Do dogs grow out of rough play?
Katrina West
2025-07-20 07:19:11
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Do puppies outgrow that level of play excitement as they learn more social cues, get a little older and have more experience in group settings with other dogs. She totally has sweet moments during puppy play too and ends up flopping on her back quite a bit during play sessions, but the opposite end of the spectrum ends up being snarling and snorting when she gets really amped up. I plan to take her to daycare when she’s old enough, I’m just slightly worried she will get injured from being too rough with someone or might be too much of a trouble maker or something. Fingers crossed it’s just part of learning but would love to hear about your experiences or any advice.
Winifred Kozey
2025-07-20 07:03:20
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Puppies play with their littermates constantly. From around two weeks, when their eyes open, until they go to their own homes, they spend almost all of their waking hours wrestling with each other. It’s a critical time for social development because it is when they learn bite inhibition and good dog manners. Even dogs that end up “losing” the play-fight and end up on their backs probably won’t want to stop playing. Dogs will take turns with most play-fighting behaviors. Dog wrestling can be fun when playing, but it’s also something that should be monitored. Not all dogs understand their size in comparison to other dogs. Some dogs are quicker to take offense when playing, and one wrong move could upset them. Some dogs are better off playing at home with you or with a dog buddy they know well, and there’s nothing wrong with that.
Humberto Batz
2025-07-20 05:52:12
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With puppies, this is rarely aggressive behavior in which the intent is to do harm. Because puppies are highly motivated to exhibit this type of behavior, attempts to suppress it or stop it are unlikely to be successful unless you give your puppy an alternative behavior. The goals of working with this normal puppy behavior are to redirect your puppy’s desire to put something in her mouth onto acceptable chew toys and to teach her to be gentle when a hand is in her mouth. You must also teach your puppy to be gentle with hands, and that nipping results in unpleasant consequences for her. Teach your puppy that nipping turns off any attention and social interaction with you. It may take many repetitions for her to understand what’s expected. Remember that any of these methods will probably not be effective unless you work hard to teach your puppy the right behavior by offering her an acceptable chew toy.
Kory Pollich
2025-07-20 03:18:22
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Most pups do settle down over time but the way an older dog (and we) respond to rough play can have positive or negative impact the youngster’s attitude down the road. Play has a few purposes, one of which is that it’s a way of testing one’s drive and physical abilities against others. Later in life conflicts may be resolved without a knock down, drag out brawl as the dog’s have their past play to refer to giving them a pretty good idea how things would play out. Some older dogs will tolerate more of this sort of behaviour then others but will start handing out smack downs once they figure the pup is old enough to know better which would be in the range where that breed is near young adult hood. If all it ever knows is “might is right” with the dog it lives with, it can set that dog up for an awful surprise when one day it meets a less tolerant dog.
Anais Hahn
2025-07-20 02:13:08
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If we roughhouse with our dog, because we’re not dogs, we don’t master the rules of play and will often bring the excitement level out of control. When a dog is allowed to play with humans like they would with rambunctious dogs, we take the chance that the dog may react in the same way with other people. We’re teaching the dog that humans are fun playmates to wrestle with and jump on. The dog will not always know the difference and understand when it’s alright to play this way or when it’s not. If we adopt the dog when we’re young adults, will it be OK for the dog to play this way when we have toddlers or when our friends visit with their children? Will our aging parents be able to keep the dog under control? Certain movements that we make or things that we say, that are similar to those used during roughhousing could trigger rough responses from the dog. Just like children, dogs need us to be consistent. If one moment we’re allowing jumping and mouthing, we can’t expect them to understand that just because we’re now wearing expensive work clothes, that behavior will no longer be tolerated. Fido may also solicit attention for instance, by jumping or mouthing, behaviors that are rewarded during playtime.
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