# What is high energy for a poodle?



## shell (Jul 10, 2015)

So we have Addison who is now just over 3 months old and she is full of it. She gets anywhere from 1-4 miles of walking a day. Sometimes my husband will run with her-which she loves to do. He slows down when she starts to get tired. She will eventually be his running companion-but we know about waiting for the growth plates to clothes and all that.

On days she only gets a mile walk, she is bonkers-all over the place unless you can quiet her down with an interesting chewy. On days she gets 4 miles in, she will often quiet down a bit-but after a while be up and off the walls again. Is this normal? Are all standard poodles this high energy or did we just hit the jackpot?

It's exhausting but good-it is making both my husband and I get off the couch and outside for some exercise. 

I also was wondering-is it ok to run with the puppy as long as you let them set the pace? We are meeting the vet today for another puppy shot so we will speak with her about it as well but I wanted to know from you experienced folks, what you though about all this.

We are so in love with her, and every day we grow more in love with her. I think the Standard Poodle is going to be our breed  even if they are all this crazy.



















P.S. If another person asks me if she is a golden doodle I think my head is going to explode.


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## zooeysmom (Jan 3, 2014)

Aww, she's so pretty  She sounds like a typical energy spoo to me. 

I don't think it's good to run them on leash at all at that age. I don't even run Maizie and she's almost 1 yr. I would just play with her off-leash (you have a good size yard, right?) and take her on very short walks for now.


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## bigpoodleperson (Jul 14, 2009)

Your little girl is so pretty!! It is pretty typical for them to be very high energy at this age. Its great that you guys are getting out with her too! Try and incorporate more training into your playing to wear her out mentally as well as physically. Does she play fetch? I love playing fetch with my dog and its an easy way to wear them out! We will play fetch and every time or two that I throw it he has to do a trick or command or something before being released to get it. Totally wears him out much faster! On our walks I would throw in sit, heel, down, stay, etc commands as we were walking. 

As for the running, you really shouldn't do leash running until she is at least 10-12 months old. Letting her run around at her own pace off leash (or dragging leash) while playing or going on an adventure is one thing, but organized running is too much stress on the joints at her age. Running on cement or asphalt is even harder. 

This is a very trying puppy age, but I really enjoyed it and seeing the progress everyday!


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## vonnyD (Apr 2, 2016)

Hi

I can't advise you about the energy level or anything as I'm a new dog owner myself, but your poodle is gorgeous!


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## Poodlebeguiled (May 27, 2013)

Romping and running around a yard is one thing. The puppy varies his pace, gait, stops and sniffs, he can sit or fetch a toy. But running on a leash, the puppy tends to be moving repetitively...same gait without a break. I'd recommend not jogging with the puppy yet but shorter walks, not miles and miles... and some regular, old running and romping in a safe fenced yard. Your pup is very pretty. Puppies are usually full of energy. Ample exercise is important but they don't need excessive exercise. They will work as on supply and demand. If they get a lot, they'll demand a lot. They sort of tend to rise to meet the amount they're use to. 

Remember, mental exercise also tires a dog out really well. Obedience training using progressive, fun methods is the way to go. You can train early and longer without the wear and tear of training using "corrections." Training some tricks or getting some interactive toys are also stimulating. Good luck with your darling little pup.


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## Mfmst (Jun 18, 2014)

What a pretty POODLE she is! Most people probably have never seen a Red or apricot Standard. I second the motion on incorporating training while Addy is getting her exercise. I also found a flirt pole useful. I got one on Amazon (puppy prey lure) with a heavy leather lure and it's still a favorite.


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## service_spoo (Mar 14, 2015)

Puppies are a handful, aren't they? I remember being overwhelmed by Penny's energy at that age. I agree with those mentioning mental exercise. If you can do several short (5-10 min), positive training sessions throughout the day, it will do wonders for her energy. Puppy brains tire out fast! 

More physical exercise isn't always best - the more high energy exercise the dog gets, the more they need because they build stamina. That's not to say that she shouldn't be taken on walks, but balancing physical and mental exercise is best. 

For a while, I was using Penny's flirt pole with her almost every day, and I began to notice that she was needing more and more time with it to be tired, and when she was in the house, she wasn't settling as well - high energy exercise like that raises the dog's cortisol level, and doing it every day meant that it was never really going down, which meant hyper puppy. Now we use it much more moderately, and Penny's calmer in the house.


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## ericwd9 (Jun 13, 2014)

The energy level of a standard poodle 12 week old puppy is about equal to that of A brand new high powered racing car idling on the grid. Hypersonic potential and unlimited jumping power. speed is best limited for a while so that things ran run in together. As mentioned given off leash walks in open areas they will go at their own pace. But if you run with them they strongly feel they must keep up and be part of the "running game" All of life except eating is a game. Routine is developing. Swimming and running in water is excellent exercise, if you can find a place. As for being a live wire: about a million volts is right. At 3 years of age they do get more placid. You will be very fit by then.
Eric


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## PoodleDreaming (Jun 10, 2015)

I would consider a flirt pole for a dog with her energy as well as two training sessions a day. You need to work her brain as well as her body. A flirt pole some sort of pole with rope coming from one end with a toy tied to it. They can jump, slow down, change directions, etc.. so it isn't as dangerous for them as running on a leash which I would never never do with a dog under 18 months old. Very high possibility of injury.

K9DIY: Make a flirt pole on the cheap | Team Unruly there's instructions on how to make a super cheap flirt pole but you can buy them premade as well  We use them for our high drive working breed dogs.


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## shell (Jul 10, 2015)

Wow thank you everyone for the excellent replies! Our vet suggested many of the same things you did. I don't know why I didn't think of the training part-I mean we do puppy classes, and I have taught our maltese to do tricks in the past but for some reason it just didn't dawn on me to really get into that with Addison yet. (It was a big DUH moment) 

I started tonight working on some clicker training and I will continue to do two to three sessions a day. I think she really enjoyed it  

We do own our own home and we do have a yard but it is not large (we live in the city) and it is not currently fenced in.  We will get it fenced in eventually-and have a plan to get there but it will be a bit before it gets done. We do have dog parks that I can look into visiting on off times and we do have relatives locally that do have large yards that we might be able to take advantage of as well.

I will look into the flirt pole, I have had it suggested to me by others as well. And thank you all again for mentioning it, it did not occur to me that she might be getting too much exercise. Thanks for the compliments too  I really love her coloring and hope it doesn't change too much but from what I have seen, apricots change a lot as they age and even once they are adults sometimes.

Editing to add: We are interested in introducing her to water (swimming and such) but we don't have many areas right now where that is a possibility for us-as the weather continues to warm up though there are a few places we can take her to see how she does and with it and how she feels about it


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## PoodleDreaming (Jun 10, 2015)

I actually used a flirt pole and a long lead for quite a while so I had some control. There were a few 101 dalmations moments where I got wrapped in the leash but my dobe NEEDED with a capital NEED that exercise.


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## Kaiser (Jan 12, 2016)

Good to know I did the right thing then... I SPECIFICALLY asked our breeder for a more calm, laid back puppy. Maybe instead of a million volts it might be more like 700,000 lol


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## mom2Zoe (Jun 17, 2014)

I do not know anything about Spoos, but man she is gorgeous!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## janet6567 (Mar 11, 2014)

Your Addison is absolutely adorable!! She just looks like she is full of mischief!


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## aasteapots (Oct 6, 2013)

First let me say that your puppy is beautiful. Please do not take this as a criticism of you because you may not have known but running a young puppy like that can cause a lot of issues. So please be careful. Coal is just now 5 mo and is starting to calm down a bit. I do a ton of mental exercises in the house and that seems to help a lot. She sleeps much better when asked to "work" during the day. We do go for walks but I allow her freedom for now. I will make our walks more mental when she is older. She is getting enough in the house for now. I hope this helps. Just work on easy things like sit,down,wait. One of THE BEST things our service dog trainer taught me was to call her randomly all day and EVERY TIME she comes treat her. Now Coal comes no matter what is going on since she knows all the treats come when she answers to her name. Its an excellent recall strategy. 
GOOD LUCK!!!


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## ChantersMom (Aug 20, 2012)

We did indoor games with my spoo which he loved too: hide and seek, go find the treat, sit and stays.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

As others have said, don't run this dog on pavement until she is done growing. The far better way to get her tired is to give her brain drain. Three or four 10 minutes sessions a day of making her work on impulse control, follow your commands and the like will make her at least as tired as those miles of walking. It will also deepen your relationship with her and give her the foundations of being the spectacularly well behaved dog that you will want to go along with her good looks.


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## Streetcar (Apr 13, 2014)

First off, how fun to be able to proudly puff out one's chest and say, "horrors NO, she's ALL Poodle!!!!!!" to those who don't know and ought .

Second, darling Addison looks to have oodles of potential. I do hope you'll be able to incorporate the support here for saving her joints and hips from potential disaster, so your lovely baby puppy can ultimately be all that she looks capable of!


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## seminolewind (Mar 11, 2016)

I, too, just found out yesterday that my 12 week old puppy has endless energy. Understatement. I even played flirt pole with her and it didn't help. I tried to hide in my bedroom last night but she kept taking things she could reach. I guess in 2 weeks she's gotten taller. I'm exhausted.


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## West U (Jul 30, 2014)

Sometimes just like toddlers, they continue to get wound up when tired. When Lola was that young and we were burnt out, we crated her. Nine times out of ten we would check on her and she would be zonked out.


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## shell (Jul 10, 2015)

seminolewind said:


> I, too, just found out yesterday that my 12 week old puppy has endless energy. Understatement. I even played flirt pole with her and it didn't help. I tried to hide in my bedroom last night but she kept taking things she could reach. I guess in 2 weeks she's gotten taller. I'm exhausted.


:rofl: I can so relate to trying to hide! They are crazy aren't they!  

The clicker training sessions are helping us a ton though.


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## zooeysmom (Jan 3, 2014)

West U said:


> Sometimes just like toddlers, they continue to get wound up when tired. When Lola was that young and we were burnt out, we crated her. Nine times out of ten we would check on her and she would be zonked out.


Yes! Whenever Maizie is her most wild, I tell her it's time to take a rest in her crate. She always falls into a deep sleep quickly.


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## Indiana (Sep 11, 2011)

As the owner of a high energy poodle, i know just what you are going through (and will be going through for the next while)! Try to find a nice, safe grassy park or trail ...that's going to be your go-to place for the next year. Lots of playing, hiking and running on a soft surface is really good for your dog! Hard surfaces are not. It seems like a long time, but if you put the effort in, your dog will have great healthy joints and you will probably be in fabulous shape too. It's worth it! My two are litter sisters, I raised them running and hiking (leash free) on trails and they have never had a health problem in their life, much less joint issues.


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## Poodlebeguiled (May 27, 2013)

I'll say one thing. High energy, crazy lunatics are the BEST to train. They're so much fun to train and train up very well. I've had my share and worked with my share. It's a matter of channeling that energy. Don't ever squelch it. Re-direct it. Here's a really neat article that I love: The dog in the picture is a Doberman, my "other" breed. They're crazy dogs too when young. Mine was but he did everything with great gusto, great enthusiasm. And that's part of what makes them so eager to learn and good at everything they learn. 

Here's that fantastic article:

How to Train a "Crazy" Dog! | Karen Pryor Clicker Training


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