Am i overwalking my pup?

[scrumpygus]

Firstly i am a new dog owner - my 4 month old pup is a jack russell x chihuahua and is a very very active little thing but i just wondered if someone could tell me am i overdoing his walking every day? I absolutely adore this dog already and i really want to do the best for him but not sure if im overdoing it.
4 days a week he goes for a half hour walk am and an hour walk pm so total 1 and 1/2 hour walking. Then 3 days a week i take him to the stables with where he runs around and then i have been spending nearly 1 and 1/2 hours at a time in the country park nearby and he seems so happy running around and doesnt really get tired - he goes crazy running about and tbh if it wasnt cold i would spend more time walking him - will it do him any damage doing so much exercise so young or should he have as much as i can give?
Any experience / advise gratefully welcomed!

 

[tamsinellen]

I am no expert, but I have always been told no more than 10 mins per month of their lives until they are full grown at any one time to avoid stressing / damaging joints and growing bones. So for a 4 month old that would be no more than 40 mins at one time!

 

[Patches]

I was told 5 minutes per month of their life. No idea which is more accurate.

That does seem alot of walking for a 4 month old pup to me.

 

[scrumpygus]

Thanks for the replies - i thought i should ask - its just he is sooo energetic and excitable and once we are out he is so full of life running around that i felt he needed to be out for that long and i felt bad for him being indoors too long at a time - do you guys think that several short walks a day or 1 long say 30-40 minute walk would be better?

 

[CorvusCorax]

As the others say, that is a lot, same as what my two year olds get, personally speaking (and I am a big dog person) I prefer free running until about 6-9 months, depending on the dog, and short lead walks to get them used to it, introducing lead manners and for socialisation.
Several short walks a day amounting to about 40 minutes would be better.

If he is exciteable, start doing some training with him, exercise for dogs should involve the brain as well as the body.

 

[scrumpygus]

Thanks CaveCanem - i have read some of your other posts and you seem really knowledgeable about dogs ( i have been lurking in here since i thought about getting a pup) so can i pick your brain some more - i note that you say run free - my pup although very excitable is really well behaved and is off the lead already 90% of the time (just not close to busy roads) and i have taught him to wait and sit (i couldnt believe how quick he learnt that btw) I have found so far the same rules seem to apply for training dogs and horses ie consistancy & rewards.
Knowing that he is off the lead does that make any difference to the recommended walk time?
Also you mention dog training do you mean classes with other dogs and a teacher there? Or just having little goals yourself to teach them yourself? As i mentioned im new to this and im doing okay with him so far i think but i hate the thought of him couped up and bored and he seems to love being outside so much. I really want to do the best by him and make sure he doesnt suffer accidently because of my ignorance as god knows i see enough people doing that to horses.

 

[prosefullstop]

I didn't walk Stella much at all until she was six/seven months. Rather, I took her to the dog park twice a day (ten minute walk there and back), and also sent her to doggie daycare, so her exercise came from playing with other dogs/toys, conducted at her own pace. She often took breaks in between, resting under a bench or saying hello to people, so it wasn't continuous exertion, unlike an off-leash walk.

I don't think the joint issue is such a risk as it is with larger breeds, but you still want to be careful.

Is there a park your dog could visit that is frequented by other dogs?

 

[CorvusCorax]

Why thank you, if you saw me sometimes with leads tangled everywhere, covered in mud, shouting myself hoarse, with steam coming out my ears, you might rethink that

When I say free running, I mean having a trot around and a potter and little bursts of galloping in a safe, enclosed space, nothing too taxing or intensive.
At the moment, like I say, free running is fine and then maybe ten minutes a day of lead walking, no more than three times a day just to get him walking nicely.

Classes are always good but training starts at home and there is no point in going to a class if you are not also training all the time at home - whatever suits you! Classes are good because you can get a fresh pair of eyes to help and good for the socialisation of the pup.
You've already said he is a quick learner so I would continue doing what you are doing

it does not sound like he is suffering at all and to be honest small dogs will not be as badly affected as big dogs by over-exertion so I would not panic.
Sit, down, heel, here, retireves, left and right hand signals are all good things to train but as he is so young I would take it slowly and again, ten minute sessions twice or three times a day are enough.

If you are in a position where he can spend a lot of time off lead, moving at his own pace, then I wouldn't go mad with lead walking at this stage except to get him used to it, and to cars, dogs, people, he is a lucky dog to be able to do this and if your recall is good already at this age then all the better.

 

[horseyhazzy]

i always thought that with small dogs you wernt running a risk doing more exercise than per usual, i understand with big dogs (owning mastiff's myself) that you only walk the dog when its a puppy for a short period of time so not to stress the joints, this because the bigger the dog the longer it takes for the bones to mature, with smaller breeds especially the jackrussel side - i cant imaging you doing much harm by incresing exercise - maybe so now as a 4 month old i would decrease it abit, but within the next few months as the dog grows abit it should not be a issue at all, they are very hardy types of dogs.
best luck with the stubborness of the chihuahua in her/him though

xxx.

 

[CorvusCorax]

Yeah, I did say not to panic in the post above yours GH

and have admitted I am a big dog person (although both JRTs and Chis believe they are lions, does that count?

)

Although JRTS are prone to luxating patellas, I would err on the side of caution bearing that in mind.

 

[daisyL]

I have a Jack Russel- short legged hairy thing!- she's 19 months old now but when I first got her at 3 months old I let her spend all day on the yard with me & put her bed in the tack room so she could run abut as much as she wanted..but I can't say she did much resting! I think with the smaller dogs they could probably have as much exercise as they want because I know mine thrives on it & if she couldn't run about as much as she wanted & go for her 45min walk everyday I would be in trouble with her!

I'm no dog expert but from past experience- I've only ever had little terriers- I think dogs/puppies that can do as much exercise as they wish are happy ones

 

[bclaire5712]

my family have had dogs all of my life, mostly bigger dogs but a couple of terriers. we have always let them have free run fron a young age and none of them have ever had joint problems (theres been about 15 of them, 7 at the mo). they normally stop when there tired and we wouldnt make them exercise beyond that point. my belgian shepherd started going to work with me at 4 months old and would spend all morning playing with a rotweiler and would finaly crash out after a couple of hours. she is now 2 has a hip score of 9 and is the fitest dog we have.