A dog’s energy, excitement and hyperactivity knows no bounds.
It takes a lot to empty the fuel tank inside our bounding bundles of joy.
You could walk 500 miles, and they’d still want to walk 500 more.
Or they’d still have the stamina and spirit for short, sharp bursts of uncontrollable craziness.
The ‘zoomies’, though, are a perfectly normal and natural characteristic that lives within our canines.
Is it normal for my dog to still have energy after a long walk?
It really is one of life’s mysteries!
How can a dog still have energy to burn when they’ve just expended so much of it?
These high-octane episodes – or ‘zoomies’ – are a method of releasing pent-up energy.
Various emotions, such as stress or excitement, can prompt such frantic spurts, and extra-curricular activity is a means of letting everything out.
Just getting out of the house to adventure in the great outdoors can overstimulate a dog’s mind, which triggers their hyperactivity, even after exercise.
It could even be an expressive way of enjoying their freedom after being confined to a lead for a period of time. Our pups are peculiar and pet parents just have to embrace it.
5 reasons why your dog is still hyperactive after a walk
1. Chemical
Pets and pet parents are more alike than you think. Our four-legged friends, similarly to their human companions, have large quantities of cortisol in their bloodstream when they’re experiencing extreme emotion, such as excitement or anxiety. This prompts their hyperactivity.
2. Emotion
Dogs convey their emotion via their body language and sometimes they’re unable to control those raw feelings. Our pups get overexcited and overstimulated when exploring the outside world and this carries through to their post-walk routine. They simply can’t hide their joy!
3. Freedom
Many pet parents and dog walkers will keep their furry companions on a lead throughout their stroll together. It might even be that the fields in which you walk require your dogs to be constrained at all times. As a result, our beautiful barkers will run around like headless chickens just to celebrate their freedom.
4. Frustration
Our creative and curious canines love nothing more than exploring their surroundings, in the fresh air, with their favourite humans. So, imagine their annoyance when all that comes to an end. Dogs can experience the ‘zoomies’ – or ‘frenetic random activity periods’ (FRAPs) – due to frustration.
5. Pace
Regardless of the distance walked, dogs might still have plenty of energy to burn if the pace of the outing was more of an amble than a ramble. Walks that don’t test their stamina, or challenge their capabilities, will often leave them feeling unfulfilled, which is why they let it all out once they get home.
Should I be worried about post-walk ‘zoomies’?
No. Just enjoy their nuances, their peculiarities, and allow them to get it out of their system.
There are several contributing factors, as we’ve already explored, that can trigger this kind of behaviour.
They’re as normal as a bark, as natural as a tail wag, and befitting of their uniqueness.
As long as nobody steps in their path, and nobody tries to interrupt their sporadic sprints, then the ‘zoomies’ are completely harmless for all parties, and extremely satisfying for one.
However, if your canine companion’s weird and wonderful behavioural traits do concern you in any way, shape or form, then we would advise you to contact a specialist, who will be able to offer some guidance and peace of mind.
Be creative
Attempting to suppress your dog’s emotions isn’t necessarily something that we’d recommend.
That’s why trying to calm your sprightly pup down after exercise can often prove an almost impossible task.
Pet parents need to be creative in their bid to curtail their canine’s colourful and quite chaotic behaviour.
Rather than stopping it abruptly, try to divert their attention to something or someone else.
Try to get them to engage in a different activity, with their favourite toy, a treat, or something like a stuffed Kong that will awaken other senses and help channel their energy in other areas.
But, if they’re not causing you any bother, just let them express their emotions in a controlled environment.
After all, they’re just happy to be home, and that is where a dog’s heart is.
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