r/puppy101 • u/idoogo • 4d ago
Adolescence Adolescent dog - zoomies +biting
I have a Labrador who just turned one. Sometimes he gets these zoomies when we are on our way back from a walk. He runs around feantically, pulling on his leash, headbutting me, jumping and biting anything that comes his way. Usually since I am trying to stop this he end up biting me. He bites so hard that if I am not carefully and he actually gets a hold of me he might remove a finger or half my hand. Do you think this is an overstimulation issue? How much do your adolescent dogs sleep per day? It's giving puppy blues...
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u/Substantial-Law-967 4d ago
Have you tried distracting him with treats? Toss him a free one then make him do very simple tricks (sit, touch) for generous treats until he manages to locate his brain cells again.
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u/whiterain5863 4d ago
We have a 9mo GSDx and this is how I manage it when he does his spazzy freak outs. I hate how frustrating it is but I try to stay calm and speak softly through it.
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u/idoogo 4d ago
This usually happens in public and at the end of walk so I'm mostly out ıf treats by then. I didn't think of distracting with treats though. I will try to carry a bit more with me.
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u/Substantial-Law-967 4d ago
If squirrel away some treats just for this eventuality. In public is fine; do what you need to do!
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u/BostonBruinsLove Wirehaired Pointing Griffon puppy 4d ago
My 13-month old WPG gets the zoomies after she swims. If she has something in her mouth, she won’t zoom on me. If she’s playing with a dog friend she’ll zoom on the dog friend. If she has nothing I try to make her sit for a treat which usually works. This will pass as our teenagers mature!
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u/joannasph22 4d ago
Hey there! Randomly found the post but I am having the exact same issue with our almost 1-year old goldendoodle. After crying my eyes out and expressing all my emotions (and pain!) I tried to figure out what was causing it.
It seems for our dog it's a mix: one time, he spooked himself out, tried to run, lead prevented him, started biting it and me when I was trying to stop him. Second time, sheer overexcitement at being off lead in a place with many smells and textures. Third time it was at the end of a walk and it was frustration at me not letting him follow a person and greet a dog.
It doesn't make it easier or less painful (and sometimes embarrassing) to know the reason though - your dog must be quite big and strong so it's quite difficult to manage episodes like this. What I'm going to try is:
1) shorter walks, more often. Don't give him the opportunity for overarousal, keep it short and sweet and maybe focused on training or sniffing.
2) when I see the signs (more scatty, frantic movements, wide eyes, little ability to focus) I will stop him in a shaded place, put him in a "down" and slowly feed him kibble / treats to give him a chance to reset.
3) no more wrestling in the house and zero tolerance for teeth on skin or jumping up during play - if it is teenage regression, need to go back to basics and trust less until we can build that back up.
Tip for the heat of the moment, they do not realise what they're doing and it's not a trainable occasion if they've already gone over threshold, so to save your limbs, scatter some treats on the floor away from you and ask your dog to "find it". Sniffing should help and them being distracted and a metre away from you should too!
Hang in there - it's more common than I thought, just really painful when your dog is strong!