With Ollie he gets a mixture of both when the field is dry or snowy he is allowed on his long line and harness to roam and sniff and I end up following him around he loves tracking a scent.

I have too pay constant attention as he dislikes some dogs so when they are approaching he is put in a sit or down position and told to wait and leave which he does well most times so training I guess when out.

He does get too play with dogs we know he is safe with but most of the time he will sniff and then wander off to do his own thing something I thought I would never see as when he was younger he would deliberately make a bee line for other doggy friends and I was constantly in running and retrieving Ollie mode.

He will track a scent but does not chase anything he will chase his ball and run right past it

When the field is wet we road walk all the time till the field is dry again but I have started recently doing a field walk then road walking to get home he seems to enjoy this.

Max my previous dog was a tracker and chaser but we channeled his energy with retrieve which he did really well but he was road walked a lot of the time for miles and never seemed too suffer. He did get days in the week though maybe 2-3 where he was allowed off lead to chase and run and retrieve.

I think if it is possible too let your dog have free run time it is great but not possible for all due to certain circumstances for some people and dogs. I am fortunate where I live having a field outside my house so at some point in the day Ollie if I want him too can have some off lead time

I wouldn't think I would say dogs suffer if they are not allowed off lead time they would suffer more if not walked at all is my opinion.

From the definition below (in red), Loki needs to run.


http://dictionary.cambridge.org/defi...3225&dict=CALD

Definition
need verb (MUST HAVE)

/niːd/ v

•
[T]to have to have something, or to want something very much
Babies need constant care.
The doctor said I needed an operation.
[+ to infinitive] I need to go to the toilet.
Most people need to feel loved.
[+ object + to infinitive] I need you to help me choose an outfit.
I badly need (= strongly want) a rest from all this.
informal I don't need all this hassle.

well after reading this thread this morning i decided to lead walk my lot all individually, with the criteria being they paid attention to me and walked nicely on a loose lead, the result 4 crashed out WORKING springers and a springer x jack russell, yes they love to run all of them, but they don't need it, and i think i will be doing more of it

PS its very quiet in here

I'm in agreement here! I think it depends on the individual dog. Some dogs will not have a good quality of life on a lead, some won't care. I love to see my dogs running and playing together, but running Dan offlead takes planning and I have to watch everything around me constantly in case he sees anything that spooks him. I don't think he would have a great life if he couldn't run though. Same for Rio, and I couldn't imagine having to keep Rogue on lead when she is older, she has soooo much energy. There's someone near us with a brindle Staffie which doesn;t get offlead as he can't mix with other dogs. Fair enough, but he is constantly brimming with unspent energy. I think if he got to run in the football courts he would have more enjoyment on his walks. I used to dogsit, and one of the dogs I looked after was a young Dalmatian. She wasn't reliable offlead so I took her to football courts for a play instead, that way she got her offlead run, her lead walk and her training time too.

Each to their own, that is your opinion and this is mine. I personally don't think that every dog will thrive with the 'right' sort lead walk. There are a lot of things, lets face it, that a dog can't do when on a lead and for that reason I don't think all dogs will thrive on lead only walks. As for long lines, a lot of the time they are just not practical, especially at this time of year.

There are some that keep cage birds confined for life that are never able to fly more than a few flaps between perches, so not technically 'flying'. To those that keep cage birds confined, in their opinion I guess they don't think birds 'need' to fly, otherwise they surely wouldn't keep them. I'm sure they could come up with various reasons as to why the birds remain happy being caged. Others will obviously argue differently, just like this debate here.

OK, so do they actually NEED training to survive (and come to that companionship)? What are the consequences if they don't have any training? some very unruly dogs no doubt, but I bet there would be some who would still be loving companions, happy and healthy without any training.


I do agree that a dog that isn't let off lead at all is different from a dog never exercised and that the latter is infinitely worse.

But I think you think I'm having a go at people who keep their dogs on leads for sensible reasons - I'm not at all. But then there are very few (if any) owners I know who do not find somewhere safe from time to time to let their dogs off to have a run.

I would think it wrong to have, say, a border collie in a flat with no garden and only lead walk (and never find anywhere safe to let it off). No matter how much lead walk/training etc it got...because it would never get the chance to run at all

Ahhh now we get philosophical!
When my son 'needs' a new Star wars figure in order to play his game to the best of his ability I explain that no, he doesn't 'need' it he 'wants' it and the two are very different. To strongly want something does not make something a need... Not in this house anyhow!

Plus...in order for a dog to feel a 'want' it needs to think about things, perhaps in a way that dogs don't (or do.... I dunno) therefore to say a dog WANTS to run may be anthropomorphising (sp?!!) At what point does he WANT to run.....in the house? In the garden? Or in the area where he is accustomed to running...therefore is it a want/desire or is it a learned behaviour?


LOVE it!!!
Yep....that's how my two are after their lead walks

Oh please. Dogs are dogs. Not birds. They are dogs.

Ahhh you see..you would think it wrong...but it may be the most content dog in the world. You would judge it by what YOU think the dog needs....but the dog doesn't NEED to get offlead if good onlead walks are provided for it and it is stimulated in other ways.


I don't think you are having a go at all.
I do think we are arguing around this though. The question is do dogs NEED a run. I think no they don't, it's nice for them to have it and in an ideal world they should (but not necessarily every day) BUT they don't NEED it.

I actually wonder if you have ever tried motivating and interesting onlead walks with your dogs.

Nit pick away hun...your welcome. I have to say then mine need the nice extra so it would be a neccessity also I think more seriously it keeps mine fit
Well thank you for clearing that up, I do often walk past thinking....if he's fine..incase of what. But yes I can see that they may of had a issue of some discription, and I accept they know thier dog I don't