# Agressive Frapping



## fostermom (Sep 6, 2007)

Sounds like the zoomies to me and it's very common when they are excited and want to play. Is he off leash when this happens?


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## Elisabeth Kazup (Aug 23, 2008)

Zoomies! And great fun...all in play! It means he's really REALLY really happy. Enjoy!


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## HiTideGoldens (Dec 29, 2009)

Ours all get post-bath and post-swim zoomies. We just stay out of their way! haha


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## Laurie (Sep 20, 2009)

One of my guys does this and he's 3 years old!!! Zoomies!!!!!


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## Tucker's mommy (Nov 9, 2011)

Our Tucker is now a year old, and he gets EXTREMELY crazy outside if we don't know the signal to tone down the play. Since we've now learned his "signs" we know to put him in a quick sit/down/stay with a quick train/treat before he gets out of control. Just in case he does, though, we keep a drag line on him at all times when he's out in our yard (invisible fence) because it is MUCH easier to settle him when we have a line to hold onto instead of trying to wrestle him off of us, which only gets him MORE excited. Your pup sounds alot like our Tucker! Ever since he's been a pup, if we get in the way of his zoomies, his mouth tends to become part of the fun. Yuck. We've learned that it's all in play - as Tucker is growing, we see so much more of his gentle side - even when out in the yard. It does get better! :wave:


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## Quiksilver737 (Jun 6, 2012)

He is usually on leash when he does this. It can be fun, but he really starts to snarl and bite us if he gets overly excited. He has made me bleed multiple times, and it is very hard to just get out of the way.


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## fostermom (Sep 6, 2007)

If he's getting out of control, you need to have him sit. Work on his sit command when he's not excited until he is spot on when you say it. That will help break the manic biting at you.


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## vcm5 (Apr 20, 2011)

It just sounds like zoomies to me, they definitely can get out of control! Crazy pups! Maybe if you are really worried about it you could post a video?


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## laprincessa (Mar 24, 2008)

I love the zooms!
Isn't that part of owning a Golden?


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## Quiksilver737 (Jun 6, 2012)

Yes, it is fun at first; however, when he becomes aggressive and starts growling and biting us it is not as cute.


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## laprincessa (Mar 24, 2008)

He's not being aggressive, he's over-excited and possibly over-tired. Just have him sit, ignore him, he'll settle. There will come a time when you'll miss these days.


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## quilter (Sep 12, 2011)

Quiksilver737 said:


> Yes, it is fun at first; however, when he becomes aggressive and starts growling and biting us it is not as cute.


I was going to say the same thing. It's one thing to go zooming around. It's another when the dog is jumping, biting, and body slamming. (They are capable of not slamming into you when they are zooming around.) When our dog gets like this, we put him into a sit or a down. It can take a second or two to get him there, but he knows that the game is up. Particularly in a down position. I'm not talking about an alpha roll or whatever, but stepping on the leash so he's down. Then he stays there until he stops panting and his eyes stop bugging out. And then a little bit more. It's a little bit after he looks calm that he really is calm. For example, Casper is able to sit quietly as people walk by. But in his head he's all excited and wants to greet them. Sometimes, the second I release him he starts jumping at me. That means I released him too soon.


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## vcm5 (Apr 20, 2011)

Quiksilver737 said:


> Yes, it is fun at first; however, when he becomes aggressive and starts growling and biting us it is not as cute.


Agreed! No one wants to be hurt by their dog, even if they are trying to play. I'm not sure how to best proceed. Is there anything that calms him down? Maybe getting his attention on something else, like a game or a command?

Do you have a video of this behavior? I'm sure people could give better advice if we could see what you are dealing with. I hope you find a solution!


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## Discoverer (Feb 3, 2011)

Puppy zoomies. Yay!!! I loved them, but unfortunately as your dog grows up they will go away ... :uhoh: And let me assure all these growling and biting have nothing to do with an aggressiveness at all. That's the way the dogs play with each other and if you didn't teach him otherwise, he'll play the same way with you. Also getting crazy after swimming are well known "behavior" of the Goldens. Do not try to stop it - use it! Throw the items for him to retrieve or better yet, if there is another dog he can play with, they will zoom with each other. I would discourage you though trying to run and play with a pup when he zooms as being overexcited he could bite you really hard. As I said it's not aggressive biting by any means, but still hurts.
Enjoy the fluffy ball of energy you have!


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## Tucker's mommy (Nov 9, 2011)

I've already posted once, but I'll post again. I agree with everything here. Zoomies ARE fun, but the mouthiness that comes with it at times is NOT. We are constantly working with this and our Tucker, as he's had a tendancy to be quite rough with us in his excitement since puppyhood, and we have three young kids at home. So we need to be extra careful. Just tonight, I was unloading the three kids from the minivan after a trip out for ice cream (our end of school year tradition) and my hubby was out with Tucker. Thank goodness he had the line on him, because he went CRAZY with excitement when me and the kids got out of the car, lunging and biting at me, happier than happy. So, into the crate for a very short timeout he went. Within seconds, full recovery. We do love Tucker, but his lack of control over that mouth of his when he gets overexcited has really taken some getting used to! So I totally know what you're dealing with.


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## Tucker's mommy (Nov 9, 2011)

One more thing to add - we actually had a trainer come to our house to work with us on this problem, as it was VERY bad for us when Tucker was between 8-10 months. We were told by her that everything we were doing was the right thing. The post by quilter's mom is very similar to how we handle our furball when he gets this way. He's getting MUCH better, but there are still those moments when we don't realize he's overtired or as stimulated as he apparently is. We'll probably always deal with a bit of a lack of impulse control from our Tucker, but as I said, with consistent training and patience (and just plain growing up on his part!), it has gotten much better.


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## Pointgold (Jun 6, 2007)

Frap = frenetic random activity period. AKA "zoomies". Usually a situation where the puppy is over stimulated. I generally let them go for a short bit, then redirect and calm them before they are unable to control themselves.​


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## Willow52 (Aug 14, 2009)

Hank got the zoomies the other evening when my brother stopped by with his dog. Then the other dog joined in. Oh my, two dogs with the zoomies!!! It was so fun to watch. The only thing to do is ...stand back!


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## wbetheajr (Mar 12, 2012)

Riley does this occasionally, especially if I am filling up his little pool, he will get wide open jumping the pool several times until suddenly he lands right in the middle. Now last night he had an accident with the zoomies, I took him out for a potty break and off he went all over the back yard, he come around the corner and went air born hitting me in the chest and knocking me backwards, when he went to the ground he started yelping and holding up his paw. he tried to get up and couldn't, so I picked him up and carried him on the porch. I was scared to death he had broke his leg, I checked it and after a few minutes he started sitting it on the floor. Today he is walking on it fine and just favors it after he has laid down for a while.


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## Gratitude14 (Jan 2, 2014)

*Zoomies*

We were told by a trainer that we should capture our puppy when he has the zoomies because it's frightening and uncontrollable for the dog. They think something in the brain short circuits and they need to be stopped. We corner our guy and lay on him until he signs. Then we give him some ice cubes and he's fine. We used to let him go until he stopped but do differently at the trainers advise. He does seem to appreciate or halting of this behavior.


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## Charliethree (Jul 18, 2010)

'Zoomies' are energy burners, and fun for the dog, there is no need to interrupt, (unless they are at risk of hurting themselves) just let them get it out their systems. My adult dogs still get the 'zoomies' once in a while, no 'disconnect', just a huge 'smile' on their faces!


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## Cpc1972 (Feb 23, 2015)

Ha ha. Chloe gets the zoomies right before she crashes. Tonight she ran inside for about twenty seconds. Then she went outside and ran so fast. Its so cute. When we first got her she could fit in places and run behind things. She is so big now she cant fit anymore.


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## Loukia (Sep 20, 2014)

Tucker's mommy said:


> ...Zoomies ARE fun, but the mouthiness that comes with it at times is NOT. ...into the crate for a very short timeout he went. Within seconds, full recovery...


We deal with this too! Comet (9 months) gets the zoomies and for some reason, about 25% when my husband or kids are around, he'll start body slamming and jump biting. He gets the zoomies all the time with me but never does much more than run into my legs from time to time (or run into the wall, bed, etc. - I honestly don't think he has a sense of where he's going enough to avoid things). Comet is always on a leash or a long line when the kids are around and I've gotten really good at identifying the "pre-zoomies" behavior so I can get a hold of him and keep the kids out of harm's way. I hate to make him stop the zoomies because 75% he doesn't bite and it's just so darn cute when he keeps his mouth to himself. We also find that when he starts biting and jumping, a time out in the crate is in order and cures the problem. I don't know if it's being over tired or over excited but when Comet's zoomies become biting zoomies, he's just about lost his mind and he's generally way beyond sit or down commands.

I've never heard that zoomies are a bad thing. Sometimes he'll zoom around, come over, give me a lick, zoom around some more, check back in, zoom and then lay down and fall asleep. The only time I stop him is if he starts biting.


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## laprincessa (Mar 24, 2008)

Gratitude14 said:


> We were told by a trainer that we should capture our puppy when he has the zoomies because it's frightening and uncontrollable for the dog. They think something in the brain short circuits and they need to be stopped. We corner our guy and lay on him until he signs. Then we give him some ice cubes and he's fine. We used to let him go until he stopped but do differently at the trainers advise. He does seem to appreciate or halting of this behavior.


I'm really tired and I've been fighting with excel for the last couple of hours, so I have no filters right now and I'm just gonna say this - 
that's the stupidest thing I ever heard and you need to get a new trainer, but first you need to stand back and laugh your head off at the zoomies because when they stop, you'll miss those puppy days.


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## SwimDog (Sep 28, 2014)

Some of the responses make me very sad for the families and dogs involved - and sometimes concerned for the safety. It seems so sad to me that a person would get in a fight with a dog over a normal species-specific behavior.

One trainer I respect encourages the running in her dogs (Lolabuland) - she adds in a special cue and then can later ask them to do it at more appropriate times. She joins in their running games and becomes part of the fun rather than someone who stops fun.

If a dog is causing injury or if people are nervous, obviously we need to change something about the activity - have the dog hold a toy, have the people cheeer from the other side of a gate, use a more appropriate toy, etc.


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## Coby Love (Apr 9, 2015)

Also don't give your dogs ice cubes! They'll end up barfing all their food up. Well Coby did, anyway. As a pup he liked them, but as an adult... puke city.



laprincessa said:


> I'm really tired and I've been fighting with excel for the last couple of hours, so I have no filters right now and I'm just gonna say this -
> that's the stupidest thing I ever heard and you need to get a new trainer, but first you need to stand back and laugh your head off at the zoomies because when they stop, you'll miss those puppy days.


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## laprincessa (Mar 24, 2008)

Coby Love said:


> Also don't give your dogs ice cubes! They'll end up barfing all their food up. Well Coby did, anyway. As a pup he liked them, but as an adult... puke city.


Max loves ice cubes
And at 7 and 1/2 years old, he still gets the zooms, and I still laugh - and love every minute of it. He's the happiest puppy in the world when he's zooming around the field and swerving just at that moment when I think he's gonna take me down. I just can't imagine wanting that pure, wonderful, joy to ever stop.


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## AmberSunrise (Apr 1, 2009)

Please consider getting a new trainer. Your puppy needs to be trained with someone who has some knowledge of dog behavior and this particular advise is not only bad for your puppy but may turn dangerous for you. 



Gratitude14 said:


> We were told by a trainer that we should capture our puppy when he has the zoomies because it's frightening and uncontrollable for the dog. They think something in the brain short circuits and they need to be stopped. We corner our guy and lay on him until he signs. Then we give him some ice cubes and he's fine. We used to let him go until he stopped but do differently at the trainers advise. He does seem to appreciate or halting of this behavior.


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## Susan: w/ Summit we climb (Jun 12, 2014)

Our two do zoomies at the same time, one right behind the other. They're having a great time!


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## Cpc1972 (Feb 23, 2015)

Chloe loves ice cubes. It helps her teething.


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## goldlover68 (Jun 17, 2013)

It is just pure fun....puppies frequently do this! Perfectly normal, after you have trained to dog well in obedience you will be able to stop this, although many will do it until they are to old to do it. The key is to be able to stop them!


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## Flare's Sister :) (Feb 7, 2015)

So totally golden!! My 19 month old does that after dinner! She loves zoomies (we have to be out of her way!)!! I love it when she does that! But she stops after being told to sit! Lovely dogs these goldens are!!!


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## Discoverer (Feb 3, 2011)

Gratitude14 said:


> We were told by a trainer that we should capture our puppy when he has the zoomies because it's frightening and uncontrollable for the dog. They think something in the brain short circuits and they need to be stopped. We corner our guy and lay on him until he signs. Then we give him some ice cubes and he's fine. We used to let him go until he stopped but do differently at the trainers advise. He does seem to appreciate or halting of this behavior.


Walk away, no - RUN away from that trainer, as apparently he knows absolutely nothing about the puppy's behavior. If you'll continue to corner and lay on him during his zoomies, all that unburned energy will find the other ways - destroying surrounding items, excessive chewing and unfortunately can even lead to an aggressive biting. Do not ruin your dog and let him zoom for as long as he can.
And BTW the ice cubes are good for dogs.


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## Gratitude14 (Jan 2, 2014)

laprincessa said:


> I'm really tired and I've been fighting with excel for the last couple of hours, so I have no filters right now and I'm just gonna say this -
> that's the stupidest thing I ever heard and you need to get a new trainer, but first you need to stand back and laugh your head off at the zoomies because when they stop, you'll miss those puppy days.


So I find a need to clarify my zoomie prodical. When we come back from our evening walk there are times out of nowhere our pup jumps up, and starts running crazy in the house. We have slippery hardwood floors and not a very large house. He now weighs 65 lbs and is 8 months old. Not a laughing matter.
We no longer can swoop him up in our arms to stop him. So we hold him for about 15 seconds for him to catch his breath. Then we rub his tummy, tell him he's an awesome boy and treat with ice cubes. He must be stopped in the house.
Over stimulated with training on his walk may be a factor. Outside puppy running & playing is fun to watch and not interfered with.


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## fostermom (Sep 6, 2007)

Gratitude14 said:


> So I find a need to clarify my zoomie prodical. When we come back from our evening walk there are times out of nowhere our pup jumps up, and starts running crazy in the house. We have slippery hardwood floors and not a very large house. He now weighs 65 lbs and is 8 months old. Not a laughing matter.
> We no longer can swoop him up in our arms to stop him. So we hold him for about 15 seconds for him to catch his breath. Then we rub his tummy, tell him he's an awesome boy and treat with ice cubes. He must be stopped in the house.
> Over stimulated with training on his walk may be a factor. Outside puppy running & playing is fun to watch and not interfered with.


When my youngest starts to wind up into zoomie time, I take him outside and say "zoomie!!!" and he races all over the place, getting his zoomies out. So when you see him start getting the zoomies, take him outside and let him go, matter of fact, encourage him to go!


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## laprincessa (Mar 24, 2008)

Gratitude14 said:


> So I find a need to clarify my zoomie prodical. When we come back from our evening walk there are times out of nowhere our pup jumps up, and starts running crazy in the house. We have slippery hardwood floors and not a very large house. He now weighs 65 lbs and is 8 months old. Not a laughing matter.
> We no longer can swoop him up in our arms to stop him. So we hold him for about 15 seconds for him to catch his breath. Then we rub his tummy, tell him he's an awesome boy and treat with ice cubes. He must be stopped in the house.
> Over stimulated with training on his walk may be a factor. Outside puppy running & playing is fun to watch and not interfered with.



Get out of his way, and let him go. Open the door and let him out - let him run it off outside. Holding him down isn't the way to go - and if you think he's overstimulated, then maybe you back down on the training on his walk.


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## jennretz (Jul 24, 2013)

Gratitude14 said:


> We were told by a trainer that we should capture our puppy when he has the zoomies because it's frightening and uncontrollable for the dog. They think something in the brain short circuits and they need to be stopped. We corner our guy and lay on him until he signs. Then we give him some ice cubes and he's fine. We used to let him go until he stopped but do differently at the trainers advise. He does seem to appreciate or halting of this behavior.



I would get a new trainer


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## Lilliam (Apr 28, 2010)

Gratitude14 said:


> We were told by a trainer that we should capture our puppy when he has the zoomies because it's frightening and uncontrollable for the dog. They think something in the brain short circuits and they need to be stopped. We corner our guy and lay on him until he signs. Then we give him some ice cubes and he's fine. We used to let him go until he stopped but do differently at the trainers advise. He does seem to appreciate or halting of this behavior.



Please get another trainer. The zoomies are no more a problem than you dancing in your kitchen when you hear your favourite song. It's pure joy to be alive. 

I love it when my dogs get the zoomies. It means they're happy. 

Zoomies are a gift. One day when he's gone you will look back and smile and cry at the same time.


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## Tripp43 (Oct 30, 2012)

Quiksilver737 said:


> Our 9 month old golden has frequent frapping episodes, especially when we take him swimming. He sprints back and forth, but also lunges at us while growling and biting. It seems aggressive, but it's hard to tell whether it's play or not. We are having trouble controlling and stopping this behavior. Any advice?
> 
> Thank you!


Our Golden Tripp is 3 1/2 and still gets the zoomies when he is happy and excited on our walks. He had them more often as a pup and they were pretty intense at times, with the lunging and jumping at us to get involved. Tripp actually tore the sleeves on a couple of jackets this way. 
We always let him "frap it out" though; far too cute to try and stop and we knew that even though our beautiful pup had turned into a crazy Tasmanian devil, it would only last a couple of minutes. But to avoid becoming part of the Frap we would carry a toy or grab a stick to give him in case he came at us all crazy frappy. It worked great...no more torn jackets.


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## Rumple’s Mom (Apr 1, 2015)

Whoa, I'm with the others, get a new trainer ASAP! Would you like it if you were dancing around to your favorite song, or getting giddy over something that made you happy....and then someone you love cornered you, lay on top of you and made you "calm down"? No one would, including our dogs. 

If you keep on doing that, I'm worried it'll backfire on you. Let him zoom around and be happy, I loved it when our old dog did that around the yard.


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## Cpc1972 (Feb 23, 2015)

I was just thinking of this thread when watching the joy chloe was having doing her zoomie tonight. She had a stuffed bunny in her mouth running with all her might. So cute.


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## Claudia M (Aug 8, 2012)

I have managed and re-directed the zoomies especially in the house. Mostly due to possibilities of injury on a puppy not yet fully developed. Hip and Elbow dysplasia is also environmental.


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## samralf (Aug 11, 2012)

My 14 year old sheltie still gets the zoomies. Not as often as I'd like but he occasionally will zoom around and do the play stance. I can't imagine stopping him from having fun because a trainer said it was dangerous.


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## mylissyk (Feb 25, 2007)

Gratitude14 said:


> We were told by a trainer that we should capture our puppy when he has the zoomies because it's frightening and uncontrollable for the dog. They think something in the brain short circuits and they need to be stopped. We corner our guy and lay on him until he signs. Then we give him some ice cubes and he's fine. We used to let him go until he stopped but do differently at the trainers advise. He does seem to appreciate or halting of this behavior.


Corner and lay down on your puppy. Please don't do this to your dog, you are only frightening him. He is having fun, there is no harm in running laps and being silly. You really should consult a different trainer, or two, for some other opinions.


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## laprincessa (Mar 24, 2008)

Flava said:


> Whoa, I'm with the others, get a new trainer ASAP! Would you like it if you were dancing around to your favorite song, or getting giddy over something that made you happy....and then someone you love cornered you, lay on top of you and made you "calm down"? No one would, including our dogs.
> 
> If you keep on doing that, I'm worried it'll backfire on you. Let him zoom around and be happy, I loved it when our old dog did that around the yard.


I love this post.
I dance in the house, in the car, anywhere the mood strikes - yes, I'm THAT person. I could just imagine my husband running into the kitchen and shoving me into the corner to make me stop. Ummm, no.


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