Need advice for exercising my Yorkie
 

I think that I haven't been exercising my Yorkie enough. How often do you walk your Yorkie? What length of time do you consider to be a "good" walk. I really can only walk mine once a day. What other games do you play with your Yorkie to give him exercise? Right now we mostly do fetch in the house. How many times a day do you actively "play" with your Yorkie during a formal play time? Thanks for any advice?

First wanted to say hello...I'm also in Maryland...Southern Maryland....

I have 3 yorkies. I live in a townhome, no fence. I take them on 3 to 4 walks a day. Once in the morning b4 I leave for work, again when I get home from work and the last time before bedtime(I'm a night owl so it's usually anywhere from 9PM to 10:30PM). Sometimes they get an extra walk on the weekends in the evenings. Other times, I may just go out front for extra play time, throwing the ball or a toy around or we'll just sit around on the porch if it's a nice day. They also have eachother to play with in the house and me and my 2 sons will play with them throughout the day in the house as well. They have their own toy basket they can reach so they'll go get toys whenever they want(of course there's toys all over too)! lol

I'm thinking at least 2 walks a day is good or playing fetch or something with them a few times would be sufficient. I know I probably do more than they need but they enjoy it and as long as I have the time, I like doing it for them. I know Yorkies aren't known to need extensive amounts of exercise though.

Oh and as far as the length of time, our walks can be anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes. Shorter of course on colder or not so nice days...

That's great to meet another person from Maryland on here! I also live in a townhome with no fence. There are dogs that live on either side of us and sit in the backyard and bark ALL DAY LONG. My little guy is pretty freaked out by other dogs and gets so stressed out in the backyard that I stopped taking him out there. I thought about getting a retractable leash for out front so I could throw a toy for him outside at night. My husband really doesn't want me walking him by myself after dark. Luckily it is staying light out longer now. I pretty much walk him around the block, which takes about 10 to 15 minutes. I should probably increase the area we walk so it's a bit longer. I got a book that gives ideas of 50 games to play with dogs. We've been doing fetch for a long time, but it didn't last long because he doesn't like to give up his toy :). But, the book helped me learn how to start teaching him to play fetch and I tried it last night and he really enjoyed it. So, I just need to start having more play times with him. I don't have any other dogs (he's all I can handle ;) ), and he doesn't seem to like other dogs either.

One more question...do you crate your dogs while you are gone? How long do you leave them for per day?

Hi,

I take mine on a walk in the park only when it is nice out...she is small at 6 months
(2.7 lbs) and hates the cool weather...but I throw a ball around in the back yard and that gets her going..she will run around as fast as she can...it is so funny to watch her and she makes a rrrrr sound when she does it....
What is the name of the book with the games? I would be very interested in reading that one...
Thanks :-)

Here is the book:
Amazon.com: 50 Games to Play with Your Dog:...
And, here is another one I got. I haven't looked at it much since we are just now learning the basics with a trainer. But, I think it will be a lot of fun!
Amazon.com: 101 Dog Tricks: Step by Step...
We just did the fetch game again and he is really getting the hang of it! It is so much fun, and he is so cute :). I really think this kind of play interaction is what he needs. This is my first dog, so I'm still learning! But, I think a lot of his annoying behavioral issues might stem from not being played with/exercised enough. I think he is bored and that's why he is always nipping at our pant legs and barking at us. Glad I'm finally figuring it out! He is acting much better already. I did play with him before, but we only did about one short play time and one short walk.

Hi there, I'm another Marylander. I am able to take Hot Rod out several times a day. I live in a small developement and we walk almost to the front and back sometimes 2-3 times in a day. Probably about 1 - 1 1/2 miles total. We play fetch with him every night and I now that it is nice out, I have him in the garden with me. He's usually ready to crash about 10:30 pm. That is also when I start our bedtime ritual.

We did the crate thing at first but then we got an x-pen. Best thing! He has his crate, food/water and pee pad in it. I have just started to leave him out when I run errands. My dining room and stairs are still blocked off to him. Good Luck. The other thing about the xpen, I know that he can go potty if I can't get back in time.:)

I'm probably not the best to ask about crating...I'm one of the "softies". Mine are not crated:rolleyes:. Well, Diva, my oldest, who will be 2 at the end of May, was crated in the beginning. I got her when she was 15 weeks old and crated her when I wasn't home...other than that, she was out...and slept with me at night too. Now she has free roam of the house....I got Foxxy when she was 15 weeks old(she'll be 1 next week), I just never crated her....I just felt bad having her crated and Diva running around so I tried the pp pads...that's what I use now. Foxxy and Diva are both now fully trained..neither will go in the house(well there have been an accident here and there when they were sick and had diaharrea but they went on the pads..phew)...so I guess I just lucked out....Now I won't say there weren't accidents while they were still in "potty training" mode but that comes with the territory. Just pick a method adnd stick with it...It seems like forever but it's so rewarding when it's over with. Now diva's pup Duchess....well...that's another story...we're still working on her:p she's 7 mths. She's having more accidents than Diva & Foxxy did but is now doing well with the pp pads and going outside.

Sebastian is only trained on the main level (I have a 3 level townhome). He still thinks the basement is his personal toilet :rolleyes:. So, he has free roam of the main level, but I still have to keep an eye on him and take him out really often or he will have the occasional accident. So, he gets crated when I'm doing something where I can't keep a close eye on him. His crate is actually more like a playpen. I got one for a really big dog and he has learned over time to not go potty in there. It's his little den and safe haven from my toddlers :D. He stays in it mostly when I leave the house, and overnight to sleep. But, he also takes naps in there on his own (I always leave the door open for him). I am a softie though and always feel bad when I have to put him in there. At least he seems to like it.

Start out with only a few blocks for a couple of weeks and then just add a block each week. I would walk in early morning and evening when it's cooler. Their pads can actually peel if they are walked too far first time out or on hot asphalt. Invest in a treadmill if you don't have one so you both can walk on rainy days and during the winter when it's just too cold to get out.

We don't have sidewalks where we live, but we have a huge backyard and woods behind that. We do our walking there twice a day for about 30 min. each time. They also run and play in the yard several times a day. I have two, so they keep each other busy playing all the time also. They LOVE toys!!

Fetch is a GREAT way to exercise your dog, and you can do that indoors, no matter what the weather.:) I also like to "challenge" my boys by hiding toys and having them find them. They love that game.:) I also like toys that challenge them a bit. Hide-A-Squirrel is a great one!

Spike and I go to the off-leash park once a day for 40 minutes or so. I do about a 1 mile loop, he probably does twice that after he's sniffed everything he wants to and met all the other dogs. I find he gets much more exercise at the dog park rather than going on walks on his leash around the neighbourhood.

Whenever I'm home, he's usually playing with me, chasing his toys and playing fetch while I watch TV!

I have a 5 1/2 month old Morkie named Mindy. She weighs 5.5 lbs. We walk to the icecream stand in our neighborhood which is about a mile away. We sit, drink water and she even gets a few licks of vanilla icecream when I am finished. When we get home, she drinks a little bit lays down for only 2 minutes and then is back looking for mischief! :animal-pa:animal-pa
This doesnt seem to be too much for her. I have never seen my puppy tired yet! Just judge your distance upon weather, and your dogs reaction!!! Have fun with your baby!

Buster & Bailey get about a 2 mile walk each evening. I sometimes walk them in the mornings for about 30 minutes, but have not been consistent on that (too rainy, too cold, too tired, etc...) - we went this morning though! I actually just started rollerblading with them too for about 10 minutes each time and they LOVE that (since I let them go pretty much as fast as they want). Since I have the 2 of them, they play together all the time, and we play tug-of-war with them quite a bit (it's their favorite!). We have not been able to get them to play fetch very much, but I know that's a really good way for them to get exercise. Whenever we're at home, they run all over the house, and on weekends they are out & about with me wherever I go. We have a lot of steps (4 levels) so that gets them exercise too.

I'm on the same boat, Duke and I live in an apt with no backyard or any fenced in area. I take Duke out for a walk once a day when I get home from work for about 45min or so, I also play catch with him after we eat dinner for about 45min-1hr also.
I do wish that I can take him out more but I'm hoping that the playing catch makes up for it.
I do take Duke to the little dog park when I can but bc we live in the metro NY area, I have to take him on the train with me and it's a trip...

My Scruffers gets 2-3 hours of exercise per day. I do pet sitting and dog walking so he always gets dragged along. Scruffs came to me as a crazy, high strung, constant energy dog. It took about two months of exercising daily to get him to calm down. He is now super calm and he is just an overall mellow dog.

I think that they should get a minimum of 1 hour of exercise outside of your house/yard. I believe all dogs should be walked no matter their size. Just makes them happier dogs.

exercising my yorkie
 

When the weather was good not 100-deg they use to go walking in the afternoon to the mail box (around the corner). Now they go swimming fetching ball, toy in the pool.


Can't wait till it gets cooler. Oh on the walks they go for 20-min. I am learing how to walk 2-dogs at one time..(ha)


Cheryl:animal-pa:animal-pa

We started Gucci at about 1/2 mile and added as we went. He's not up to about 1 1/2 miles in the morning and evening and when he cooperates with my husband, about 3/4 mile during the day. If we don't walk him, he'll sleep ALL DAY. He has his time to run in the backyard as well as his regular 7:00 wait for daddy to play time. He's like a little clock! If I leave the door to the bedroom open, he'll go missing around 9:00 - normally I'll find him under the dresser or nightstand. It's his bedtime. I'd like to keep him up longer, because he gets up around 5:00 and it makes for a very long day for a working "mom". I think you have to find what works best for you. Gucci dill only "Poop" if we take him for a walk - not when he's in the backyard!

We usually do one short walk (15-20 mins) and one long walk (15 mins, then off-leash for half an hour, then 15 mins back home) each day, with several 10-15 minute play sessions. She lazes about the rest of the day.

One thing I've noticed with my pup, is the whole "little and often" thing which surfaces time and time again, it applies to Milly for exercise too. After 15 minutes of hard playtime, she's ready for a lie down, but then she's up again and ready to go in half an hour.

If the weather's bad she doesn't object to two short walks instead of a long walk and a short one, an extra bit of playtime and she's satisfied, tired, and happy.

I don't crate my dog... she's good as gold when left alone.

exercising yorkie
 

So what do you do if its too Hot..I see some dogs walking in 97-100-deg walking I don't take mine. We play outside its shaddy go swimming. Other than that its all. I use to take them all the time walking and they really miss it Jack goes where the leashes are and sits there.


Thanks
Cheryl

Thank you for all the responses to my post. It's been over a year since my original post and I'm glad to see this thread resurface. We've now gotten into a routine of taking Sebastian out for a 30-60 minute walk every evening, and a shorter 15 minute walk in the morning. It really helps keep him happy and a little bit calmer.

As far as the heat goes, I have to walk him early in the morning and late in the evening to avoid the really high temperatures. But, in Maryland it isn't as hot as in Texas.

I live in a third floor condo and one of my puppy's favorite energy burning games is to chase a toy which I tie to my bath robe sash. I tie a toy to one end of the sash and the other end to my waist (or belt loop) and as I move around my house, doing chores or sometimes I just circle the living room, the toy appears to be trying to escape and my little one just loves it. It really wears him out in the evenings and when he finally "catches his prey" he will carry it back to his lair (dog crate) and take a nap.

That is a great idea! How cute :)

My little guy is a Sebastian too :D I got my dog as a rescue in April, and even though I loved him so much, I kinda felt sorry for him, he had no clue how to play, and was really a sedentary dog. I started watching Cesar Millan (whom I :love: btw, lol) and his big thing is walk, walk, walk, and for the last month I have been walking him at least twice a day, and his personality has completely changed. He is super happy and always ready to play.

I love Cesar too :). The main reason I started walking him more is because of his show. It really does make such a big difference!

Bella Rose Loves to Walk!
 

Bella is 8 months old and 2.8 lbs. Bella loves to walk. She goes on two scheduled 1 mile walks per day. She seems to "need" these walks. She is funny, though, if we start on a walk and she doesn't want to go the regular route she will sit down and refuse to walk. We then say "Home, Bella?" and she turns around and heads toward home. She lets us know when she wants to go on a walk. We don't "loose leash" her, we follow her. We have not learned how to officially "walk" her in our obedience class yet. We also play a game with her where my husband and I stand about 60 ft. apart. We then call "Come Bella" and she runs to each of us. She loves it and runs so fast. She's adorable. As she gets older she seems to really like to run fast. Good luck!

Well, if you're looking for games and a change from "fetch", mine love to play "hide and seek". Of course, they need to be able to stay while you go out of sight in the house. (or get a helper to hold them) I usually hide behind a door, a big piece of furniture, etc., and call them. I read somewhere that it also helps develop other skills (problem solving, using their scent). We also play hide the toy (similar). Now, if I could only find a way to interest Miss Ginger in playing more. She'd rather lie around and watch.;)

Spike is funny in the hot weather. If I take him out for a walk, and he thinks it's too hot, he will just find the closest shady patch of grass, lay down, and refuse to move. It's quite hot here right now, so I try and take him out later in the evening (about 8:30 or so), when it's still light out but much cooler. Fortunately, living in Edmonton, it's stays light until about 10 p.m. this time of year!

I also have the option of taking him round to my parent's house - their living room is in the basement, so it's much cooler, and quite big, so we can play games. Also, I might take him to a local pet store that is air conditioned, so at least he gets a bit of a walk up and down the aisles!

I take Scooter for two or three walks a day. I work full time and it is really hot here so it is hard to do outdoor activities. Our walks are really short because even at 7am it is 85 degrees plus. At night (even 9:15), it is still in the 90s typically. He goes to daycare 2 to 3 times a week which really wears him out. We play fetch inside on the off days. He also does his share of running up and down the stairs when I am home. On days where he is not at daycare, I try to come home at lunch (or have a friend come by) and play with him for an hour or so.

If you are worried, can you maybe take your guy to daycare once a week? Spending all day playing when you are an only child is more exercise than you know. Scooter loves his daycare and begs to go.

Good post :)