diff --git a/src/ghydramcp/mixins/docker.py b/src/ghydramcp/mixins/docker.py
index e5cae89..ded88de 100644
--- a/src/ghydramcp/mixins/docker.py
+++ b/src/ghydramcp/mixins/docker.py
@@ -815,21 +815,15 @@ class DockerMixin(MCPMixin):
         except subprocess.CalledProcessError as e:
             return {"error": f"Build failed: {e.stderr or e.stdout}"}
 
-    @mcp_tool(
-        name="docker_health",
-        description="Check if a GhydraMCP container's API is responding",
-    )
-    async def docker_health(
-        self, port: int = 8192, timeout: float = 5.0, ctx: Optional[Context] = None
-    ) -> Dict[str, Any]:
-        """Check if a GhydraMCP container's API is healthy.
+    def _sync_health_check(self, port: int, timeout: float) -> Dict[str, Any]:
+        """Synchronous health check (runs in thread to avoid blocking event loop).
 
         Args:
-            port: API port to check (default: 8192)
+            port: API port to check
             timeout: Request timeout in seconds
 
         Returns:
-            Health status and API info if available
+            Health status dict
         """
         import json as json_module
         import urllib.error
@@ -862,6 +856,27 @@ class DockerMixin(MCPMixin):
                 "error": str(e),
             }
 
+    @mcp_tool(
+        name="docker_health",
+        description="Check if a GhydraMCP container's API is responding",
+    )
+    async def docker_health(
+        self, port: int = 8192, timeout: float = 5.0, ctx: Optional[Context] = None
+    ) -> Dict[str, Any]:
+        """Check if a GhydraMCP container's API is healthy.
+
+        Args:
+            port: API port to check (default: 8192)
+            timeout: Request timeout in seconds
+
+        Returns:
+            Health status and API info if available
+        """
+        loop = asyncio.get_event_loop()
+        return await loop.run_in_executor(
+            None, self._sync_health_check, port, timeout
+        )
+
     @mcp_tool(
         name="docker_wait",
         description="Wait for a GhydraMCP container to become healthy",
@@ -910,7 +925,7 @@ class DockerMixin(MCPMixin):
     async def docker_auto_start(
         self,
         binary_path: str,
-        wait: bool = True,
+        wait: bool = False,
         timeout: float = 300.0,
         ctx: Optional[Context] = None,
     ) -> Dict[str, Any]:
@@ -927,7 +942,7 @@ class DockerMixin(MCPMixin):
 
         Args:
             binary_path: Path to the binary to analyze
-            wait: Wait for container to be ready (default: True)
+            wait: Wait for container to be ready (default: False, use docker_wait separately)
             timeout: Max wait time in seconds (default: 300)
 
         Returns: