hyper for ever?

[aimee b.]

Coby is now 9 months old, crate trained and incredibly active. He seems to have an endless supply of energy. He is crated for 4-5 hours, run for half an hour, then crated for 2 more hours. After that, he has the run of the house and yard. We walk him for about 1 hour every day, late afternoon. He is Very active. I think he actually dislikes any containment, whether it be a crate or the kitchen. He seems to have a mind of his own... very independant and knows what he wants. He still nags our 6 year old PBGV, biting his ears or stealing his toys. We have dubbed them the Saint (pbgv) and the sinner (Cairn) .

Is this still puppy behavior? He also digs like he's trying to find China. (He will get there at the rate he digs). Sort of looks like we have a prarie dog living with us. I am assuming this is all puppy business, although our Westie never did it to this extent. Should I continue to expect this to continue as part of the breed?

aimee and the Cairn terrorist

[bradl]

Hi aimee. All sounds normal so far. Enjoy the puppy antics - they grow up too fast. In about a year you will probably see a couple glimmers of maturity

[kayharley]

Elliott is nine months also and Coby could be his accomplice in crime.

Madison is almost 2 and she is just starting to simmer down a bit but not all that much really. She doesn't destroy like Elliott does nor does she give me a hard time with grooming and such. She still has the stubborness, bursts of energy & playful attitude but that's what I love in the Cairn.

If I wanted a mellow dog I would have gotten a Basset Hound.

But to give you hope...Winnie is 11 and she started to slow down a few years ago around the age of 7 or 8. I would give anything to see her act like a puppy again though.

Treasure these times with your Cairn because they go by so fast.

[toomanypaws]

Sounds like you have a happy, healthy cairn. My two youngest (Abbey, 18 mths & Hannah, 12 mths) are active, but they burn off alot of energy playing together. They are both babygated in my kitchen right now and I can hear them playing w/ a toy (love those play growl sounds). My oldest one, Kiara (4 in 2 wks) is calming down somewhat. She'll nap a little longer than my younger ones. If I only had my youngest, Hannah, she'd be howling for me every minute. She can't stand being alone so I'm glad she loves playing w/ Abbey. I'm sure all of mine would dig more outside if they didn't have eachother to chase after. I love watching them steal a toy from the other and run like the speed of lightning w/ it.

[Eliz222]

Sounds like a true Cairn puppy!

Scout, who is 3 years old now, has really calmed down. She loves to play, but isn't "into" the toys as much as she was.

Finch, who is now 14 months old is a true puppy. She plays constantly and is on the go from the minute she gets up til she FINALLY goes to sleep!

Beth, I LOVE it when they steal toys from each other! They will "study" each other and when one turns away, the other steals the toy/bone and runs like mad....so funny to watch!

[Scully'sMom]

Welcome to the world of Cairns. You have a Class A, Number 1, Cairn Through and Through! Scully will be two in a couple of weeks and I still call her my puppy. The only difference seems to be that she doesn't like to get up in the morning but boy, come the afternoon and until it's time to go to bed - she's ripping and roaring and ready for fun.

[Milopup]

Joanne - do you find that Scully does take "puppy" naps throughout the day, or at least lounges around? My pup is 1 1/2 years old, and when he plays he is chock full of energy, but around 14 months old he started lounging around and taking puppy naps 2 or 3 times a day.

[Scully'sMom]

Milopup, yes she does. She takes a power nap in the afternoon - or several depending on what she's into. We get up at 4:45 and boy is she reluctant to get up. About 6:30 when I leave for work she's been going upstairs and letting herself into my mom's room and will sleep on her bed until about 9:30 or so. If my husband and I are home she will tend to stay up unless one of us is in the recliner and then she will lie up with us for as long as one of us is reading or watching TV. Forget from 4:00 until bedtime - she's up and running!

Yesterday she was out back in the yard for most of the day "supervising" mom and dad while we cleaned out the garage. She was busy keeping us safe from the people going up and down the driveway and from time to time exploring the junk in the garage for something to chew on. Last night from about 5:00 on she was OUT like a light. She was lying on a pillow on the sofa and I wanted to sit down and we had to move her AND the pillow and she never moved. The legs were stretched out every which way!

[Milopup]

Joanne, that is kind of like Bosco's day. We wake him up at about 7AM for a quick walk and then breakfast. Then he usually naps from 9AM until 11:30AM, then out for a walk at noon. Back in for a quick snack, a little play, and then a two hour nap. At 5PM he gets another walk, then dinner, then a puppy nap followed by another play session. Final walk at 10 or 11PM, followed by bedtime before midnight. He does take a lot of naps, but when he plays he really plays. 30 minute fetch sessions are the norm here.

[Scully'sMom]

Milopup, it's tough being a Cairn isn't it?

[Milopup]

You betcha. Forgot to add he likes to stand guard by sitting on top of the sofa and looking out the window. A few days age he saw a policeman on a horse (his first horse!) and boy did he bark up a storm! He thought it was a big big dog.

[Eliz222]

My two take lots of little naps during the day too. What I can't understand is that they get up (around 7am), go potty, sniff around the yard, and then come back inside to take a nap! DH always teases them by saying they are resting up from a hard night of sleep...lol!

[magadog]

Sounds normal, but just a question: Is he neutered? Many become confirmed potatoes of the couch after their first couple of years. I ask about neutering only because if he is not, that could add a little steam to his engine.

Jill