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Thanks for the info, being 9 weeks and the behavior being evoked by your toddler sitting quietly is likely a way of asking for interaction, although I would have to see the behavior to be certain. He may be seeking play if the bark/growl it's accompanied by playful body language with the use of metasignals like the "play bow" where the puppy's elbows are lowered and the rump is in the air with the tail moving side-to side. Overstimulation occurs when there is an excess of stimulation for the puppy's brain to process and integrate effectively. When this happens, it leads to sensory overload, with the puppy feeling overwhelmed and possibly living in a perpetual state of hyperarousal, and just general, being on edge and unable to relax. Typically, expect a puppy to be overstimulated when exposed to noises and activities that he struggles to cope with. A puppy may therefore feel cranky or overstimulated when the kids come home from school and start playing rowdy with each other or after spending several hours at daycare or following a walk to the city where he was exposed to a variety of stimuli. Puppies can also get cranky when they are overstimulated and tired and in great need of a nap. To quote dog trainer Nan Arthur, "This can be equated to kids spending all day at an amusement park and then are unable to sleep because they are so wound up and cranky from all the excitement." Overstimulated puppies therefore tend to feel tired and overwhelmed, but they struggle to relax. When exposed to too much stimulation, affected pups require some quiet time in a familiar and calm environment. The signs of overstimulation in puppies therefore tend to appear contingent upon being exposed to certain overstimulating stimuli or situations. Following are several signs to watch for. Nipping Biting Barking Jumping Whining Growling Humping Licking Chewing everything Biting the leash Running around (zoomies) Acting hyperactive Understimulation on the other hand, occurs when pups aren't provided with enough stimulation. If we take a look at most dog breeds 'histories will will notice that they were bred for to carry out some specific tasks. It therefore makes sense that puppies and dogs in general struggle when they're left at home with nothing to do. Dogs are built to be social animals and need something to do to thrive. Lack of stimulation can be damaging, leading to potential mental and physical repercussions. Those puppy brains tend to grow just as other parts of the body and that gray matter development occurs faster during puppyhood than any other time of their lives. It goes without saying that this is a time where early experiences and proper environmental stimulation is crucial for creating millions of connections. Fail to provide sufficient stimulation or raise the puppy in an impoverished environment, and that puppy brain may fail to develop to its full potential. As the saying goes "use it or lose it." It is estimated that 80 percent of a dog's brain is fully formed by 4 months of age, while the remaining 20 percent develops from the age of 4 months to 1 year. Peak development takes place from 4 weeks and 4 months which coincides with the puppy's critical socialization stage. Once the brain has developed past this time, it becomes more challenging to "change the wiring" so to say. Under stimulated puppies are therefore pups who are often left alone during the day or aren't offered enough mental stimulation. Even if one was to be there with a puppy during the day, if one fails to provide mentally stimulating activities, the puppy would be missing out on reaping the benefits of learning to entertain himself and keep the brain busy. Signs of under stimulation, or a need for more interaction, include: Barking when the owners sit down to read, use the computer or watch the TV Excessive paw licking Tail chasing Chewing inappropriate items Scratching doors and many more.... While it's true that puppies need a stimulating and enrichment-based environment, especially during their critical period, it's also true that they also need some quiet time to feel secure and to calm down. On top of this, it helps to provide stimulation in a way that it is not excessive and teaching puppies how to chill. Similar to a thermostat, it feels best when everything is under control and our dogs are neither too overstimulated or under stimulated. In other words, you want to take care of adjusting your pup's levels of stimulation to a "setting" that isn't too overwhelming and neither too boring. The amount of stimulation your puppy needs may vary based on breed and individual temperament. Some pups cope better with stimulating environments compared to others. Let your puppy's behavior guide you and remember that a balanced approach is often best. Tips for Overstimulated Puppies Make sure your puppy sleeps enough. Puppies need a lot of sleep, and often they don't know how to relax enough to easily fall asleep. Such puppies may need to be helped. Simply crate or place your puppy in his crate/ play pen with something to safe to chew on when your puppy starts acting cranky from being too overstimulated. It may take some time to get your puppy to learn how to relax, but it gets better with time. Try your best to stay calm. Talk in a calm tone and move slowly. If you act hyper, angry or frustrated, you puppy will pick on those emotions and become unsettled as well. Staying calm will help your pup calm down too. Reduce the noise and activity. Turn off the radio or TV, turn off the lights and try to play some calming music to help your puppy wind down. Provide games that teach puppies how to quietly entertain themselves and that encourage them to explore their environment at their own pace. This teaches puppies how to occupy themselves and calm themselves down. Some productive ways of keeping the mind stimulated and busy is through food puzzles, brain games, canine nosework training and clicker training. And of course, make sure to safely socialize your puppy, start some basic training, do fun brain games and it's always good to start early to prevent problems such as getting the pup used to being handled, preventing resource guarding, teaching bite inhibition, and gradually getting him used to coping being left alone. https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/socializing-your-puppy/ https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/exercises-to-teach-puppies-to-tolerate-touch/ https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/the-importance-of-preventing-resource-guarding-in-puppies/ https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/exercises-to-prevent-separation-anxiety-in-puppies/ https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/video-archive/love-the-crate/ https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/bite-inhibition-games/ https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/train-dog-take-treats-gently/ The Bottom Line Puppies needs the right balance of exercise, mental stimulation and rest. It's important to point out that over-exercising puppies who are under 1-year old can have detrimental effects on their skeletal system (as the soft bones are developing and growth plates haven't closed yet). So jumping, jogging, or running on hard surfaces etc may prove harmful. Puppies need lots of sleep when they are actively growing. It is estimated that young puppies require around eighteen to twenty hours for sleep per day (adult dogs in general need 14-17 hours of rest per 24 hour cycle). This may sound a whole lot, but it makes sense if we think that puppies do most of their growing while sleeping. I hope this helps! Happy training!

You got that right! Oiy! It's been 4 months now and I'm exhausted! We have a unique situation with a medical condition so please don't take my experience as your future, lol. Is he on a routine / schedule? That can help with the overstimulation. It's a lot like a toddler who needs a nap but doesn't want to miss anything but is too grumpy to participate but too excited to sleep. If you have a routine for eating, potty, play, rest, it can make things go a lot smoother because then the pup knows what to expect. At 9 weeks you're not anywhere near adolescence so, if it were me, I would establish a routine now to make life easier when he does hit that age of piercing his nose, spiking his hair, and wearing combat boots. 😆 Especially because he's going to be powerful and Big. I was going to show you our schedule as an example but holy crud it's a mess due to the number of trips we have to take and the fact that Esther doesn't really sleep. 5 - 10 minutes of training or play should be sufficient. Any more Might be overstimulation, you'll learn to read his signals to figure out when he's getting too much. Settle down (Highly recommend this one: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/high-school/jazz-up-and-settle-down/) I don't know your work schedule, or his sleep schedule, but you're basically working through eat, potty, sleep, play at regular times so he knows what's coming up. If you're not already on a schedule you'll begin to see him anticipating the next item. For instance, Esther is Totally thrown off if I go straight out of the bedroom instead of hooking a right to take her to go potty because she is expecting to go to the back yard (sometimes there might be a package out front). When we first go into the office they both go into their kennels to wait for food. After they eat Esther might get a treat toy and water or she might come to the desk area for her water with Gertie and me. Gertie goes straight to the beds, Esther picks up a toy and entertains herself for about 20 minutes before her next potty break. If I'm Really lucky she'll take a nap.