No offense meant. I was wondering if you were formally trained since you always insist that in order to have a dog you, need to walk it 45 minutes a day, no matter what. That is absolutely not true. I never inferred it wasn't okay to do it, but to suggest that it is written in stone that it is a necessity is simply wrong. Of course it won't hurt the dog, it just won't solve every problem, and it should not be the deciding factor in whether to get a puppy or dog. Not everyone has the lifestyle that accommodates walking the dog 45 minutes a day.

TLPO is not, at best, an every day occurrence. How did that occur? I am sure there are safeguards that a pet owner can put into place such as not having their dog do things that a dog shouldn't be doing. I have had freaky weird things happen to my dogs that I wouldn't use as a negative experience to sway a person to have a "laryngeal paralysis" fund in the event their dog develops it and they need to spend $5k like I did. That was my point about the TPLO. That was your unusual experience. We have all had the oddities that "can" happen but for most people they don't.

I think that if you limit dog owners to those who have the time to do a 45 minute minimum walk per day with their dog you are going to have a lot more dogs in the shelter. Also, to advise someone thinking about getting a puppy or dog, that the ritual is necessary, is wrong. It is something you do with your dog.

I use my trainer, and heed her advice because she is formally trained to do what she does. That's why I suggest that posters contact their vet or a trainer when they have a problem, not walk the dog 45 minutes a day. That's like saying eat an apple a day will keep the doctor away. While it sounds nice, it isn't at all the truth.

Hi you all, not arguing, just yakking with you about one of my favorite subject--dogs.
I walk my dogs (I have 2, dd has one) daily... I also try for at least 45 minutes. Yes, it does get old sometimes, and sometimes I just go out for a walk/jog by myself. On days near or below zero I dont walk them. I like walking with them, because it benefits all of us. All 3 walk nicely together, though mostly I only take my 2. Sometimes there is no time to walk, or what ever, then I try to get in a short training period a few times a day.
I'd LOVE to have another dog. Hub says please wait til spring, and he cant imagine why I want another. I guess 45 minutes isn't a magic number, I know that's what C. Milan says, but I dont do it for that. I always love to watch thhe dogs as we're walking, and see they're enjoyment of seeing different things. Yesterday we walked, & turkeys ran in front of us! Recently we came accross bear tracks in snow--yes, I know bears hibernate, but this one had come out of his/her den, walked in a semicircle (maybe in a sleepy haze) and gone right back in. I stopped to examine the tracks, amazed at their clarity, and the way they lead from a pile of roots then right back under . . . realized the dogs where crying & whining to get away, & I decided to get away, too. I was glad they were with me; it was fun, interesting.
My vet said something to me, when I said once, 'I just have the 3 dogs' with a twinkle in his eye, he said 'JUST the 3? I that all?' so, I guess he thinks 3 is more than enough too! :0)
Sherry

I am going to add my two cents worth in on the above discussion. I participate in several forums and I do believe that the majority of people give what they believe is the best advice possible. However, for example someone on the gardening forum can ask a question about a certain plant and two people, one from the North and one from the South can give entirely different answers, depending on their experiences with the plant. Neither is wrong - but not necessarily right for the person asking the question.

I think it is the same here. People who live in big cities may need to "Walk" their dogs alot more than people who live in an area where the dogs can run and play all day long outside. Yes, owners do need one on one time with their pets but does it have to be on a walk?

I think the majority of people who come for the forum for advice take it all in and make their own decisions not just based on the advice given here. Most probably research for information in other ways too.

I think everyone should always assume or state in their posts "In my opinion..."

After all, isn't that what a forum is all about?

Mazer, do you use the time stictly as a walk or do you also incorporated obedience exercises into it? That's what I like to do. As far as TPLO surgery it's not that uncommon for big active dogs. One of our vets at work does them pretty frequently, often doing several in a week.

Lisa

The best part of my day is the long walks with my dog. I think he would walk all day if I could. We take short walks and long walks. Our long walks takes us along the sound and he loves that best. I can not wait until summer so he can get in the pool again and dash out into the sound. When it is super cold and I do not want to go out I will stand in my doorway and toss the frisbee and let him bring it back to me. I stay warm and he gets to play his favorite game then I do not feel bad if we go for a short walk.

Before I got my first dog 15 years ago, I made decisions. One of the many I made was to commit myself to walking the dog(s) at least twice a day, weather permitting. Yes, sometimes it's a challange, especially on days like today at 5:30 a.m. when the temp. is 15 degrees. But I never complain, just do what needs to be done.

I've been doing it since. I now have three big dogs. They enjoy getting out and stretching.

My vet says that my old girl probably lasted so long, despite her numerous health issues, because of the walking. She loved to do it until her end.

SG

What we have here is solid basic advice that many people do not consider valuable until they pay a trainer to give it to them :-)

I'm on the training team for my rescue group, (training people really, not dogs), and work with adopters whose new dogs suddenly have 'issues' when they move from foster care to a permanent home. One of the basic questions I ask is what the structure is - when and how long are they walking the dog and what training are they doing. These simple things can make a world of difference in a dog's behaviour. I can't count the number of returned dogs that have come to my home with problems that caused their families to give up on them, and have become happy healthy obedient dogs within a month just with structure, NILIF, and dependable exercise. And shoot, I'm not even a dog person.

I'm glad that Mazer pushes on the walking requirements. It's so simple! And not all dog owners seem to 'get it.' If someone is not willing to walk a dog, a basic need which is just as important as food, perhaps an aquarium or a cat would be more suitable. (I have cats too :-)

I walk my dogs an hour a day, more when the weather is good. Two were returned dogs for behavioural issues and anxiety. You'd never know it if you met them now. No, it's not all walking, it's training and structure, but it's not rocket science.

PS: I got the nicest compliment when I took my middle girl dog to the vet a month ago. He said "Your dogs all look like such athletes!" I glowed. They are in beautiful shape, all muscle, no fat, and healthy. Vets see so many dogs who are overweight and out of shape (which can seriously contribute to TPLO by the way).

We don't walk our dogs for 45 mins a day and they're both in great shape. We do however make an effort to exersize them for atleast that amount of time indoors or in the backyard. Most days we'll either both sit on opposite sides of the room and toss the ball back and forth and our girl will try to catch it, and we'll do this til she's beat. Or one of us will go to the top of the stairs and one at the bottom and do the same thing. This way I can still cook and get stuff done in the house, and she still gets her exersize. She can keep playing with dad for 5 mins while I go stir and check on dinner, then come back for more play time. In the summers when we BBQ frequently, we stay outside with the dogs the whole time and play while the food cooks, eat outside, and play some more. We have fires almost every weekend too, and they get to play outside for hours and hours.

The big guy enjoys running laps IN the house more than anything in the world. He'll chase and chase and chase. And he loves when you hide on him. He'll run for ever trying to find you.

Last time I took them both into the vets, I got very good remarks on their health. I was actually a little concerned that my beagle may have been a bit overweight, but the vet said she was in great shape and he was impressed because beagles tend to get overweight very easily. He was also amazed with our boxer being that he's almost at the average life expectancy for a boxer and the only thing wrong with him is a very slight touch of arthritis in his back end, and he tires more quickly than the puppy, but thats expected.

So I really don't think you NEED to walk 45 mins a day. As long as you spend a good amount of time one on one exersizing them every day, whether it be on a walk, in the back yard or chasing the ball around the house, I think it's enough. If your days far too busy to fit in a 45 min walk there are tons of things you can do in the house to spend that time with the little one, while still doing what needs to be done at home.

We do still walk them daily, or try to atleast. And the days we don't we try to spend extra time playing inside or in the back yard. I've been focusing extra attention on my beagle as she was being a bit of an over energized pain as I posted before. And she's been getting better just from extra exersize in the house. I would maybe make more of an attempt to walk them longer everyday if my area weren't so residential. Theres not much in the way of grassy areas around here, or parks. Its sidewalks, houses and roads. If we lived more towards the country, I could probably walk them all day.

Cynthia writes: "I'm glad that Mazer pushes on the walking requirements. It's so simple! And not all dog owners seem to 'get it.' If someone is not willing to walk a dog, a basic need which is just as important as food, perhaps an aquarium or a cat would be more suitable. (I have cats too :-)"

"Solid basic advice" - given by a non-professional.

That statement was downright rude and unnecessary. Feeding and caring for your dog is a basic necessity, not a 45 minute daily walk. NILIF - they are animals. IMHO that NILIF is a bit nuts.

There was a reason I was staying away from the animal forums on the site, I am clearly now remembering what they were. Not the topics, but the responders and the criticisms and rigid recommendations. I feel for the new petowners who come to the site looking for friendly advice. If you want my opinion, it is a bit chilly here.

What is TPLO?

Cynthia and I are confirmed "cat people". She's begun to embrace dogs (how many years now, Cynthia?) the way I always have... on her own terms. I can tell you, MY "terms" are all about OBEDIENCE. There has to be control, reliability and I'll do whatever is required to ensure both. I'll do what is required to achieve that because that's MY PART of the dog/human pact. I'll do what must be done to assume the "master" mantle and the dog will "fall into line".

Walking on leash is part of that pact. I live in a rural area; a TOURIST area. Weekend visitors to our area routinely jog past our home; some cruise by with dogs on the farthest extremity of the "extendo-leashes" (in our yard)... my dog "locks the radar on" and does the complete jerk show (full Mohawk, "spikes up" and scares the bejesus outta the people) IF I don't squelch it early.

Leash work outside "his" territory is KEY. He has a chance to "meet" other dogs that don't walk past our home, he gets to check out dead animals (I use "leave it!" to prevent ingestion!), etc.. Leash work allows me to teach, practice, ENFORCE basic commands at the same time we're HAVING FUN. There is NO substitute for on-leash work; be you country or city dweller.

It's been nearly 2 weeks since we've been out "on leash" and as soon as my hand hits the newel posts (leashes are hung on both of them) Rex's head comes up and his eyes meet mine... . Mr. Leash is your best friend.

TPLO surgery is to repair torn cruciate ligaments. Not an uncommon thing to happen to a big bouncy dog altho I have seen some smaller dogs(30-40 lbs) have to have it done.

Lisa

Wow...Interesting to read all the comments. labmomma you need to know that what I post here is a suggestion, the guidance I offer to people to assist them with their problem dogs is just that, nothing is written in stone, nothing is rigid, if you tire of reading the suggestions I post, dont read them. If you dont get anything out of them fine, they are meant to assistm people who are posting problems with their dogs. Every dog situation is different and I try to take these differences into consideration. I do believe that like changing the oil on your car, walking a dog for at least 45 minutes everyday should be part of every dogs routine. I dont take my dog for a walk for 45 minutes every day. That is just his morning walk. I often take him for a second walk at about 4 pm for a good half an hour to an hour and again I go out just before bed. I believe that walking is good for me and good for him, and you dont have to agree with that.
dobesrule - to answer your question about stictly walking or adding training, I monitor my dog, (who is easy as pie to deal with - I got lucky) and if he is becoming stubborn or selectively listening, I will walk him a bit and then add some training by all means. I am currently helping a person who has a unique situtation, she has a very hyper malinois boxer mix, a hyper dog with ADD. I call it the butterfly effect, anything and everything is a distraction. It is hard to leash walk this dog because she has so much pent up energy. So we found a horse corral, with wire around the bottom two poles, so they can not escape. She lets her dogs into the corral and I let mine off leash outside the corral, the malinois and my dog run around the perimeter until they are wiped out, then the owner starts in with the training. Is has been very effective and both are happy with the time spent. We will spend a good hour or hour and a half with the whole routine. Her other dog is a chow lab mix. He is older but more aggressive towards dogs he does not know. So he is able to run around as well, play with the malinois mix and get plenty tired himself, then we work on his attitude towards other dogs.
Im sorry labmomma feels so put out by my suggestions to others. I firmly believe that each dog is different and each owner will do what works best for them. I also know if I had little time to walk around and sniff and interact with someone and instead spent my time inside a crate or inside an enclosed area, I would be miserable.
I love this forum, the people here are wonderful, and I love the way things can get solved and owners will repost with how good things are going, or what else is wrong. I think about each and every posters problems before I post, but I also know, there is no better way to start out a relationship with any dog, other than walking it. To continue daily walks ward of a myriad of health problems. Heck, I walk my friends 3 pound toy Chihuahua 5 miles once every couple of months or so. She keeps up with the other dogs and loves every minute of being outside with us. She will literally throw herself off the couch and towards the door when she knows Im dressing up her best friends for walkies. To spend some time with your dog after the walk, giving him a bit of a massage, checking for ticks or other problems, sticking fingers into ears and pushing on pads, lifting up a lip, gets them use to these things for when it is time to go to the vet, and if I spend the time doing it after we have gone for a walk, they could care less. Putty in my hands!!
I love dogs and just dont see where walking a dog which has behavioral problems for 45 minutes a day to achieve some balance would be problem for anyone...oh well. I also dont see how come someone must be a professional trainer in order to know how to handle a dog. So many people here are so good with their dogs, and have taught their dogs to do stupid pet tricks and like dobesrule is dedicated to the health and well being of their pet, and have not been through formal training. Oh well, it is what it is....

A walk IS more than just exercise for the dog. Its mental stimulation and its a bonding with the walker. The walker is holding the leash and in command of the walk, reinforcing the leader as dominant over the dog.

Dogs are highly stimulated by their sense of smell and taking them for a walk gets their senses and their brains working. Dogs have smelled every part of their home and their yard a thousand times over, it tends to get boring over time. Taking the dog out for a walk introduces new smells and new sensory activity, which is much more mentally stimulating for the dog.

Additional mental stimulation is required by the dog to walk nicely and in control. His sense of smell, his energy and excitement may be telling him to run and pull, but his training is reinforced to walk beside you, not pull, sit when you stop, go when you go, turn when you turn ... all of these things are both training, mental stimulation and exercise for the dog.

There are some breeds where a walk is not enough physical exercise, but the daily walk is a crucial component of mental exercise that should be part of a structured regime.

I agree that every dog should be walked, within reason, and its understandable that sometimes its not every day and many times its not 45 minutes either. But I sure can tell when our schedule gets mixed up and the dogs don't get their walkies.

Our weekday schedule usually involves a quick 15 minute walk in the morning and then another walk in the evening. The evening walk will vary from as short as 15 minutes to up to an hour, depending upon our schedule and weather. Sometimes the evening walked is skipped altogether if things are hectic. On weekends, we definitely make a point of taking a longer walk and going a different route.

Now do I think that every dog has to be walked 45 minutes every day, probably not. But many dogs, with behavioral problems, will greatly benefit from such a walk. I would be surprised that someone would be offended by anyone who offers that type of suggestion. Any experienced dog owner and trainer knows that a daily walk is the number one tool that we can use to have a well behaved dog.

And of course, every dog is different and its certainly possible that many dogs do fine without daily walks, but when someone posts about a dog with a behavior problem, a daily controlled walk is excellent place to start to get a problem animal under control.

I don't walk my dogs either, I mean I may take Gizmo out with me down to the trash, maybe takes 15 minutes, PearlJam won't leave the yard, the only way to get her to go would be to pick her up and carry her. they rip around the house a couple of times playing, that usually lasts about 30 minutes or so. Gizmo he does like to go and if you pull his collar out and jangle it he is right there ready to go, but that is only in the warmer months, and we don't do it every day, usually when I am gardening he is out there with me and he stays right by me, he wants to go where I go, he follows me around the house and is always sitting by me, if I am going someplace and he hears the keys jangle he is standing by the door wanting to go (so sad to close the door with his big eyes begging me to go too!) Now pearly on the other hand would just as soon stay in the house, she goes out to use the bathroom and runs right back up to go indoors, if I had a litter box for her she would be in 7th heaven:) I can't even put a collar on her, tried the harness too, and she just stands still as a statue and refuses to move, had one on her for a few days to try to get her used to it and she wouldn't hardly come out from under the bed, so walking her is pretty much out.

mboston,Thanks for your post you are s-o-o-o right. My dogs are country dogs and have a very big pen to play in and doggie doors so they can come and go as they please. My little cricket would never handle a 45 min walk. We were out front the other day and she chased a squirrel up a tree,the squirrel was almost bigger than she was.
My hound loves to run up and down the fence barking at deer. The fit he had the other night i suspect we may have had a bear come thru. The fence is 6' tall and well built to keep critters out not our dogs in.
vickie

I do walk my dogs twice a day around our neighborhood and they play outside in the back yard some during the day. We haven't been able to the last couple of days because we have had workers here refinishing our pool. Boy, can I tell the difference in their engergy level. Amos has gotten into more things, partly because I think he hasn't been able to run even though we have still walked.

I do want to pose a question about walking a puppy and the distance it should be taken on walks. A friend of mine is training a Golden lab puppy for Southeastern Services for the Blind. She got the puppy a year ago last Aug. and will have it for 18 months, which will soon be over. She was not allowed to walk it but very short distances at first, like just down her street and only a couple times a day. She had to slowly build her distance and the reason given was for concern on the pads of the puppies feet and leg joints. Now I realize that this is a dog that will be doing alot of walking over the next 10 years or so but wouldn't the same be true for household pet puppies?

Now I realize that this is a dog that will be doing alot of walking over the next 10 years or so but wouldn't the same be true for household pet puppies?

When I got my Golden Retriever puppy, I was told to limit the distance we walked and to gradually increase the distance as she grew. Made sense to me.... She loves her walks.

Puppies should be treated like babies. Your friend did the right thing by taking the distance slowly. Kudos to her for raising a companion dog for some deserving disabled person. I think it must be the ultimate sacrifice to take and raise a puppy for 18 months then to hand them over. Bittersweet.

Also, if you have a labrador and are a runner, don't take the dog running. I know nothing about other breeds and running, but it's not a good thing to do with a labrador retriever.

What's more important, the length of the walk or the distance covered in the walk?
You can walk slowly for an hour and cover a mile or you can walk briskly at 3.8/3.9 miles per hour and it takes you about 15 minutes to walk a mile. That's what our winter walks are, they're about 15-20 mins and a mile or so. It's not the quantity but the quality. Or should I be walking slower and spending more time out there?

You want to start puppies off slowly especially large breeds because of skeletal devlopement. You don't want to stress those growing bones joints and ligaments to much before the growth plates close. Even with compition dogs you don't want to do a lot of jumping or heavy exercise until they are about 18 months old.

Why would you not jog with a Lab? They are bred to work in the field for hours at a time. I would think it would be a perfect way to burn up some of the insane energy that some of them have. As with any other breed tho you want to be sure the dog is developmentally ready for it and start training to work up to long distances.

Quirky I would think varying lengths and times would help keep interest high.

Lisa

Yes, I admire her for training the GL puppy. The whole story is that her best friend is blind and had "Phyllis", an Austrailian Shepard as her guide dog for years. My friend cared for Phyllis on special occasions and felt that she could handle taking on the training of a puppy. My friend and her best friend attend the same church so the youth group decided to raise funds to pay for a puppy and they got to name it "Spirit." My friend got Spirit in Aug. 06 and was to keep it 18 months. Well that means she should be giving Spirit up this month! Unfortunately, her best friend needed another puppy to take Phyllis' place last June so she couldn't wait for Spirit. Phyllis had developed a sore on her leg that wouldn't heal so she was retired. Phyllis was lucky enough to go back to live with her trainer that she had had when a puppy and is lucky enough to frequently see her former owner. I haven't talked with my friend in a while, so I don't know how she is dealing with giving up Spirit but I know it has been a wonderful experience for the children at the church cause they see Spirit every Sunday and can see what their efforts have done to help a blind person.

labmomma has got this one right on the spot. Too many people run or jog with their dogs, I see alot of goldens out there and I just cringe. Alaskan huskies, Siberian Huskies and Dalmatians are meant to run all day...Im glad I dont have one. In fact Im glad my dog is half Bull Mastiff, because his husky half could decide to take itself for walkies and not come back for days. We have a neighbor with a husky with this problem. As for mileage over pace, I think it all depends on the individual dogs. All dogs are different, and if you watch the dog you are working with closely it will let you know what is more comfortable with. My dog would rather spend each and every day on the couch. But I can not let him do that, he needs to use his legs and keep them "well oiled" since they have been operated on. He can have good days where nothing bugs him and he can walk for miles and other days an airplane flying overhead will send him straight back to the car. If I let him give in to his fears, he would always be afraid, It is like walking ont the edge of a sword in order to determine when to puch him past the walls he puts up and how much is too much and when he can not get past his fear no matter what. The hardest is when you have two different dogs which have different walking needs.

Ok guys, I confess I read here sporadically. But quite frankly, it's inappropriate on this forum about dog lovers to direct a specific post to someone and their methods just to say they are wrong.

Quite frankly, I've disagreed with labmomma quite a few times, especially about shelter dogs. But personal directs are not what this forum is about. End of story.