# 12 week puppy doesn't have a lot of energy



## dramirez82 (Oct 18, 2010)

I picked up our german shepherd puppy at 10 weeks old from a breeder near by. He was active playing with his siblings when we got him. We have had him for about 2 1/2 weeks and he just seems sad and doesnt have a lot of energy and hardly wants to play. We took him to the vet and they say everything is fine. We started taking him to puppy classes and he doesn't seem to interested in that either. Not sure if there is something we can do to boost his energy or confidence. 

Any help will be greatly appreicated.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Have you tried a flirtpole or rag on a string with him? Does he like to tug? Tug is a great confidence builder(let him win).


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## JustMeLeslie (Sep 15, 2010)

I got my puppy at 9 weeks and she did not have very much energy either. I took her to the vet and turns out she was extremely wormy. She just kinda laid around but once she got the worms out she perked right up. Bunches of energy now. Did the vet do a fecal test? Are you feeding a good quality food? You have to go down a list of things to pinpoint the problem is it a physical thing or something else. If he is healthy then maybe he just needs more time to adjust to his new enviroment.


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## dramirez82 (Oct 18, 2010)

Sometimes he will play but it is not often. Have tried playing tug of war with him and he enjoys it but seems to get bored. He does seem to sleep a lot and lay around. 

We have been feeding him professional large breed puppy food. The vet did do a worm test and everything came back clear. I am just worried that there might be something wrong cause this does not seem normal. I just want him to be happy and playful.


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## chicagojosh (Jun 22, 2010)

hmmm, assuming like you said the vet checked everything and he's healthy..then i would ask

are you playing with him alone? with other dogs? 
are there too many other distactions around keeping his attention from playing?
do you have a variety of toys?

pups that age DO sleep a lot 12-14 hours a day i think. but after that nap he should wake up rearing to go...


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## Stosh (Jun 26, 2010)

Stosh wasn't too energetic either- I thought he was just a laid back pup, but it turns out he had giardia. Not too energetic after that but a little better- had him tested again and he had an unusually high bacteria level that had been persistent but no real symptoms like diarrhea or anything. Once he was treated he was a whole new puppy. So you might want to have more extensive testing done, feed a high quality food and make playtime fun!


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## JustMeLeslie (Sep 15, 2010)

Stosh said:


> Stosh wasn't too energetic either- I thought he was just a laid back pup, but it turns out he had giardia. Not too energetic after that but a little better- had him tested again and he had an unusually high bacteria level that had been persistent but no real symptoms like diarrhea or anything. Once he was treated he was a whole new puppy. So you might want to have more extensive testing done, feed a high quality food and make playtime fun!


I agree that more extensive testing should be done since you stated he is not wormy. Puppies do sleep alot but when they get up from a nap they should be ready for playtime. If he does not start to be more active get some testing done.


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## dramirez82 (Oct 18, 2010)

What other tests would you recommend having done?




JustMeLeslie said:


> I agree that more extensive testing should be done since you stated he is not wormy. Puppies do sleep alot but when they get up from a nap they should be ready for playtime. If he does not start to be more active get some testing done.


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## Stosh (Jun 26, 2010)

A more complete fecal test will determine if there are parasites like giardia, coccidia, and give bacteria levels. I would also ask the vet to do a blood test to see if there's a tick disease. Both should be relatively inexpensive and the fecal test can be done while you wait.


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## GSDAlphaMom (Jul 20, 2010)

I agree, recheck for worms and parasites. I have a 9 wk old that came back negative the first time. The 2nd time it was positive for coccidia and now the 3rd check is showing hook worms.


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## ponyfarm (Apr 11, 2010)

Check for giardia. My puppy was very sleepy and had a low appetite with intermittent loose stools. Once we got thru that problem, he became a wild child. Totally different puppy! Oh, and watch the food...he could not handle Blue Buffalo Large breed puppy.


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