Also, how much exercise does your Yorkie need in order to be calm and happy and content?
It honestly REALLY depends with us. There will be certain weeks where we're busy busy busy... meetups, dog park visits, pet store visits, hikes, walks, swimming, etc. However, like the last 3-4 weeks, we've honestly done VERY little. It IS kind of starting to show (he's more whiny and needy) but he's learned to just go lay down and chill for the most part.
When I say very little, I mean
maybe a 15 min game of fetch outdoors (we do have a giant hill, so he gets a good workout) 2-3x a week and maybe a 5 min session indoors. A couple of car rides during the week (running small errands, the bank, etc). We've been extra lazy lately. He is starting to get kind of annoying though. He will sit and stare at you, or whine, or go pick up a piece of trash or a toy laying on the ground and then look at you like "Are you going to come take it from me?"
I would say his more "average" though (weather dependent) is at least 3-4 walks per week (usually ranging from 2-5 miles), a few really good runs/sprints per week (when we visit my dads fenced in yard), fetch outside with the Chuck It uphill at least 5 days a week for at least 10 minutes, a pet store visit once or twice a week, a dog park visit a few times a month, and in the summer it's swimming in the pool 3-4 days a week.
I would say we
average a 1/2 hour - 1 1/2 hour a day of true exercise. But again sometimes it's more.
Jackson seems to have more of a need to *do something* vs actual exercise. He could go on a 7 mile hike and still not be tired. But give him 20 mins of training and he will go relax and be happy with that. Although he DOES really need a few times a week at least RUN... a lot of days I can hold him over by sticking an interactive food toy at him or take him for a car ride.
Okay that was longer than I wanted it to be lol.
But I'm always amazed when I dogsit and the dogs are just so content to just... lay around and do nothing. And I admit, sometimes I have a hint of jealousy.
