Will my Golden Retriever calm down?

If you have recently got a Golden Retriever and it is hyperactive you’re probably wondering if it will calm down. This post will help you to figure out if it will calm down and what you can do about it.

So, will your Golden Retriever calm down? Golden Retrievers will generally calm down a bit as they get older. The amount that it calms down might not necessarily be as much as you want. To calm it down more you will need to make sure to give it lots of exercise and training so that it is properly stimulated. 

Your Golden Retriever might be acting that way for a number of reasons and it could be due to a combination of them. However, there are a number of things you can do about it, depending on the most likely reason.

Ways to calm your Golden Retriever down

Below are some ways you can get your Golden Retriever to calm down.

Give it exercise

Golden Retrievers are a breed that is meant to get a lot of exercise daily. When they do not get enough exercise it can cause them to behave abnormally and often to be hyperactive. In order to get it to calm down it is important to give it a lot of exercise.

Generally, it is recommended for Golden Retrievers to get at least an hour of exercise per day as healthy adults. If your Golden Retriever is already getting that much exercise, you could wear it out more by getting it to do things such as play fetch.

Training

Another way to stimulate your Golden Retriever is with the use of training. By giving it training you will be able to teach your Golden Retriever to be more responsive to your command and you will be able to get it to be better behaved when you want it to be. But, you’ll also be able to expend a lot of its energy in the process of training it itself.

If you haven’t started training your Golden Retriever yet then one of the first things that you’ll want to do is to train it to stay when you tell it to. 

By being able to get your Golden Retriever to stay when you tell it to you will be able to avoid problems in situations such as when you’re at the vet’s or when you have guests over.

Once you have taught it to stay the next thing that you’ll want to do is to teach it to stay when you open the front door which you can see how to do in the video below.

You’ll also want to teach it to come on command.  This is particularly helpful since it will make it easier for you to manage your Golden Retriever when it’s misbehaving or when you need it to come to you.

Ignore it when it gets hyper

It is also important to avoid reinforcing the behavior. If you give it things that it wants when it is not calm, it will likely do it more in order to get more rewards. Instead, it would help to reward it when it is calm and to avoid rewarding it when it starts being hyper.

Try a calming chew

You could also consider giving your Golden Retriever a calming chew or toy. By doing this you will be able to channel its attention into the toy and away from everything else.

Reasons it might not be calm

Below are some reasons why your Golden Retriever might not be being calm and what would make them more likely.

Boredom

As mentioned above, it is important for Golden Retrievers to get daily exercise as healthy adults. When they do not get enough exercise they can become hyperactive which is why it is important to make sure that your Golden Retriever is able to get exercise daily.

Separation anxiety

Another thing that can cause your Golden Retriever not to be calm is separation anxiety. This is where your Golden Retriever doesn’t like being left alone so it gets anxious when you are away or when you are about to leave. It can also cause it to be more hyperactive when you are around.

Attention

It could be the case that it does it because it is looking for extra attention. This would be more likely if it does it more when you have not been giving it much attention and if you tend to give it more attention when it does it.

Instead, it would help to give it attention throughout the day by training it, playing with it and exercising it. But, it would help to avoid rewarding it with extra attention when it is not calm unless necessary.

Things to consider

Below are some things to consider about your Golden Retriever not being calm.

How old it is

The age of your Golden Retriever can have an influence on how it behaves. If your Golden Retriever is still young then it should calm down a bit as it gets older. Despite that, you should still make sure to give it lots of exercise and training so that you can make sure that it calms down and that it is well behaved when it’s older.

Crate training

If your Golden Retriever’s behavior is causing problems then in addition to giving it lots of exercise and training you could consider crate training. When done correctly it gives your Golden Retriever a secure place that it can go to and be calm.

Behaviorist

If you cannot get it to be calm or you cannot figure out the cause, you could get help from a dog behaviorist. By doing so, you should be able to see why it is not being calm and what to do to get it to calm down.

Punishment

It might be tempting to punish your Golden Retriever for not being calm but it doesn’t normally work. When you punish it your Golden Retriever will think that it is being punished for the last thing that it did which is coming to you and not the thing that you are actually punishing it for. It can cause other problems as well such as distrust, being less responsive to your command and aggression.

When it started

If your Golden Retriever did use to be calm, it would help to consider what else happened when it stopped being calm since it could be the case that it stopped doing it due to an event that occurred.

If it stopped being calm suddenly, it would be more likely to be due to things such as a change in its diet, getting less exercise or realizing that it gets rewards when it does it.

When it is not calm

It would also help to consider if there is a certain time that it tends to be less calm since the timing could also have something to do with it.

For example, if it is not calm when you feed it a certain food, it would be more likely to be because of what you’re feeding it. Whereas, if it does it more at around the same time that you normally leave home, it would be more likely to be due to separation anxiety.