How To Decide How Much To Walk A Dog
The most important thing is to listen to your dog. If they show reluctance, or start slowing down, then you are going too far. However, if you rely solely on your dog telling you when to stop, you could still badly overestimate what they should do.
The problem is that most owners don’t recognise that dogs will overexercise if allowed. They live in the moment and don’t foresee the price they’ll pay later.
Therefore, you have to be your dog’s brains. In order to decide on how far you can go, you need to consider a number of factors. These include:
Some of these are obvious, and some aren’t. I’ll go through each in turn.
This is the easiest one. Nobody expects an old dog to be able to walk as far as a young one. However, there’s still a lot to know.
Puppies right up to maturity do not have the fitness of adults. There’s also a risk of causing damage. This is such a big topic that you’ll find a separate article on how far to walk a puppy.
As for older dogs, age alone is less of a factor than people expect. Most breeds up to 12 years of age can still walk further than their human companions. It’s more that age is often associated with health problems. Therefore, if a dog is slowing down, it’s essential to get a checkup.
Almost any illness will cause a dog to not be able to walk as far as before. Perhaps the three most common are:
You can read more about each at the links, but the important point is this: these are all treatable conditions. With the therapies found at the linked pages these dogs should still enjoy a daily walk. I take my 16 year old out every day, just not far or fast.
And in fact a point I often make to owners of dogs with heart murmurs is that daily moderate exercise is a good thing. It not only probably delays progression, but it’s an excellent way to spot the early signs of deterioration.
A highly reversible health problem is being overweight. This can dramatically reduce a dog’s stamina, depending on how much excess weight is being carried. If you leave it there too long, it will also lead to a faster onset of arthritis and other joint problems.
Therefore, if you are interested in long walks with your dog, you should make sure they are at ideal condition. If needed, read our page full of positive tips to help dogs lose weight.
Breed probably matters less than most people think, just because dogs are intrinsically such good walkers. However, here are some points to consider:
Failing to recognise when a dog is getting hot is probably the number one mistake dog owners make. I’ve already pointed out that some breeds are at higher risk, but it will happen to any dog under the wrong circumstances. What people don’t know is just how ‘normal’ those conditions can be.
I have always said that 26 degrees Celsius at the time of walking is the warmest at which a dog should be exercised. The following results confirm this.
Study 1 was done in Labradors with 30 minutes of loose leash walking in the sun at temperatures between 27.5 and 31ºC (18-88ºF). The result? Their average body temperature reached 42 degrees!
Afterwards, a 15-minute cooling period was inadequate for 80% of the dogs to achieve baseline temperatures
Study 2 under conditions of 28-29.4ºC and humidity of 50% did the following:
The result? Body temperatures ranging from 40.3 to 42.4ºC.
Just to show that overheating can occur at even colder temperatures, here is an older and very unethical study. The graph shows two groups of dogs who were run on an inclined (uphill) treadmill at 20°C. Those without ice packs became severely overheated in 1 hour.
How Long Should You Walk Your Dog Every Day?
You want to make sure that your dog gets enough exercise and stimulation, but how do you know for how long you need to walk your dog? It shouldn’t come as a surprise that the amount of time that your dog needs to spend walking depends very much on your particular dog, but in general most healthy dogs need a minimum of 30 to 60 minutes of walking every day. Puppies should have 5 minutes of exercise per month of age until they are grown. Older dogs should not be pushed to exercise, but should be encouraged to get out and move around for at least 10 to 15 minutes every day.
Breed is a big influencer in how much exercise your dog needs, since some breeds have much more energy than others. Size is also an important consideration. A small dog will get a lot more exercise from a walk than a large dog would, since small dogs need to trot to keep up with the average human gait, whereas large dogs walk at about the same pace as a person. Another consideration is the other things that your dog does. If your dog loves to run for hours at the dog park, she may be able to have a shorter walk.
Give in
As I discussed above, letting your dog pull you on a bike or skateboard, or having your dog pull a weight, can be a great way to add more exercise to your walking routine. If your dog pulls all the way through your walk, chances are she isn’t getting enough exercise. Give your dog the exercise she needs by giving into the battle and letting her pull you.
How Often Should You WALK YOUR DOG – Daily Exercise Tips
There’s really no limit to how far you walk your dog as long as they’re comfortable. For some dogs, that’s around the block. For others, it’s ten miles. Just remember to build distance and stamina gradually over time.