Do you take your dog for a walk every day?
Surely you’d be a bad owner if you didn’t?
No, you wouldn’t. (Although, please note, laziness is NOT a good excuse for not walking your dog!)
It’s one of the myths of dog ownership, that dogs have to be taken out on a walk each day. And before you throw your hands up in horror at that statement, let me explain. Physical exercise will keep your dog fit but won’t always tire them out. If you want your dog to be tired, work their brain instead.
If your dog loves their walks and enjoys seeing all the sights, hearing the sounds and sniffing the scents of your neighbourhood each day, then feel free to go for a walk whenever you want. But other dogs don’t. Some dogs, whether from a poor initial upbringing or a bad experience, find modern life overwhelming and can be stressed by traffic, or people, or other dogs.
For these dogs, going out on a walk each day is stressful and over time, these dogs reset their arousal/stress levels to a high setting. Then that they can find it impossible to fully relax and rest – and walks just keep adding to that arousal and stress.
I love my job and am happy to go out (when allowed) to visit and help clients and their dogs. But I also need my Sundays when I can just potter and rest. Every living being needs some downtime away from the usual stresses and strains of life and that’s true of your dog as well.
What’s that? I can hear you muttering “but my dog needs exercise.” Yes, dogs do need some exercise every day, but striding along on lead next to you or chasing balls on the beach is not always the best exercise you can give your dog.
If your dog becomes aroused and stressed when you take them out for walks, barking at anything that moves, lunging at other dogs or people, pulling like a train, or reluctant to walk anywhere – then they will benefit from some downtime.
Here’s some ideas:
- Have a sniff walk, where you allow your dog to sniff as much as they want and tell you where they want to go
- Ditch that bowl and feed your dog in fun, interesting ways instead. Use a snuffle mat, scatter feed, fill Kongs and smear soft food on lickimats, and give your dog food puzzles to work out and food games to play. Use food for training, too. (This idea applies every day, not just rest days!)
- Have a “stay at home” day at least once a week where you train your dog instead of taking them for a walk – use the games we teach in class to give you ideas, or train your dog to do a new trick or move
My books will give you plenty of training ideas too. My new hot-off-the-press book, “Please May I Have A Puppy?” is aimed at children aged 7 to 14 and describes how to find a suitable puppy and what you need to do to teach them to become the perfect pet.
I am particularly proud of this book because I’ve also illustrated it with 55 of my own cartoons. It would make a great Christmas present for any dog loving (or puppy wanting) children and you can find paperback or Kindle versions here: https://amzn.to/3q6j8O5 You can always buy it as a present for yourself, too, of course!
Keep training and stay safe,
Carol