a while. Whist she was teething, all this went out the window - she just chewed, gnawed and shredded around the clock it seemed and then one day, all of a sudden, she was calm. I thought she might be unwell at first but no, it was just that her big molars had finally come through!

Is there no way that you could take him somewhere more local where he can run off lead a bit during the week? Apart from anything else, its an important part of his socialisation to be able to play with other doggies. And if that isn't possible, then even a bit of 'free' play in your garden (assuming you have one) is better than nothing.

I do think 40-50 mins lead walking is a lot to ask of the little fellow. Its very repetitive exercise in terms of his muscular and skeletal development and puts a lot of strain on his joints which are as yet not fully developed.


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## Marzi (Sep 17, 2012)

The Fredster is a seriously cute looking chap - perfection would be too much!
A bit of brain exercise does the trick or something super to chew. Dot loved/loves a bull's horn - much more than an antler - not so hard and the fibrous ends I think must feel good on sore gums.
When Dot was younger - I would put her to bed for an hour or so around 7:45 - she'd crash out , then when I'd done bed time for youngest child and the odd essential household job  then I'd wake her up - she was always nicely snoozy at this point and we'd have gentle quiet companionable time before last visit to the garden and bed.
You and your dog will get into a routine that works for you - another couple of months and you'll be thinking that you've cracked it and then the super light early mornings will start and you'll be back on here complaining about him barking along to the dawn chorus as 4:20 am...
So much to look forward to!
One thing - if he is under the chair barking ignore him - it sounds a little as if he might be guarding his special place/or toy that he has stashed there. Do not ever grab at him or physically try and remove him from this 'den'. Go into the kitchen and rattle the treat jar and give a little whistle. Praise him when he comes and reward him.


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## The_Fredster (Jan 30, 2015)

Thank you all so much for your replies! Very kind and really good guidance! I must admit I am finding it a bit much at the moment - but do realise much of this is a phase and I need to be patient. 

We try brain type tricks with the kong. And during some of the week nights my partner will take him to a smaller park and let him run off lead - I tend to give him leashed walks though as I don't like walking through dark parks alone in the winter :-/
We do have a garden as well which we let him run around whenever he wants! 

It is a little pig! He is obsessed with pig related items!! 

Oh gosh I am fearful of the 4:20 morning wake ups!! :-(


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## gelfling (Feb 7, 2015)

What a beautiful dog, may I ask which breeders he came from? Many thanks


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