The first question I ask every client who calls with behavior issues is "How many minutes a day of structured exercise does your dog get?" Here are the top three answers.
1. We have a big back yard and he has a dog door.
2. We have 2 dogs who play together all the time.
3. The kids play ball with him almost every day.
Every one of these is nice...but NOT structured exercise and so does not count. When I tell them that their dog is at 0 minutes a day they are shocked.
So what is "structured exercise"? It is an activity that you start, you stop, and drains your dog physically and mentally. A daily walk MUST make up a large part of this. Your dog needs this for many reason. The simplest is to get out of his normal surroundings. Just like us, dogs get house bound. Your four walls and fenced yard get boring quickly. Dogs need to experience the outside world. Period.
Another reason is for the bonding. Your dog is relying on you and your leadership while on a walk and nothing bonds you quicker if you do it right. Which means, you need to have the walk at a heel down for this to work. And obviously the physical exercise is steady and constant on a walk, as where ball playing is amp up and then stop.
In addition to the walk, or jog if you and your dog are higher energy, you can add in obedience training, agility training, fly ball training or pulling activities. The ball playing is fun but does not require the amount of concentration that other activities do. It is like recess for kids.
How much exercise does your dog need? Well, that varies on breed, energy level age, health etc..
Most healthy dogs will need a MINIMUM of 70 minutes a day at least half of which should be walking. It seems like a lot, but you can split it up. 20 minute walk before work, 30 after dinner and two 10 minute obedience training session somewhere in between. If you have more than one person in the house it makes it even easier to split up.
Keep an exercise log because what seems like 30 minutes may actually only be 15 or 20. I have found that some dogs will even get a mental drain from simply going on a car ride and experiencing new sights, sounds and smells. I try to take my dog with me on as many errands as I can and as weather permits (don't leave a dog in a car in hot weather). It is a mental drain for a dog to wait patiently in the car while you run into the bank, or how about taking the dog into the home improvement store with you. Think about how tired you are after spending the morning running around town... you and your dog will both be ready for a nap!
If your dog is having any kind of destructive behaviors, up his exercise and you'll be amazed at the change!
I walk my dog in the morning and then in the evening she either gets a swim/fetch time or a swim/fetch and walk in the evening. I walk through the same park everyday and see three houses with dogs that never get out. They sit in their fenced yards looking longingly out at the open space on the other side. Usually, they run along the fence barking with excitement. Two Pitbulls that live in one house had completely trashed the yard one day. One of them was ripping into a garbage bag and I was horrified. What if the plastic got stuck in its throat? I thought they had been abandoned so I called the shelter. Apparently they weren’t abandoned, just severely neglected. It makes me so angry that people think owning a dog is a hobby, it isn’t a part-time job. Dog ownership takes commitment and time. These animals are your responsibility to nurture not stick in the backyard. I wish I could take each of the dogs I see daily out for a walk, just so they know what one is. Thanks for letting me know I am not the only one who is irritated by this.
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