How much do you actually walk your dogs?

[Starbucks]

Poss controversial!

My poor wee mutts have had to put up with some garden time and a 10 minute razz around some fields today, but that's not the norm for them. They normally get 2 walks a day, but prob only 20 mins (1 mile each maybe) for each walk, so 40 mins in total. Not the recommended amout for either bread I have (certainly not the pointer!).

Just wondered who does the recommended exercise time for your dog, how you fit it in, and if you feel it is entirely necessary?

 

[prosefullstop]

I feel it's necessary for my Boston terrier to get two good walks per day, but I cheat in the mornings by getting a walker in. Every evening either I or my husband do another hour in the park. It was awful this past winter, as the fields in Central Park were under two feet of compacted snow, which meant leash walks only for a few weeks.

My dogs live in a flat, so it's only fair they get a mammoth amount of outdoor exercise. I can't imagine many pugs walk two hours every day, and he would be fine and mellow with two laps around the block, but he's a sod to keep slim and the long walks certainly help.

 

[lazybee]

We have a Fox terrier a wire haired Dachshund and a Bouvier de Flandres and never walk them, EVER. They keep each other fit running around outside. The Bouvier is a good carriage dog and runs beside when we go out driving. The other two go off on little hunting forays; and come back mucky and contented. We are lucky though b/c our land is all fenced adjoining the house.

 

[Toffee44]

Depends mine go to work with OH. If puppy goes he gets no walk later, Teal springrxlab gets any thing between half hour to hour or more twice a day. If its a shorter walk I take him up the woods as he entertains him self he may also go for a run with me but that's only a mile atm

 

[echodomino]

I try to get mine out for at least half an hour every day, if not every other day. I don't think they need much more than an hour because I free run them, they run faster and further than I walk and their legs are that short they do two or three times more work than me any way lol. That's not to say they don't get more, I just don't think it's necessary to trek them for miles

 

[soloabe]

At least 2 hours a day on weekend 4-5 hour hikes.

Plus at least an hour of training a day.

 

[SecretSquirrell379]

At least 2 hours a day on weekend 4-5 hour hikes.

Plus at least an hour of training a day.

blimey I would never have time to do that nor the dedication!!

Pickle goes to work with hubby 3 days a week so gets 4 or 5 10-15 runs during the day. If she is home with me then I take her over the country park for a run for about 30 mins. She is only 6 months old though so I think that that is enough for her. She self excercises a LOT at home. At this present moment she is going laps of the garden full pelt then the wall of death round the lounge and back out again!!

 

[soloabe]

blimey I would never have time to do that nor the dedication!!

Pickle goes to work with hubby 3 days a week so gets 4 or 5 10-15 runs during the day. If she is home with me then I take her over the country park for a run for about 30 mins. She is only 6 months old though so I think that that is enough for her. She self excercises a LOT at home. At this present moment she is going laps of the garden full pelt then the wall of death round the lounge and back out again!!

It really doesn't take that much.

Oh runs them on his hour jog in the morning at 5am.
I run them for 10 minutes before work

At lunch time they get 30 minutes at the dog park.

After work they get an 40-1 hour run with me.

On the weekends we hike anyway so it would be stupid to walk the dogs them leave them behind and go on a hike.

They still run around like crazy at home.

 

[Deefa]

My two (A Border collie and a jack russel) Go to the yard once a day minimum(normally evenings) for 1-3 hours depending. Also they normally go on a 20min walk in the mornings before work round the park.
At weekends they can be down the yard for however long i am, they get full run of the fields and come on hacks round the 120acres with me when we do to.

 

[SecretSquirrell379]

It really doesn't take that much.

Oh runs them on his hour jog in the morning at 5am.
I run them for 10 minutes before work

At lunch time they get 30 minutes at the dog park.

After work they get an 40-1 hour run with me.

On the weekends we hike anyway so it would be stupid to walk the dogs them leave them behind and go on a hike.

They still run around like crazy at home.

that sounds more manageable!!

 

[lexiedhb]

Dex gets 30-40 mins am, half hour ball in the garden lunchtime, an hour in the evening- but all this is on the lead ATM which is annoying (he's new- not sure he would come back to me just yet!).

Weekends he gets maybe one longer walk, depending what we are up to.

he now also gets training time!

 

[MissTyc]

My dog gets a 30-60 minute walk through fields/forest either in the morning before work or after work + a 15 min sprint with my husband (and the walk to the from the sprint stretch, but that's only about 5 min each way) ... She usually gets 30-60 minutes playing ball in the garden as well unless it's very wet!

 

[millitiger]

Boris (German Pointer) gets 1 x hour walk in the morning which is all spent off the lead while he tried to break the land speed record the entire time

He also gets at least 3 x 20 minutes 'fetch' sessions in the garden with his ball.

Daisy (Doberman) gets a 1 x 25 minute walk on the lead around the roads and spends the rest of the day comatose either in the sun or next to the radiator.

 

[blackcob]

2-3 hours a day, anything up to ten miles plus or minus hooning in the paddock or park and training in the paddock. Sadly it's too warm now but she had a good start on the bike this season, if I can get my act together with transport we'll hopefully compete this year (tends to be 1-2k sprints for single dogs). My dad periodically steals her for a 10k run and she comes back ready for more.

We have no garden so I feel it's only fair, and is the single biggest thing that helped her separation anxiety and destruction - a tired dog is a good dog.

 

[jsr]

I have a pack so they require alot of exercise otherwise my little 2 up 2 down and postage stamp garden wouldn't cope with them!!

They get 1 hour in the morning off lead running on fields and in the winter an hour at night and the summer it can be anything from 1 hour to 2 depending on the weather, how late I am back from the yard and how knackered I am!!

I have a wide range of dogs and ages from 1 to 17 so they have varying degrees of needs, usually if I feel the younger dogs (and more hyperactive Poodle x who needs MASSES of exercise!) need more then I take them out again.

 

[CAYLA]

We walk ours late afternoon and late night (no morning) as OH is walking cleints dogs then.
So, we take the lower energy dogs that dont need to walk to far for a stroll, (30 mins round field) which would be the akita and deerhound.
The we take all others for an hour round bigger field with ball thrower, so they are paggered/panting when come off field, or the lurcher and whippet chase each other for the whole hour. The pointer runs the lengths of the crop fields for the hour with pancake the cavi
Then we walk round the local wildlife reserve at night which takes another hour.
So younger dogs 2 hours, one really running all the way, the next a more structured walk.
Oh will sometimes walk inbetween too when he feels energetic and its a nice night esp in the summer when im at work.

 

[helloamys]

My lab get three half hour offlead walks (about 6am, 1pm, and 7pm), and every couple of days we bikeride for about an hour which really tires him out We used to go the beach which took 2hours, and then have a good run round at the beach, but at 13, an hours his limit. He generally gets home, finds a sunny spot in the garden and is flat out for a few hours afterwards
I'll probably start stopping the bike rides now its nearly summer and add an extra walk/jog in for the same time.

Everynow and then, I'll take him the yard but he can't jump in the car very well, and if we walk then we have to pass a little stream with quite steep banks than he finds abit difficult now.

And he lives outside and has the run of the garden.

I dont know what the recommended walk time is for a lab but he seems happy about it and it works for us

ETA - The bike rides/jog are aswell as the three walks.

 

[Hedwards]

Millie (JRT) gets 15-20 minutes most mornings (only misses this if i have a really early meeting at work), and then anything from 1hour-3hours (now the clocks have changed its more the 2-3hour) walk around the fields with a ball thrower and/or forests nearby me. Weekends are spent a lot at the yard, plus i've taken to printing off 'walks' in the local area and if the weather is nice going out for a long walk (6-7km). Plus Millie goes to Flyball & Agility once a week for each, and my brother takes her to a local country park every friday for a few hours. shes never run out of energy yet!!!

 

[Marquire]

Poss controversial!

My poor wee mutts have had to put up with some garden time and a 10 minute razz around some fields today, but that's not the norm for them. They normally get 2 walks a day, but prob only 20 mins (1 mile each maybe) for each walk, so 40 mins in total. Not the recommended amout for either bread I have (certainly not the pointer!).

Just wondered who does the recommended exercise time for your dog, how you fit it in, and if you feel it is entirely necessary?

Hollypops is a 4 year old Lab and Oh and I work full time. During the week she is walked for 30 minutes first thing, 1 hour at lunchtime with dog walker (plus chums so 1 hour's hooning!) then 1 hour after work. All off lead.

At the weekend she has 30 minutes morning and evening and a longer 2 hour walk at lunchtime, plus she tends to be bumbling around with us the whole day. Again all off lead.

She's a fit active dog who needs exercise and mental stimulation and there is no way I'd consider walking her less as it wouldn't be fair on her.

 

[CL66]

Mine come to the horses with me twice a day and run around 8 acres while i do my chores, about 45 mins each time. At weekends we'll usually go up on the downs or to the woods. I try and keep their minds active too with lots of training.

I don't have a rigid routine as i think they'd drive me nuts if they 'expected' that it was time to go out for their walk.

 

[Bug2007]

Greyhound - He comes to the horses with me every morning for half hour and spends most of it eating pooh.

Comes to work all day with me, walked after work for 20 minutes he has a crazy ten minutes in that time.

Then taken out round the corner for a wee last thing. (we don't have a garden)

Weekends he'll go for a longer walk but no more than an hour, he is then by that time dead to the world.

He gets the amount a Grey should get, plus he is off lead at all times so gets more than the 2x 20 mins on a lead they suggest.

He is happy fit and healthy for it, and sleeps the other 23 hours a day when not stealing biscuits off the other in the office.

 

[camilla4]

Mine (Lab) gets two hours a day without fail - all off lead. Uually a slightly longer one in the morning and slightly shorter in the afternoon, especially in the summer when it is hot!

 

[mollichop]

Well i'm a creature of habit and am lucky in that I work part time and have no kids so have lots of dog time

Every morning 7-9am either walk, run or bike with them off lead.

Every afternoon 4-6 walk or out with the horse (all off road) then 1/2 hour to and hour mooch around the yard/field whilst I do horse jobs.

Wee breaks inbetween and last short walk to field at back of mine approx 12pm.

Would do more if I could but they need the sofa time

 

[Puppy]

I try to get mine out for at least half an hour every day, if not every other day.

I have never heard of walking a dog every other day...

Mine get half an hour at the park first thing, playing with their friends, that's the only hard and fast rule to their exercise. Generally they somehow or another then have 1- 2.1/2 hours later on, in one or two walks. Sometimes that's playing with other dogs at the common, or often with me on the bike by the river.

There's quite a bit of variety to what time of day we go, or where we go, depending on how warm it is, and my study schedule. Popple is currently banned from the horses as she keeping legging it to some woods nearby but Fraggle will probably have a couple of hours there, pootling round with my mother this afternoon, and then Pops coming out on the bike with me when I go coaching for a couple of hours this evening.

 

[galaxy]

Sometimes my GSP gets very little walking (last summer when I had my accident he would only get 30-45 mins most days as I relied on other people. Then I'd sit on the sofa (couldn't move) and "try" and throw a ball out the patio doors for him.... there was a lot of missing!) and he's absolutely fine. Never climbs the walls!

Usually though I'd say he's out the house and running (never stops) for 1.5-2 hrs a day. He comes up the yard am and pm. Depending on how much time he's spent up there and how much running he's done will then make me decide whether he gets a walk as well.... He always gets a 20 min walk with me and OH before bed.

 

[Tillypup]

Mine get 2 x 1hour (ish) walks everyday, only a little bit at the start and end of the walk on the lead, the rest of it spent off lead and galloping. They are then quite happy to spend the rest of their time mooching around the house, with the occasional play. They would quite happily do more, but any less than what they get I think I'd end up with dogs going crazy!

 

[Slinkyunicorn]

My two get to mooch around the yard/fields first thing while I do the horses and also last thing. In between they get a walk round the fields every day (min 1 hour) where they chase hares,rabbits,swim in the brook etc. I make Sweep do one walk a day due to his age - Max needs all the exercise he can get so depending on where the sheep are he also does 'agility' over the x country course or in the show jumping paddock - he loves it then at weekends we go on a 'big' walk both days off the farm - sometimes with Mollichop and her boys or other dogs

They also have free run of the garden all day and night which is half an acre and needs constant patrolling in case a cat decides to visit.....

 

[Vizslak]

Mine get approx 2hrs a day. In the winter (and I'm still on this time currently Must change my routine soon!) They get one longer walk most days so 1.45-2hrs mid morning (or whatever time Flora gets out of bed really, I'm currently sat waiting for this appearance with the other dogs as I type!) Sometimes they get a walk in the dark as well but not always. In the summer I split it into two so they go out slightly earlier and then again in the evening when I get back from the yard for about an hour each time. This is really too much for the poor lurcher who would rather be sleeping but ambles along anyway. I can thankfully take them out for a 30min quicky if for any reason (usually my health!) I cant properly walk them and they accept this fine, they just go a bit more manic the next day when walking!

 

[celia]

We have a golden retriever and a border terrier. They have between 45 mins and 2 hours every morning depending on how busy I am. Terrier is off the lead most of the time and retriever is usually 50/50 on lead and loose depending on where we go (his recall isn't always so good!). They also come out at least 3 times a day to run about and play while I sort the horses - usually morning + evening and then at some point in the afternoon to poo-pick. Currently big lad is recovering from an op so is just getting his morning walk on the lead - he's quite happy with that though and although he loves getting out again later he doesn't really need the extra. He has noticably lost fitness though which obviously makes a big difference to how much energy he has!

 

[Tinkerbee]

At home in NI, never unless I fancy a stroll! They have the run of ours and neighbours land and (generally ) don't stray to far and tire themselves out each day.

Here, she gets 10/15 mins in the morning and depending whether I'm home or not either two big (30-60 +) mins at lunch+ afternoon or just afternoon.

At weekends/days off we usually go somewhere else and occasionally can be out and about for a good few hours.

Tink is very low maintenance though, so far only had her 10 min morning walk and she's sleeping in her bed! She pootles around the garden but is very much a "I'll walk if you walk" dog and on the odd day when I've been ill/foul weather and she doesnt get anything other than toilet runs, she is content to sleep!