Your puppy is so fun and cute—until he suddenly starts acting insane. Dealing with crazy puppies can be a really frustrating experience. It might even seem like there’s nothing you can do to calm him down!
That isn’t actually the case, and that’s good news! If you’ve got a crazy puppy on your hands, here’s everything you need to know.
Let’s start with the main question: how long are puppies crazy?
How long are puppies crazy?
Now that you’ve got your puppy home, you might be feeling like you’ve bitten off more than you can chew. You might have expected a relaxed puppy that likes to play but is just as happy to go for a nap.
But the reality is that most puppies aren’t like that! They don’t quite understand how the world works yet, and they’re still learning what their own needs are.
Puppies don’t understand that they need a lot of sleep—about 18 to 20 hours every 24-hour cycle. They also don’t understand yet how to behave during their waking hours.
There’s so much to do and to explore while they’re awake! It’s your puppy’s very first time experiencing a lot of what the world has to offer, after all. And that’s pretty exciting!
It can also make your puppy seem pretty crazy. You might be wondering what on earth you’ve gotten yourself into. It’s normal to experience the puppy blues but when does having a puppy get easier? When will your little guy stop being so crazy?
Let’s get into it.
At what age do puppies stop being so crazy?
Growing up is a really exciting thing for your puppy. There’s so much to see and do in the world, and so many new things to learn about.
Unfortunately for you, that can make your puppy pretty crazy and hard to handle. Growing up makes your puppy seem so busy!
If this is what you’re dealing with right now, you might be wondering when exactly your puppy is going to start calming down. When will you be able to relax around your puppy again? At what age are puppies the most hyper?
Most start seeing an increase in energy once they reach around 10 weeks old. Until he gets to about 16 weeks old, he’ll continue being pretty energetic. Once he reaches about 6 months old, these big energy bursts will start to slow down.
Now, your puppy’s energy levels depend on more than just his age. They can also be affected by your puppy’s breed. Some breeds are naturally more energetic than others. Jack Russel Terriers, for example, are likely to have more energy than Shih Tzus.
How you train your puppy and how you react to his behavior will also play a huge role. It’s up to you to train your puppy and teach him that being calm is a good thing.
With some work, some patience, and positive reinforcement dog training, you can teach your puppy to be much calmer.
When do puppies grow out of the witching hour?
One of the most annoying and frustrating parts of having a puppy is puppy witching hour. If your puppy tends to experience the zoomies frequently, you’re probably wondering: at what age does puppy witching hour stop?
Dogs of all ages might experience a witching hour. But it’s definitely much more common in puppies. Puppies are still learning how to regulate their needs, after all. And zoomies or puppy witching hour are often triggered by being overtired or overexcited.
Most puppies calm down by the time they reach around 6 months old. They’ll experience fewer and fewer witching hours as they grow.
That said, you might need to give your puppy some help with this. While many puppies are able to calm down on their own, some will need your guidance.
The best treatment for issues like this is prevention, after all! Making sure that you’re giving your dog enough exercise and setting a good nap schedule will help keep your dog from having witching hours.
If you’d like to learn more about how you can prevent witching hours, check out these related articles:
- My Overtired Puppy Won’t Sleep—What Can I Do?
- 10 Overtired Puppy Symptoms and What to Do About It
- Why Is My Puppy So Hyper? 4 Tips for a Calm Puppy
My puppy is going crazy all of a sudden, why is that?
One second your puppy is a sweet little angel, and the next he’s racing around the house, barking and biting.
This isn’t just frustrating. It’s also pretty confusing! You’re probably wondering what on earth just triggered your puppy to start acting like a maniac.
If your puppy is suddenly zooming around your house, then that’s what’s called puppy witching hour or the zoomies. The scientific word for it is a frenetic random activity period.
During these periods, your puppy might “forget” all the things you’ve taught him during training. He might start biting things he’s not supposed to, or racing around your house with no sign of stopping.
You might also find that he won’t listen to you, which is one of the most frustrating parts of the zoomies.
If you’d like to learn more about your puppy’s zoomies, make sure you take a look at these related articles:
- Why Do Puppies Get the Zoomies Before Bed?
- Why Does My Dog Have the Zoomies When Tired?
- What Causes Puppy Zoomies? 5 Common Reasons
How to stop your puppy going crazy
Dealing with a puppy that just won’t settle down is no fun. You’re probably feeling pretty frustrated and tired from trying to stop your puppy’s zoomies.
The good news is that there are ways you can help your puppy. As impossible as it might seem, you can help your puppy settle down and relax—and save your own sanity in the process!
Here are a few tips that will help you and your puppy.
What causes the puppy witching hour?
The very best way to help your puppy with his witching hour zoomies is to determine what triggers them in the first place. Prevention is the best way to manage witching hour.
There are several things that can trigger the zoomies. One major one is boredom. A bored puppy builds up too much pent-up energy, and all that needs to be released somehow! Your puppy’s zoomies could also be triggered by something like feeling uncomfortable after a bath, or being overstimulated.
As backwards as it might seem, an overstimulated puppy actually shows a lot of the same symptoms as a bored puppy. Check out these 5 tips to calm an overexcited puppy quickly for some more info.
Make sure he gets the right amount of physical stimulation
One really great way to prevent problems like boredom is to give your puppy some physical exercise. However, since zoomies can be triggered by being overtired, you also don’t want to give your puppy too much.
So how much exercise should a puppy get? That will depend on a few factors! Your puppy’s age, breed, and overall health will help determine how much physical activity he needs.
By making sure your dog isn’t under or over-exercised, you should notice a pretty significant difference in his behavior!
Make sure he gets the right amount of mental stimulation
Giving your puppy’s body some exercise is important. But it’s equally important to exercise your puppy’s mind!
Providing your puppy with mental stimulation will help keep him calm and prevent the zoomies. There are lots of ways you can give your dog some mental stimulation that will be fun for both of you.
And the good news about mental stimulation is that it will actually tire your dog out pretty quickly.
Make sure to give your puppy a healthy combination of both mental and physical stimulation. If you’re wondering what to do with your puppy, check out these 10 brain games for dogs to play at home.
Mental stimulation can also be a wonderful training tool if used correctly. Check out Braintrainingfordogs to learn how to train your dog to be the best dog he can be by using mental stimulation! Or have a look at Dogpackr’s review first to see if it’s a fit for you and your dog!
Set up a daily schedule
There are so many benefits to having a daily schedule for you and your puppy. For one thing, it will help your puppy learn what to expect and when throughout the day. He’ll learn when it’s time to have fun and play, and when it’s time to relax.
A schedule will also help you make sure you’re putting in the time every day to give him what he needs.
You might need to experiment a little bit to find the right schedule for you and your little one. But once you do, you’ll be shocked at what a difference it makes! Make sure you download my free daily puppy schedule for some extra help.
Crate train your puppy
Many people avoid crate training their puppies because they’re worried using a crate is cruel. But a crate can be a really useful tool—you just need to use it right!
Your puppy’s crate will be a good place for him to go if he starts acting out. Just remember never to use it as punishment. Instead, use it as a safe space for your puppy to go and decompress for a little while.
For information on crate training, here’s how to crate train a dog easily in 13 steps.
Make sure he gets enough sleep
It’s really important that your puppy gets enough sleep. This will help prevent the zoomies, and it will make sure he grows into a happy, healthy, and well-behaved adult dog.
Remember that very young puppies need about 18 to 20 hours of sleep every day. It’s your job as a dog parent to make sure he gets that important sleep!
Your puppy’s new schedule will help a lot with that. Make sure that he’s crate trained and that he knows that crate time means nap time! Learning that also helps a lot!
You should also find that he experiences fewer zoomies.
Immediately stop all the fun when the crazies start
Your response to your puppy’s zoomies plays a huge role in how quickly they stop. If your puppy is starting to get crazy and you start yelling and chasing him around, that won’t help!
Your puppy might start thinking of this as a game, which isn’t going to make him calm down anytime soon.
It’s really important to respond the right way to your dog’s zoomies. As soon as you notice that they start happening, it’s time to stop all the fun. If that doesn’t make your puppy settle down, then it might be time for a nap in the crate.
Related questions to the puppy crazies
If you are struggling with puppy crazies, the above tips will do a lot to help you out. In addition, here are a couple of questions that you might still have, and some answers to go with them!
My puppy is biting and hyper at night, what can I do?
It can be really frustrating to try and go to bed when all your puppy seems to want to do is bite you and play.
There are a few reasons why your puppy might be acting this way at night. The most common reasons are that he’s either over or under stimulated during the day.
Make sure that you’re giving your puppy enough stimulation over the day! This’ll keep him from getting crazy before bed.
Puppy witching hour barking, what can I do?
If your puppy is barking during his witching hour, then the number one thing you need to do when it’s happening is ignore it. As hard as it is, you don’t want to encourage the barking by giving him more attention.
The next thing you need to do is to prevent your puppy’s witching hour from happening at all. Keep all the above tips in mind and make sure he gets enough stimulation and rest throughout the day.
A schedule will also do a lot to prevent the zoomies.
Conclusion
Raising a puppy is a rewarding and fun experience—for the most part. There are definitely some moments that can be pretty frustrating, especially when your puppy starts acting crazy.
But whenever you’re desperately asking yourself “how long are puppies crazy?”, make sure to remember the tips we discussed to help your puppy stay calm during the day.
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