# Do poodles stop when they've had enough?



## lrkellly (Jan 6, 2012)

Hi All,

I'm sure this has been discussed before, but I tried a few searches and couldn't find anything.

Anyway - I've heard that poodles will stop if you are walking or running, once they get too tired to go any further. Is this true?

Also, what about playing, fetch, for instance?

We use a chuck-it and my mini can chase it at top speed for a really long time, and we usually stop playing before he seems willing (usually at 30 mins or so). He goes hard the whole time. We just want to make sure that he would stop if he tired out... i would hate it if he just couldn't resist the ball and injured himself with too much exercise....

Thanks for any help!!


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## BorderKelpie (Dec 3, 2011)

I wouldn't count on it. There's a good chance he might, but I have learned the hard way, that no, many dogs will not. My BC x Kelpie gave himself a heat stroke one year, he just would not stop. With a poodle's die hard wish to please, I would be afraid he may not stop if he thinks you don't want to. 

Limiting him to 30 minutes of hard play is a great idea. After the 30 minutes, check his heart rate, respiration and gum color. If any seem too high, or his gum color is bright red, or worse, pale or muddy looking- Stop. If everything appears normal, start up a new game, maybe not as rousing. 

I don't know how hot it gets up there where you are, but I am in Texas and we are planning another really hot, dry year. Injuries and heat stroke hit fast and hard. The results can be devastating. If he does experience heat stroke, cool him off carefully - do not immerse him completely in water - just his chest, legs and belly. Take his temperature and remove him from the water when he gets down to 103*F (I'm not sure what that converts to, sorry). If you cool him down more than that before removing him from the water, his body will continue to cool while he dries risking hypothermia on top of the heat damage he already substaned. If you don't have access to water to dip him in, rubbing alcohol on his tummy will work, too. It dries out the skin and can cause irritation. I take a bottle of rubbing alcohol with me to training just in case. Do not put him in an airline type crate while he's wet. The water is unable to evaporate properly and ends up turning the crate into a sauna.

I tell everyone who is very active with their dogs to get used to his normal vital signs. Check them periodically throughout the day just to see what is normal for him, that way, you will recognize when there is a problem. 

Other than that - have a great time!


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## Poodle Head (Sep 12, 2011)

I'd have to agree with everything BorderKelpie said. My spoo doesn't do too well in the heat. I can tell she is getting tired, but she does keep going. If I throw her chuck-it she'll still run after it. Also, on walks she will slow way down, but she won't stop. I carry water with me for her to drink and dunk her paws to help cool her off. Poodles just want to please and be with their people, so it can be hard to tell.


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## Rowan (May 27, 2011)

I run with mine and I've learned over the years to recognize the subtle signs. Poodles are like Thoroughbreds in that I think they'd run themselves into the ground if we didn't rein them in. 

Alex will start to lag a bit when he's getting tired. However, they are a lot like horses in that they lag on the way out and pull on the way home (the way back to the barn)! 

When Alex and Pippin were younger and ran longer distances with me, I always took breaks on long runs to check them over and offer water. I think this is a good idea no matter what the activity. 

I tend to run / exercise mine when it's cool outside and I keep an eye on their panting and gait. They're pretty good at letting you know when they're getting tired. I'm sure this varies from dog to dog though. I've seen some fetching fanatics who don't know when to stop.


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## LEUllman (Feb 1, 2010)

Beau would keep going forever, or at least until the treats run out. :smile:


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## LoveDog2 (Mar 28, 2012)

My dog is a very big 7 month old and he feels the heat tremendously, even when it doesn't seem all that hot our. Dreading Summer here in AZ!

After about 5 fetches from the chuck-it, he will be panting hard and it doesn't stop until we get home and he is on the cool tile floor. He will periodically lie down and just chew on the ball. A couple of times on the way back home, he just stopped and laid down. I felt his heart and it was going pretty fast - even for a dog.

WHich brings up a question - sometimes when I feel his heart it seems like it is skipping a beat. Do Standards have heart irregularities very often? Am I imagining this? Is there anything I should watch for?


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## MrsKaia (Dec 3, 2011)

Our spoo must've been de-poodled somewhere along the way. In the dog park, when he gets hot, you can throw a ball for him and he'll just look at it fall and you can get it yourself, while he goes for the nearest water source to have a drink and maybe lay down a bit. The breaks normally don't last very long. If he starts to take more and longer breaks, and starts sniffing out the humans, we know it's time to go home.


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## BorderKelpie (Dec 3, 2011)

LoveDog2, I think what you're describing is actually fairly normal. Just watch it doesn't happen too often or he has what looks almost like fainting spells. It never hurts to have it checked, but in most cases, it's normal. 
Watch for sodium content in his food, as well. 
The heart works off an amazingly intricate elecrtical system, it even has it's own 'back up' impulse generator. Between it's internal pacemaker, if you will, and the brain's electrical impulses, there is sometimes a minor miscommunication. Also, if the demands on the heart is shifting, say, like from rest to activity and back again, there will be little 'adjustments' made, these can sometimes feel like a skip in the rythmn. 

If he acts normally, his gum color is good and capillary refill time is less than 2 seconds, he's probably fine.

*note, I am not a vet, but I do work in animal and human medicine. If there's any concern, always check with a trusted vet.


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## LoveDog2 (Mar 28, 2012)

Thanks for the input, Kelpie. I'll check his gums next time and keep an eye on him.


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## lrkellly (Jan 6, 2012)

Thanks all,

Fortunately up here in Eastern Canada the heat is not much of a problem . We only have about one week of weather that peaks at about 30 C, which is I guess around 86F...

I was in Austin Texas last June and WOW, that was hot. I can definitely see how it might be dangerous for dogs, as well as humans!

Sprout is very much a fetching fanatic - he is very 'ball oriented' - nothing else matters if someone is throwing a ball. Even other dogs...

So I'll keep stopping at 30 mins to be sure I don't over-do it. We use the large chuck-it, and he just runs soo fast its so cute to see the athleticism in such a small dog .

Thanks again .


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## schnauzerpoodle (Apr 21, 2010)

Nickel won't stop walking - we walk he walks. But he will tell me when he's done when we are at the dog park or at his favorite frisbee session. He will go play play play fetch fetch fetch and slows down after 30 to 40 mins. Then he comes to me and rests and gets his water and he will go for a little bit more, maybe for another 10 mins. Then he will come point at the leash and I know that's when he wants to go home. Of course, this didn't happen when he was a pup.


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## jasperspoo (Feb 25, 2011)

Short answer- no.

Jasper will go forever if we let him. He will slow down, but he doesn't stop. We limit him (well, our arms get tired).


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## Kloliver (Jan 17, 2012)

Take & record a resting heart rate. It's a handy reference for recognising over-extertion & heatstroke. The easiest spot to take a reading is inside the leg- think human femural artery


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## Poodlelvr (Mar 13, 2010)

Many years ago I had a black mini. He adored playing fetch. He would run and run until his tongue was hanging out. However when he had had enough, he would get the ball and head for the door instead of returning it to me. I always respected his signals. He was a very intelligent poodle and a heart dog.


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## vicky2200 (Feb 14, 2012)

Most dogs (any breed) wont stop until they literally cant go anymore. We have an Alaskan Husky (sled dog) and she could go forever. However when she was a puppy she would pull too hard and when she was too tired she would collapse and refuse to go more. I had to carry her home. We got a harness after that and she never tires out now.


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## 2719 (Feb 8, 2011)

I think it all depends on the poodle. I have owned and loved many poodles over the years and they are all different.

Currently, my Marlisse will never ever ever ever stop. She will chase a ball or bird shadow all day. (that is why she is so slim).
But years ago, when I was younger I would go on very long hikes or walks. I would sometimes pull my son in a wagon with us. When Suzette was tired she would just plunk her bottom on the ground and refuse to go further. At this point. She went in the wagon and my son walked.


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## dazydaizee (Nov 24, 2009)

My Standard REALLY tries not to stop. I never worried too much, assuming that he would just overdo it a bit and be tired for it... but last summer it did get a little scary. I noticed that even just a quick 15 minutes or so of kicking a soccer ball around with him outside would lead to an excessive cooling off time- lots of panting, water consumption, and laying down on cool floors. This would happen after short periods playing indoors in air conditioning with other dogs as well. 
It was scariest when we'd gone out for longer off-leash walks and he actually stopped and laid down, panting like crazy. He'd get up and walk a little but kept laying down (completely out of character for him). I started taking his temperature when this would happen and recorded some scary numbers: 105.3 being one of the highest (after a 10 minute drive in air conditioning before taking the temp). So yeah, I'm worried about this year- especially living on the second floor with a barely functional A/C... and this is a dog who needs his exercise. He has a cooling vest and we just got a cooling bed. We also have a kiddie pool outside that we'll fill up on hot days which is a game all on its own (he loves the hose). I wouldn't be as concerned about a rise in temperature during activity except that he clearly shows symptoms that he's not feeling right and it can take a long time for him to 'recover'. 
In my opinion, a dog can easily overdo it, but most dogs are probably not going to suffer severe consequences during regular exercise with even casual observation unless there's something more serious going on with their health (like a heart condition, or breeds with shortened muzzles, or whatever might cause my dog to overheat, etc).


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## Fluffyspoos (Aug 11, 2009)

Vegas will stop.. when your arm falls off.


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