Hi,

We are from just North of Peoria, IL and have a new baby boy. A 3mo old, 30 lb baby! (glad I didn't deliver that! LOL) We have been researching and reading everything we can on this beautiful breed. We do however have a concern that we hope someone can give us some feedback on. We've had our new guy for almost a week. While he is friendly with us, wagging his tail, excited to see us, gives us kisses, etc...pretty much the rest of the time he sleeps.....a LOT. He just lays around, will not come when you talk to him, just lays and looks up at you with those eyes that seem to say "Really? You bore me" I guess I expected as a puppy he would be a bit more active and playful even though it be a laid back breed. Is this normal? We did take him to the vet for his 12 wk shots and the vet said he was in good health. So why is he so lethargic???? Really I don't think we're that dull! LOL We appreciate any help.

John & Becca

First of all, Congrats on the new baby!

Berners really are laid back dogs. Riley would run around and around, jumping, barking, just out of control, and then all of a sudden he would just drop where ever he was and sleep for hours. He always did this on his own time too. lol He "played" when he wanted to, not because we wanted him to.

Maybe he is just getting used to his new home also. Is he eating and drinking ok?? I would say to give him a little more time and if you still think he is more lethargic than you are comfortable with, make another trip to the vet, just to give yourself peace of mind.

Remember to enjoy the days of 30lbs They go by really fast !

Hi There welcome,

Your post made me laugh I had the same problem with my Baby(Fynn) he is our first BMD and I was expecting a puppy to be very livley and playful.... but no he slept a lot as your pup does,and liked his own company, he still likes to sleep at the back door away from the noise,but he is starting to become a bit more sociable and has a mad half an hour(well 10mins) like other dogs he is now 21 weeks.
I put it down to how he was when he was with his litter and Mum!

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Rowan

Durham UK

Hello again! We just wanted to thank you both for your welcoming response and advice. This is our first puppy for a long time and after doing research we fell in love with the BMDs. We just want to make sure we're doing the right things for him. I think Bernermom is right, we just need to be a bit more patient. It does seem like he's coming around a bit everyday. It's just funny to watch how, "when he's done, he's done-PLOP!" And no matter how much you want to play with him, his head never lifts from the ground, those big puppy dog eyes just look at you like "I love you, but really? I'm just too tired". We also have to laugh after reading many of the posts on here about how they like to lay on your feet. Our guy does the exact same. It's like they have to be near their human whether active or not. We've not seen one post, blog, statement, etc. where anyone has been disappointed in their Berner and I don't think we will be either. He's such a loving ball of fluff!

Also, we'd like to say "Thank You" to the administrator of this site. We found it totally by accident, but have been impressed with it so far and not only think it's a great idea, but have found a lot of value in the posts on here.
We thank you again and look forward to talking with many more on the site.

Hi there! I think this is how you reply to your post....not sure yet. Anyway, we had the EXACT same issue with Barkley. We got him at 17 weeks and he was already 40 pounds! For the first month or two, I seriously thought he was depressed. He was so loveable but so lazy! He wasn't chewing on shoes or running around like crazy like most puppies do. I took him on a walk around the block and half way through he just plopped down on the ground bc he was so tired! I had to carry him all the way back to the house (everyone was honking bc it was hilarious seeing me carry a 40lb dog down the sidewalk). Anyway, I think that these puppies get tired easily at this young age, and seem to always be "plopping" down to chill out (literally, our house shakes when Barkley lays down -lol). I was concerned that there was something going on with him...but I was totally wrong. Now at 6 months, he is running around, jumping on the beds and sofas, eating remote controls and shoes, etc. He's still way more laid back than most dogs (which is awesome) but he'll get more energetic every week. His personality will develop more and more each day as he gets used to his new home with ya'll. Anyway, just wanted to tell you that I had the same concerns a few months ago. But just wait.....you'll see.

I apologize if this is a duplicate...I am also new and don't know what happened when I tried to reply the first time. I'm wondering if our pups are litter mates. We got Olaf near Gridley, IL, also in February, right around Valentine's Day. Olaf was quite a bit smaller than the only other pup left in the litter and now at 6 months is just 40 lbs. which seems very small particularly for a male. We're really curious if yours came from the same breeder. Hope you are enjoying yours as much as we are!

Ask long as he is eating and drinking OK i wouldn't worry. If they are getting lethargic and NOT eating and drinking there is a problem.

Welcome to the forums!

Our baby Sam is 5 months old and people ask me all the time, "Is he always this laid back?" to which I happily reply, "Yes!"

Sam enjoys jumping, running, and playing outside much more than inside. I think for him, it's partly because he spent his early puppy life outside on a farm and it's cooler outside. It seems that the outdoors energizes him. We have special outside toys and spend time playing out there, but while he's inside, he's resting or laying at our feet, or chewing on his toys.

When he first came home (one month ago) he LOVED chewing on our shoes, so that was the first lesson (aside from potty outside.) Don't worry about his energy level right now - it will change as he grows and becomes more confident in your home.

Oh - and pictures!!! We need pictures!

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Teresa

Our Furry Family
Maddie - Cocker Spaniel - 12/22/2006
Gunner - Cocker Spaniel - 07/29/2007
Jack-Jack & Harry - spoiled cats - 04/01/2009
Sam - Berner Baby - 12/14/2010

R.I.P.
Braska - GSD - 03/2000 - 03/2011