Sweet by day, Cujo by night

[Puppy Madness]

Buster is 3 months old, and in many ways he's a wonderful dog. But at night it's like someone wound him up. He's hyper, mouthy (I have the cuts on my hands and arms to prove it) and just can't settle down. It's been raining almost non-stop, so evening walks aren't happening, which I know would help. Also we've just decided we're not ok with him being on the couch (directly related to his "your body is my chew toy" behavior) and that's amped him up even more. 

 

We're tried:

 

1. Redirecting his chewing onto toys or bones (works for a minute or two)

2. Spray of water when he won't stop chewing (works for a minute or two)

3. Putting him outside (but it's cold and rainy -- don't like this)

4. Putting him in his kennel (don't like to do this till bedtime)

 

Any ideas, or do we just stay the course and ride it out? With appreciation...

[Cathy w/Shiloh~Cody]

My dog does the same thing at night,-but is 7 months old. I blamed it on teething-thinking

his teeth were bothering him. I cannot offer a solution-just letting you know you are not alone.

When he gets too crazy or mouthy, I take him to the bedroom and put him in his crate and he

falls asleep instantly.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

What is Buster doing during the day?

[Tina, Clover, Plus 5 More]

A couple of ideas I got here on DK.  Use a puzzle toy that has treats.  I read that someone took a knotted sock/towel, put it in the freezer and let them chew on it.  I was looking for ideas in the puppy forum when I read the sock idea.  I have never tried it, so maybe you could double check there.  G*** Luck

[Daelene & Molly]

You definitely are not alone.  Molly is also 3 months old and gets mouthy.  We learned at puppy school to say in a very loud voice "NO" and then we remove ourselves or Molly from the environment, even if that means just turning away from her.  She has definitely gotten better by not biting down, but at times she is still mouthy.  It took some work to get her to this point but I no longer have dagger wounds on my hands.  We also noticed that on our days off she sleeps quite a bit during the day so during the work week when we get home we go out to our backyard and throw the ball for our lab and she just chases him so gets worn out that way.  Hope this helps.

Daelene and Molly Doodle   

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

Have you tried bully sticks?

Also, I hate to say it, but I think with this much energy, you might have to still take him out for a walk or something to tire him out. I am like the mailman....neither snow nor rain, etc...I walk my dogs no matter what. Maybe if you absolutely don't want to take him out in bad weather, you could play ball with him or work on a little training. Sometimes mental stimulation is as tiring as physical stimulation.

Of course, I have a one year old dog that still gets me up at night...so what do I know...LOL.

[Becca & Lucy]

Yall might disagree but I think putting him in his crate is okay when he gets out of control. That way he will learn that its not okay to bite. Plus he's young. He does not need to be out of his crate 24/7. Lucy HATED her crate at first. Actuall hate is an understatement. Now she loves it. We gave her puzzle bones.. blanket... stuffed animal. We made it a very safe and secure place. Now she will put herself in there when she needs to chill out

[Minga & Malu & Costa]

Yes, there were times when Malu was so out of control I would put him in the crate for a time out (not angry or as a punishment, but just so I could get a break) then take him back out to play after he settled down. Worked like a charm.

[Adina P]

It's VERY typical for dogs to get amped up in the evening. Mine do their MOST and loudest wrestling about the time we sit down to watch TV 8pm-ish.  THAT is when they decide it's time to act like lunatics and pretend the house is a raceway. Then they start to wind down after 9pm (rough time estimates) and crash by 10pm.  So KNOW that the increased energy and feisty behavior is NORMAL in the evening.  Of course you don't want the feisty behavior to be biting on you.

 

As far as what works for only a minute or two...I think the main thing to remember is that at 3 months their attention span is SHORT.  So they'll forget or try again.  You just have to pick a response that stops them and be consistent in ALWAYS giving that SAME response each and every time.  In other words, don't expect the redirection to 'cure' him of the behavior. Redirection is just that...redirecting them onto something else. You might have to do that a few dozen times over the course of an evening.  But even a 'punishment' like spray of water would need to be repeated consistently.  If after you've done THE SAME thing (punishment wise) for at least a week, CONSISTENTLY, and it still gives no results...then and only then would I recommend you decide it 'doesn't work'. 

 

Finally, I don't think there is a THING wrong with crating when you've had enough.  I crate for whatever reason I feel like crating.  Sometimes because Boca won't heed a 'quiet' and continues barking at something. Sometimes because I have to hop in the shower and nobody is around to watch her.  Sometimes because nobody is home.  Sometimes because she's being spastic and I need peace and quiet.  Sometimes I do it before training to get her revved up to work and after training to give her some cool down thinking time. 

 

Crating when you've had enough isn't going to make the crate a bad place.  You don't have to make a huge deal out of it or yell at the dog to convince him he was bad.  Just say something like "that's enough" and usher him to his crate and relax knowing Cujo is safe and not biting you. 

[Harper]

I have a 5 month-old puppy and we find that lots of exercise is the best way to cure any behavioral problems.  

 

Do you know any dogs/puppies he could play with indoors?  That can really help tire a dog out, especially when the weather isn't very good.

 

We also play fetch inside the house with our dog (though I don't think she really understood the concept of fetch at 3 months) to tire her out.  We occasionally play keep-away/doodle-in-the-middle by throwing a frisbee between the two of us and keeping it from the pup.  Harper loves this game and it tires her out pretty well.  

 

Good luck!  The mouthing will subside naturally I think.  We weren't able to really pet Harper for awhile b/c she would just try to bite our hands.  Now we have plenty of opportunities to pet her without the risk of nips.  

[Jodi and Stella]

I used to put Stella in a restraining "time out" hold. I sit on the floor and put her between my knees facing away from me. Hold one hand on her chest and the other hand under her chin using very little force. I repeat the word "mellow", (use what you want) and will stroke her chest as she settles. This is very calming for her, it is not a punishment, just settles her down and shows her a little "gentle dominance". 

[Tina, Clover, Plus 5 More]

I just got home from Clovers puppy play group and someone in class has a 7 month old lab doing the same thing.  Last week she had bought the gentle leader and let Lulu wear it around the house to get used to it.  While Lulu was wearing it she discovered it helped with her behavior.  Not sure how or why this helped, but maybe someone else would.

[Debb, Lucy & Oscar]

Head halters (all kinds) do the same thing to my Lucy. She's much more docile when she's wearing one, especially around the house. Strangely, bandanas do the same thing to her. I'm not sure I would use a head halter necessarily on a 3 month old pup though. Pups just naturally have loads of energy in the evening (even Lucy, at 16 months is more active in the evening). We just put her in her crate when she gets out of control or demanding (barking at us for attention). It calms her down, and then we can start again with having her out. I agree though, with others that exercise is the best way to relieve excess energy. Crate time is necessary too, regardless of whether your pup is out of control or not. Lucy goes into her crate now on her own to sleep during the day. Oh, and nipping (and even downright biting) is a puppy thing. They DO grow out of it eventually. I remember the frustration I had back when Lucy was little with the constant mouthiness. My hands and arms were a real mess. It was the feet cleaning after coming in from the wet, muddy yard that got Lucy biting (now she actually lifts her feet, one at a time to have us clean them, and NO biting whatsoever). Its important never to play with the pup with your hands. Always use a toy to play with him/her. Time really helped with all the nipping. Bully sticks and Sams Yams sweet potato chews helped too, as well as three 5-min. training sessions every day.