Should someone take a healthy dog on if they have no means of exercising them?

What are your views on this?

My personal views are that if somebody takes a dog on and they cannot personally exercise them or pay for a dog walker to do so, they shouldn't have a dog in the first place.

Can't see the point in having a dog if you're not going to do stuff with it

Depends on the dog really, we had a perfectly healthy dog who was agoraphobic it would have been down right cruel to take him out, another allergy to grass and pollen, again exercise was limited as the reaction was pretty bad.

We have also had times when I have been too disabled to walk them, none have seemed to suffer in the those times they adapt.

Would I take a puppy that needed socialisation with no means to get it out ? no they do need early walks to meet people.

Absolutely not,in my opinion.Clearly would be unfair to the dog
I know of two dogs in my area who don't get out very often May not see them much but you can certainly hear them. They bark at everything and anything that passes by the window.Sit,looking out most of the day,its heartbreaking Same two dogs I have offered to take out on numerous occasions while taking mine out and offers have been declined
I know with Lacey,if she misses a day for some reason( extremely rare)she will play up a bit and misbehave,the wee monkey I think its home must seem like a prison cell to a dog that doesn't get out...there is no excuse for it If a person isn't willing to excerise and enjoy the outdoors with their dog,then they shouldn't get one in the first place.Sounds brutal but just my feelings on the subject!
In a case were an owner is physically unfit to exercise their dog,paying a dog walker or arranging with a friend or family member to take over the excerising role would be the kindest and most obvious thing to do.

Julie I've never heard of a dog being agoraphobic and yes I can more than understand that it would have been cruel so stressed out to keep taking it out.

I've only asked this question because a friend's neighbour has just recently taken on a rescue dog (a little terrier type crossbreed aged about 3yrs) and she says that although he has a very small garden he never walks it and thinks because he has a small garden for the dog to toilet in that should be sufficient. Goodness knows what the rescue centre would think My friend says that he loves the dog to bits and he got it more for the companionship ...... just seems selfish to me.

My apologies ...... I clearly didn't read my title before I posted the thread

What about then if you have a dog like Marley who couldn't care less weather he was walked or not, you could go a month with out a walk and wouldn't notice a different in him ( he is how ever walked and is on the farm all day )

In general no. It's not natural for the dog. I understand some rescues will rehome geriatric dogs who are happy just to lie on the couch all day with people who can't take them out for walks. But as a rule, most stipulate that, even if you live in a flat you can only have a dog if it is taken out REGULARLY for exercise.

I think looking at what most rescues stipulate re potential new owners and the conditions they have to meet gives a good idea who is and isn't suitable for owning a dog.

If you are not capable of taking the dog out for regular exercise - I think you should get a cat or some other animal that doesn't require it.

I've owned dogs for best part of 40 yrs and I know how I feel if I am just a bit LATE getting them out or I can't take them for as long or as far as they are used to. I feel GUILTY! And the dawgs have a way of ensuring you do too!

Where big dogs are concerned, I can discern the shift in their temperament if they haven't been out for exercise. And dogs that don't get enough walking and running lose muscle tone quickly.

My view is ALL dogs require exercise and you've only to see them when they are out and about (just take a look at the photos on here) to see how happy it makes them.

I don't even think dogs should be left 'home alone' for more than around 4-5hrs max at a time. We hear a lot about what's 'natural' for dogs when it comes to feeding etc. well I don't think it's 'natural' for dogs to be cooped up in an empty house all day long. Nor for them not to be taken out for daily exercise.

Sure there will be times when every dog owner just cannot manage it due maybe to illness on their part or very inclement weather. But I'm speaking generally.

And, as for very inclement weather - just look at the trouble YOU went to Jenny - to make sure your dogs were still able to be taken out when you were recently flooded for what seemed like ages! Carrying them back and forth to the vehicles to get them out of it (not to mention grassing your verandah for them to pee on lol!)

I've got a garden for the first time for Bella and for a dog her size it's a HUGE garden! It has meant I do not have to get her out at the crack of dawn for her early morning pee or last thing at night. But most days I still do - she has come to expect it. And she does NOT use the garden for 'exercise' ever. She likes lying out there watching the world go by and soaking up the sun but doesn't 'run about' out there - still has to be taken out for a minimum of one long and another short walk or my life is hell!

I dunno why they call Cavalier's 'lapdogs' because my old Cavvy was the WORST dog of all for insisting on not just her daily ramble but it had to be down on the beach or she considered she hadn't been out yet! She got very 'antsy' until taken out. Drove me nuts.

With all my dogs it's been not just the exercise but the joy they take in discovering their surroundings. The sights and smells and, not least of all, the meeting other dogs and people. They've all loved that and you don't get that if they are cooped in your house or garden.

Can understand JULIE's point also,of course if there's a medical reason why its best the dog's exercise is limited or non existent that's different.Its the 100% fit and healthy dogs I was commenting on
I know when I got mine I made a commitment to do a lot of things regarding her care and well being.One of those being to exercise her everyday,3 times a day usually and I stick to that religiously.Like the majority of responsible dog owners on here I would say.I think some people don't take their responsibility seriously enough or it wears off after the inital " honeymoon period" so sad I think

Slightly different to what I was talking about. He is out and about on the farm. And you DO walk him regardless of whether he is pestering. He isn't cooped up inside, kept in a cage or tied up in a yard is he?

When my pal Maggie lived on a smallholding, she didn't regularly 'walk' her two JRTs apart from at weekends. But they had the freedom of the farm and fields to romp about in (no cattle or sheep - just chicken houses and horses) one of them preferred to be in the stable with the horse than anywhere else!

I know other people who take their dog out on the road working with them every day. Again, the dog is getting out and about and experiencing sights, sounds and smells.

Imagine running round on a farm all day would be doggie heaven Can understand why Marley wouldn't care less about getting a walk sure he's getting unlimited exercise.. Lucky boy