Not a problem, but......

[Jill Ramsey]

Fischer has never gone to sleep anywhere but in his crate or x-pen, which is fine, but sometimes I would like to sit & watch tv, and have him there. If he and Finnegan are in the same room, he just won't leave Finn alone. Playbiting and wrestling, etc. We've separated them, Hubby & Finn in the family room~Fischer and I in the living room. He still just plays and investigates and keeps moving. Once in awhile, he will lay down for 10 or 20 seconds and then he's back playing again. I've kept him up later than his normal bed time, and took him in there after puppy class ( I was exhausted, but he was still playing). :shock:
I've had him in down and wait, but that only lasts a minute at the most (which is pretty good for a 14 week old puppy, I guess). I've had him lay down and rubbed his belly, which will keep him quiet for a minute.

Any suggestions other than drugging him? Just kidding!!

[Amber]

It's kinda the same way with Precious and Sally ever since I adopted Sally 7 months ago. Precious will even sit on Sally's head! I don't know what to tell you with getting the puppy to stop aggravating the older dog as I am having the same issue, but I can tell you what I did to get Sally out of her crate and with the rest of the family. In the book Help for Your Shy Dog by Deborah Wood, she says in order to get a shy dog out with the rest of the family, don't let them stay in the shadows, i.e. in the crate or corner of the room, etc. Sally used to stay in her crate 24/7, unless I went in and picked her up and held her. I started putting her on the couch with me and getting my mom to close ALL crates in the house (1 for Precious, 1 for Sally) and that way she HAD to stay up there with me, therefore she had to stay in the middle of what was going on in the household at the moment. Now all I have to say is "Couch" and she'll run out of her crate onto the couch. Sometimes she'll even just get on the couch just because she wants to! And this is the dog who was so completely scared of people 7 months ago that she was deemed hopeless!

I would just try closing his crate when you want him to stay with you and see what he does. It worked with Sally. I had to give her some reassurance at first, but now she LOVES getting on the couch...she'll stay up there all day sometimes! Sometimes there will be a loud noise or my mom will move and Sally will try to run and I will make her stay on the couch and look at whatever she was trying to run from and then tell her she is a "Good Girl!". I don't know if the behavior he is showing is out of fear or if it is something that he is just used to doing (sleeping just in the crate or x-pen), that is why I'm telling you all this. In Sally's case it was extreme fear. Good luck!

[Jill Ramsey]

Thanks, Amber, but he doesn't stay in his crate, or run to it. He will stay in the room with us, he just doesn't settle down at all. I finally have enough of the play/roughhousing,(makes it kind of hard to watch tv) and put him to bed in the crate!!

[Melissa Brunoehler]

Why not keep his leash on & reward him for laying down & being calm? I would ignore all his puppy antics but reward him with soothing praise & tiny treats for lying down quietly.

Thanks, Amber, but he doesn't stay in his crate, or run to it. He will stay in the room with us, he just doesn't settle down at all. I finally have enough of the play/roughhousing,(makes it kind of hard to watch tv) and put him to bed in the crate!!

[Chris Smith]

Hi Jill,

Nalu is 10 months old now and he still has only two modes - fast asleep or constantly moving and playing. There is no in between and I am continually amazed at his energy level. He has to constantly be busy. When I get him to settle (he knows this command), he falls asleep within a minute. He never just lays still just to be petted or just to lay there. I sometimes think he has ADD (or maybe there is a little herding breed mixed into him)!! So at 14 weeks, little Fischer may have a way to go before he is able to lay calmly without being asleep.

Sorry I am not offering any advice...the best I can say is that I have gotten Nalu to be in the living room with me when I have had enough of the playing - but he is asleep next to me; not just relaxing like me!

[Jill Ramsey]

Thanks for the advice, everyone. I may just have to be patient and wait for him to grow up some more! :help2:
He is just so completely different than Finn was. More outgoing, no fear, very bouncy & vocal. Everyone at puppy class thinks he's going to be a great agility dog. Someone told me I should have named him Jumping Jack! Or Bounce!
Tonight at puppy graduation, they bring in a tunnel and small bridge/ramp for them to try. I can't wait to see him on them! I'll try to take some pictures.

[Rowena Fry]

Hi Jill!
I don't really have any advice, but I definitely know where you're coming from. I think it's their age, and that with time they'll learn to settle down. Gum Gum was exactly the same when she was smaller (she's now 7 months), she just wouldn't stop, no matter how much exercise she'd had!

When the Sleepy Dogs pictures first started appearing, I realised that Gum Gum never slept when she was out and about with us, she would only sleep if we put her in her room. So I started putting her in her room for naps in the day, otherwise like a little kid, she'd get overtired and start acting out!

Then one day, I can't remember exactly when, she just started napping when she was in the living room with us. (In fact, she's curled up fast asleep on her cushion next to me as I'm typing this, sooooo sweet! :D ) Sometimes she still gets overexcited when she's really tired though and will start nipping and barking, and I'll put her in her room for a nap. I think it's just that when they're small, being with their family is just too exciting and their curious and playful nature means they don't know when to stop, so like young children, you have to help them out a bit by assigning nap times!

Loved the news pics by the way, what a cutie Fischer is!

Take care!

[Jill Ramsey]

Thanks, Rowena, That's pretty much what I thought, but decided to ask anyway. I put Fischer in his x-pen when he needs a nap, or in the room where his crate is. We put his crate in the office with Finnegan a couple of weeks ago, when he was sleeping through the night. Finnegan has his bed in there, but his crate is still in our dining room.
We were told by a trainer that having them sleeping in your room can contribute to separation anxiety. I don't know if it's true, but Finnegan has been better at not chewing anything since he started sleeping in the office. He's loose in there all night, and hasn't chewed a thing!
Oh, kind of got off the subject there.
Thanks again.