# One year old Puppy advice



## catalena

Hello! 

It has been months since I asked any questions, but I need some help! Copper is one year old, we have had him since 8 weeks. He is very sweet, but so wild. He went to puppy training and the trainer told me to expect him to be like this until at least 2 years, maybe 3. We love him very much, but this year has been hard. He's just very jumpy and hyper, especially when new people come over. I have to put him in his crate when there are kids or company over and honestly I don't see much point in having a great dog who's in his crate so much of the time. It doesnt seem fair to him. We want him to be with us but the energy just never seems to end. I take him for walks, and he is better on his leash, but every time he sees someone he just gets so excited I can hardly hold him. One of my initial reasons for getting him was to be a running partner, but he's just too jumpy. I've tried to have him sleep outside of his crate at night but he only rests for a while then he's up roaming the house getting into things. He has destroyed many things, and I feel I am at my wits end. My main questions are 1) How long does the wild puppy behavior last? and 2) Could the crate be causing some of our problem? If he was just out of his crate, unless we were gone would he adapt to new people better and maybe not be so wild? To his credit, he has taken to training very well, except for the new people thing. His trainer says he is a "high-drive" dog and that will never change. Help?!
Stacey


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## Oaklys Dad

Sounds like you have a pretty normal pup there. It does sound like you need to find a way for him to burn off some on that excess energy. A nice hour long walk everyday would be a good start. Structured walking on heel also exercises his mind by having to concentrate on you. For a really good work out seek out a place where he can run free and swim for a bit. 

I used to have to put Oakly on a leash when people came over so I could correct him if he started to jump. Tell you guests that they can not pat the dog until he is sitting quietly.

Like your trainer said he is still quite young but he will come around with a little work.


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## mdoats

Rookie is only 6 months old, but he LOVES to meet people on his walks and since we go past the park a couple at least a couple of times a day there's always someone new to meet.

I usually bring along a handful of his kibble and use that as treats. Whenever we start to get near someone who is going to pass by us, I get Rookie to focus on me using a watch me command and then I focus on loose leash walking clicking and treating if he doesn't pull. We walk before breakfast and before dinner so he's usually (but not always) more interested in the food than the passerby. If the passerby wants to pet him, I have Rookie sit and I step on his leash and make sure he CAN'T jump on them.

He does still go nuts when someone comes to the house but it usually only lasts the first few minutes and then he mellows out a bit. I do leash him and step on his leash when the visitor arrives though.


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## Swampcollie

catalena said:


> Hello!
> 
> 1) How long does the wild puppy behavior last? and
> 
> 2) Could the crate be causing some of our problem?
> 
> Stacey


Nice looking pup! That boy has some fire in his eye! (I like it!)

He will be a pup for at least another 12 to 18 months, but you should get a handle on him now before his "undesireable" behaviors become habit. You may need to adjust your approach to training and become more firm with him. I suspect that a "walk" is not near enough exercise for this boy, and that may be contributing to the problem. This boy needs to run or swim a mile or two each day to take the edge off his energy reserves. 

Work on obedience drills in the yard, on lead, to affirm your social position as the leader (here, sit, stay, down, etc.). (Heeling pattern drills can help a lot.) 

Some excitement should be expected the second the pup is released from the crate, but that usually subsides in a minute or so.


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## Chelsea(NL)

Have you tried the gental leader. i started using it with Chelsea at 4mths. She walks really good, it's night and day between having it on and off on walks.


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## Brandy's Mom

You've got yourself a gorgeous field golden, and they are known for their drive and spunk. Mine was pretty much as energetic as yours, and she started calming down dramatically at 2-1/2. 

I treated every second I was with her as an opportunity for her to learn the house rules. In other words, don't let him get away with anything you don't want to be a permanent behavior. It doesn't have to be stressful or time consuming. Just learn to be the pack leader. 

The Nothing in Life is Free concept helped, as did a lot of practice with greeting people correctly at the door. 

To help burn energy, we did agility. It's something field goldens tend to do extremely well in, and it was a fabulous bonding experience for us. Even one night a week helped tremendously, and it helped her learn to focus on what I was asking her to do. 

There's nothing wrong with using the crate. It keeps your belongings safe, and it keeps him safe. But teach him how to earn your trust and he won't be needing it as much as he matures.


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## HovawartMom

I don't want to discourage you but my male destroyed his last thing,the day,he turned 2 .Titus would only destroyed,at night,so I crated him but,during the day,he never touched anything,even if he was left,alone,for 9 hrs.i never understood that!.
Exercise him,more and make him swim.
Remember a happy dog is a tired dog.
I exercise my dogs, 2 to 4 miles a day,and when I don't have the time,I bicycle them!.
You have a gorgeous,healthy and perfectly normal dog!.


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## MissNikkisMom

Everyone has given you good advice.

He's a field golden -- if you're not going to hunt him he needs ways to channel is energy and intelligence. My girl was hyper up until she was about 18 months. The she settled down quite a bit. Still a lot of energy, but she started to listen and heed commands. It took a lot of work. I swear she was 2 years old before I could get her to heel on command.

The only other thing is exercise, exercise, exercise. They need to run and take lonnnng walks if nothing else. We take a 90 minute walk in the a.m. or p.m. and then dog park for at least an hour. We also practice obedience commands and fetch with her dumbbells and pheasant dummies.

I had a real mellow fellow before Miss Nikki so she came as a bit of a shock to my system. I'm glad she's high energy.

Your boy is so handsome!


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## Brandy's Mom

MissNikkisMom said:


> I had a real mellow fellow before Miss Nikki so she came as a bit of a shock to my system. I'm glad she's high energy.


So true about the shock! Before we got Brandy, we had no clue there were different lines! Reyna was calm at 6 months old. She got into mischief but she didn't have near the energy that Brandy had.


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## catalena

Thanks for all the advice....

I never expected Copper to be so full of energy. The reason I picked him in particular was because he was so laid back with all of his brothers and sisters! He just let them roll all over him and chew on him. So yes, shock is a good word for it! I will try to exercise him more and see if that helps. His breeder said he came from hunting lines, but I honestly can't imagine it! He has lost at least 5 balls in the fields by our house....he can't even sniff out a treat unless he can see it! he's a sweet boy and I just want him to be with us forever, if we can just make it another year or so with our house intact! 

I will try what was said here and let you know how it goes. If I could get him to be better on leash, I think that would solve alot of problems because then i could run with him more. Thanks again!
Stacey


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## Brandy's Mom

Stacey, keep posting on your progress! Having a field golden can be a challenge and we can definitely give you some tips as you go along. 

Copper is lucky to have a mom like you, who cares enough to do what it takes to make him a good member of the family. 

You WILL get there with him. One day it will just start to click. As I mentioned, Brandy is 2-1/2 and she prefers cuddling to just about anything else in the world. But she sure didn't start out like that. She was a wild child who wouldn't settle down for anything or anyone for the longest time.


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