over exercising your dog?

i recently commented in another thread that i walk my 4 month old jrt pup 2 to 3 hours a day split over 2 walks morning and early evening. a comment was made that i should not be walking her that amount.

i thought it would be interesting to hear peoples opinions on this.

lily and dylan are walked off lead so they kind of control the pace of the walk anyway. if we don't meet anyone else, the walk can take 45 minutes but that is unusal. like the other day, we met so many people and dogs, we were out for a couple of hours.

having owned a bc for 6 years, i quickly came to realise many of his 'problems' were down to a lack of exercise and socialisation. he belonged to my friend before i had him and for 3 and a half years he was left for up to 12 hours at a time and then walked in the local park for 30 minutes a day if he was lucky. he was displaying many symptoms of distress and manic behaviour during this time.

within a short period of time after taking him on, him only being left for up to 3 hours at a time and daily 1 -2 hour walks in the woods and fields, he calmed down considerably.

lily is brilliant in the house, she doesn't chew anything she shouldn't, she is obedient (most of the time!) and she is a happy, relaxed pup. i put much of this down to her having her long walks and the training i have done with her from the day i got her at 9 weeks old.

i'd love to hear other peoples thoughts on how much is too much exercise.

I have to say I agree that she is being overexercised. Sorry. The 5 minutes a month rule of thumb is a good one. I think it is far too easy top overdo it with young pups.

At that age I was giving Tilly 2 x 40 min walks a day with lots of play/training in between in the garden. Now at 10 months she has up to an hour morning & and 45 mins evening walk - depends if we take the ball, then it's shorter as she gets worn out.
I can always tell if she hasn't had enough excercise as she will start looking for mischief indoors.

so what is the issue with that much exercise? (don't apologise, i did ask for opinions ) i did mention it to my vet the other day and he said she would soon let me know if she was tired. he said that her breed need plenty of exercise from an early age and as she walks off lead it was fine.


i guess that's my feeling too. before i could take lily out she was really becoming stir crazy indoors! she still plays inbetween walks but she is so much calmer than she was!

Thing is, if she is becoming stir crazy inside, I would (and its a personal thing) be more inclined to get her to use her brain than to walk her further.
I think the damage that can be done is to the joints, yes, but I also think you can overstimulate a young pup...yes, they need to get out and about and be socialised, but only in short, sharp bursts. Little and often.

It makes me laugh when people say 'they'll let you know when they are tired'...yes they do...but then you have to walk them all the way home/back to the car...

ETA I also think that yes, some breeds need more exercise than others...BUT you are making a rod for your own back if you increase exercise as much as you have when the pup is young...as she will want even more when she is mature.

I agree with everything Ramble has said. You have to remember that pups will play at home as well. Get her to use her brain, she should have a good one due to her heritage, and she'll be far happier than just having loads of walks.
Becky

Hi

Over exercising pups is a bad idea of a number of reasons.

First, it is often a myth that they know when to stop. Some dogs will tell you when enough is enough, others will run themselves into exhaustion. This is particularly true of young working breeds that don't know their limits. When on an adrenaline high, they will often run through the physical signs that their bodies have had enough...the mind says one thing and the body says another. This has the potential to lead to injuries. Muscle/ligament strains and tears most often occur when a dog has over exhorted itself physically.

Second, a pup is like a growing baby; getting bigger and changing all the time. Physically they cram a hell of a lot of growing into their first year, and especially their first 6 months of life. Just as you wouldn't take a 2 year old toddler on a long walk or a 5 year old to run a marathon, baby pups shouldn't be over exhorting themselves at an age when they are developing skeletally at a rapid rate. Long sessions of exercise put a lot of strain on the growing joints. While this isn't so much of a concern for small and toy breeds, this is a HUGE concern for breeds prone to congenital joint conditions; many, many of the gundog breeds, working breeds and giant breeds come into this category. Over exercise at a young age won't cause a joint condition, but it could mean the difference in an underlying joint condition (many don't rear their heads until the dog is a year old or more) being moderate in severity to being severe in severity.

Third, pups don't need hours of exercise to stay calm. Yes, logic says that if you exercise a pup for hours it will crash out and sleep. But what you are actually doing is setting yourself up a dog that will not settle without multiple hours of exercise. The pup is not learning any self control. Life often throws a spanner in the works where we can't stick to the same old routine day in, day out. Would a dog that was used to 2 hours or walking cope well if it's owners situation changed and the owner could now only commit to a 20 minute walk in the morning? probably not. Adaptability is a trait that we should encourage in our dogs. Having a dog that will get 'stir crazy' without it's daily 3 hours of exercise just isn't practical. Also, if a 16 week old baby is demanding 2-3 hours of exercise just to keep calm, what will she be demanding when she is at the peak of her fitness at 18+ months of age?

Puppies are like small children in some respects. 'A little and often. and 'moderation in all things' should be the rule.

Remember their joints are still developing and they have growth plates which don't close until a puppy becomes an adult, therefore stairs/jumping off high surfaces/long walks should be avoided.

If a puppy is running around at home playing, when it tires it will automatically stop and go to sleep (often on the spot) . When a puppy is on a lead it won't stop when tired but will keep on walking.

I always work on the basis that is better to teach a dog to settle thatn try and run it to exhaustion to get the same effect.

99% of dogs will be able to do the exercise you wan when they are older - they will go for longer walks and cope very well, but if you build them up to expect this - you will be in trouble the day you cannot provide it (for whatever reason).

My dogs are Very active - they will work all day training and exercise wise - but recently when I was not well - they had 2 days where they had to make do with a couple of sesisons running about in the garden as I was not capable of working them - they were great.

They do not demand exercise but can take it all when offered - a much better way in my mind.

thank you all for your replies and a lot of food for thought for me.

i take on board the problems that could arise should there be a change in circumstance and what lily's needs may be in the future.

just so you are aware though, lily and i spend a lot of time when we are at home, doing mind stimulating games. i took her on knowing she would need her brain working out as much as her body. she is a bright little thing and i really enjoy seeing her working out the tasks i set her. she is quick to learn and i want to work hard on that side of her nature.

this is why i love this forum. you ask for advice and people are there with it! given the unanimous feeling that i am over walking her i think i will change her and my routine. a shorter walk in the park in the morning maybe and then to incorporate some outdoors training into her evening walk. that way dylan can still be getting his exercise but i can work with lily without risking her future health.

thanks everyone, my main concern is for my dogs so i appreciate your concern and advice.