Exercising with a Dog. What is Healthy?

One of my New Year’s resolutions this year was to be more active. A dog is a great companion for an active life. What is a healthy level of exercising with a dog?

How much exercise a day is optimal for a dog with regard to its size and age? What happens if you exercise a bit too much with your dog? And how to avoid it in a perfect case? A universal manual doesn’t exist, it is based on your and mainly your dog’s physical shape and other factors such as age and weight and its health.

There are some dogs who are able to walk tens of kilometres in the mountains and different dogs which do not like even getting out of a house or flat. You also have to consider this. You won’t make a world-class athlete from a couch potato. You can try smaller steps, one by one. However, you can also tire a dog which is used to physical activities.

But what about the opposite problem? By that, I mean the lack of time. When time is your main enemy (it happens to me a lot recently) and you are very busy during work day, you might be wondering how to compensate for the exercises with your dog. Can I do exercises with a dog at home? Can it be connected to some training for myself?

If you’re dealing with the first or the second problem, a key to a solution is to create a training plan. Don’t get scared, you don’t need a table with a precise time schedule and indicators both of you have to achieve. Doing exercises with a dog regularly is what’s important.

Even a trained dog can get too much tired if you skip training for a month and then go to a dogtrekking race. However, even an untrained dog will enjoy a short run for a couple of hundred metres. It is said that to keep a dog active and healthy, you should devote AT LEAST 20–30 minutes to walking every day. I would multiply it three times with an adult dog.

Some cynologists even say that you should add 5 minutes of walking every month when a puppy grows. So with a three-month old puppy, you should exercise 15 minutes up to twice a day. In six months, it should be 30 minutes. An adult dog should be active between 30 minutes to 2 hours a day. You can walk, run, swim or only play with a ball.

If you and your dog feel that it’s time to take it to the next level, you can start doing some dog sports. Nowadays, running with a dog or dogtrekking is very popular. Also, mushing is a great sport in all its variants. Each breed is good for another type of dog sport, of course. Short-nose breeds tend to suffer from respiration problems more but their body structure is good and therefore they are good at pulling loads, for example.

No matter what dog you have at home, devote it at least an hour a day, so you nor it will get lazy. You’ll definitely enjoy your time together. Let’s exercise with our dogs!

 

Related articles

Are barking robots the future of pets?

The trend of pets has been a matter of the past 150 years. But what will the next 150 years look like? With the evolution of our society and its values, circuses and zoos are on the radar, and the number of people who do not eat meat, and even vegans,...

All about cat pregnancy

July is the time to prepare for autumn kittens. It's good to remind ourselves what cat pregnancy entails, when and how to prevent it and why.

Cat birth from start to finish

Do you have a pregnant cat at home? Is this stage slowly coming to an end and you are starting to panic about the birth? Let me take you through it from the beginning to the end. Let's take a look at when it is necessary to intervene, when the help...

Dogs on water

Outside temperatures suggest that the boater season is just behind the corner. Many people take their family and children on a water adventure. Some boaters even take their four-legged friends along. What can you do to make sure your trip goes...

Nutrient requirements for dogs

The nutrient requirements of each dog varies depending on its age, physical condition, lifestyle and size. There are many aspects, and you need to take them all into account when choosing your food.

Cat cold

Cats can take a cold a lot harder than we do. For them it's a relatively serious and very contagious viral disease. A cat cold is a combination of diseases, whose symptoms include a cold.

Traveling with a guinea pig

Although traveling is fun, it can also be stressful. We have to make sure we don't forget anything and that everything goes according to plan. But what if you decide to travel with your little friend, a guinea pig? Let's take a look at what you...

Differences between Cat and Dog Food

The fact that there are different cans and dry food for dogs and cats is not a marketing stunt. Both beasts have their specific nutrition needs which vary in certain aspects and if you give them the wrong food, they will start suffering quite soon.