We’ve just adopted our little Tia, a lovely 10-week-old Golden Retriever. She came home last Saturday and she’s absolutely adorable စ727
Everything is going really well, the only snag we’re hitting is at night. She just won’t settle down or sleep; she comes to wake us up, wants to play, starts whining or chewing on cables, and so on. We’ve tried everything to calm her down, but nothing has worked so far...
She gets plenty of exercise during the day: we take her out every two hours, play games at home, she has enrichment toys, meets other dogs and children, and is really getting to know the world.
We take her out just before bed (for example, last night the last trip out was at 1 am and she did her business), we come back in and have a bit of quiet time, but then as soon as we head to bed, she goes completely hyper...
Does anyone know why? We’ve tried giving her a chew toy, telling her "no" (because she keeps trying to jump on the bed...), giving her her comfort toy, and sitting next to her to settle her... but for now, nothing’s helping ပ694 A proper little terror at night!
Thanks in advance for any advice you can give!
Tia & Roxane
Translated from French
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Taking the time to just enjoy life at their own pace as much as possible (during the time dedicated to them) is the best way for them to thrive – and they sleep so much better for it too! ^^
Thanks Solène! Yes, that’s what I meant when I said we’re going to increase the walks, to take the time to explore the outdoors :)
I’m going to try to focus more on her rather than all the ‘you must do this and that’ – you’re right. Anyway, the last two nights have gone really well; she’s settled into the living room brilliantly!
Hi everyone,
Thanks for your advice! You're right, maybe I’m worrying too much 👌
We’re going to start going for slightly longer walks to tire her out a bit more, as I feel like she’s still far too hyper in the evenings otherwise… We took her out again yesterday around 11 pm to burn off some more energy and get her ready for bed. I think it worked! She slept from midnight right through until 7 am ✌️
You mentioned giving her basic commands that she struggled to follow when she was worked up. That’s why I suggested avoiding it when she’s in that state.
Can't hold it for more than two hours?
If she can last six hours through the night, she should be able to manage a bit more than two hours during the day ;-) Especially if she’s sleeping soundly.
I think you’re worrying a bit too much, really ;-) Relax, Kilukru
Yeah, the training sessions are going well. We're keeping them short and she’s being really responsive, so that’s brilliant! I think she’s actually enjoying it. We’ve also been rewarding her when she’s being calm to try and show her that’s what we want (we started doing that yesterday).
As for the walks, yeah, maybe we should space them out a bit more. A few of them are just quick toilet breaks rather than a proper walk afterwards. I’m just not sure she can hold it for that long yet 😞
Don’t try to teach her anything when she’s all over-excited.
Overall, I think it might be better to go for slightly longer walks but less frequently (you could skip one or two if you're currently doing six a day). This would give her longer rest periods.
Keep training sessions short—5 minutes max—and only when she’s calm; perhaps before mealtimes. Don’t force things and don’t wait until she’s completely had enough before saying “right, let’s stop there.” Always end on a positive note, even if it means stopping “too early.” Make sure it’s something fun for her so that she’ll want to do it again. The first few times, it might only last a single minute and that’s perfectly fine. The aim is to keep things relaxed and enjoyable. She’ll listen to you much better and it’ll be far more productive.
She doesn't seem overstimulated; she's having a great time, sniffing all over the place, and we play with her toy for a bit... So sometimes the walks end up stretching to about 30 or 35 minutes, which might be a bit much (several times a day). And it's true that since she came back at 10 am, she’s been fast asleep (we played for a bit beforehand and did some training).
Yesterday we went for a slightly longer outing (45 mins); we actually sat down for a bit to have a break, she had a lot of fun and we carried her back so she wouldn't get too tired or find the walk too exhausting.
On walks, she’s on a long lead for now, so she can really enjoy herself and sniff around and play as much as she likes. When it’s a "safe" area (by that I mostly mean away from cars), we let go of the lead so she can just do her own thing.
Do you think you might be overdoing the walks a bit, or over-stimulating her?
She must be tired to sleep for three hours at a stretch, but puppies sleep an awful lot, you know.
Let her sleep as much as she wants, even if it's "walkies time". Try to adapt to her own pace, and to get a feel for it, just observe her.
Mind you, since she’s slept more than usual, and to make sure she sleeps well again tonight, try a longer walk during the day (maybe 45 mins), and just settle down somewhere.
If she’s taking the lead, having a play, or having a good sniff around, let her enjoy it without interfering...
Do you let her off the lead during walks?
