walking advice needed Hey everyone... Jaya is almost 1, and is 3 lbs Jenna is 9 months old and 5 lbs What would be a good length of time for their walks per day? Before the girls got fixed, we used to go on two half hour walks a day - both girls did wonderfully - they were focused and kept up with me at a very brisk pace. The hot days, the girls would be exhausted by the end of the half hour. But the non-hot days, they could have used more time. Then when they got fixed, I did not take them out for about two and half weeks. Since then however, I have found that I have had to retrain Jenna how to walk all over again. Its been a few weeks, and she just drags her butt - and she is the one who needs the excercise more! She has gotten better, but she is having issues keeping up. I have experimented with half hour - and I have found its not nearly enough for Jaya who keeps up with me. Jenna on the other hand - I really have to push - she`s not tired because she`s got loads of energy when we get home, but she just doesnt want to. I think its a will thing. So then, I moved to one hour, and Jaya, though she pants, is very capable of handling that. With Jenna, I just can`t tell. Is she just too young still? And then I thought --- well is 1 hour even enough time???? Should I be taking them for two one hour sessions per day??? I am worried about Jenna because the vet said she`s overweight for her body frame and structure. The days that I work the girls stay in their xpen for about 3-4 hours and then the rest of the time they run loose. I`m just getting confused because my husband says a half hour once or twice is good enough, and my fatherinlaw says an hour twice a day. And all I want is to make sure the girls are getting enough excercise. I may just experiment with two one hour sessions today if I get all of my papers marked on time. How long are your walks with your yorkies? |
I could walk Boo, 6 yrs, for hours and hours and he would still be raring to go. :dogwalk: Gracie, 5 mo, keeps right up with him. Boo is smart and will let me know if it's too hot and they need to rest. He looks for a shady spot and will flop right down to cool off. :dogzzz: On work days we have to get up at 4 a.m., so morning walks are pretty much out of the question. Texas is pretty warm right now, 90+ afternoons, so we try to wait until 8'ish to walk at night. The sun is mostly down below the horizon and we do between 30 - 45 min. Combined with play time and time in the yard this seems to keep their energy levels down to a dull roar. I've also been know to take them to the local pet store and do 'laps' inside where it's cooler. :D Perhaps if you could take Jaya out first for a very brisk 30 min walk and then have Jenna join ya'll for another 30 min walk. I think having Jaya with you will help to keep Jenna focused on moving forward. I personally don't think they need hours of walking, but walking combined with play is good. Gracie loves to play fetch and I can throw her a toy for nearly an hour before she's ready to move on to a different game. The important thing is to listen to your own instincts and do what you feel is right for your girls. Walking with your pack is important to their state of mind, but if Jenna is needing to lose weight, any type of activity will have benefits. Walking in a pet store if it's too hot outside, or one-on-one play time will be good too. Good luck!! |
I walk mine about 45 min once a day. We used to do longer and still do sometimes if its not hot. |
Most people walk their dogs for the purpose of elimination; these walks often take no more than 5-10 minutes, if you are walking you dog for exercise, than of course it would depend on the size of the dog. A small yorkie doesn't need as much exercise as a lab for example. I think yorkies "need" 15 minutes a day, just to explore the world, and anything over that is good exercise. There are other forms of exercise you can do, such as fetch. I think walking is one of the best forms of exercise for a human, but I doubt if many people here walk over half hour a day, if that. At 110 degrees here, Joey is only getting 10-15 minutes. :eek: The walking should be something you enjoy, don't let others make it into a chore. Probably the best form of weight control is through diet with exercise, but it sounds like they are getting more than enough exercise. When walking Joey, sometimes he would just stop and sit, so I carried him for a few minutes, until he "recovered" and then we continued our walk. Joey was overweight for a while, (after a tricks training class) and the vet said to supplement his dinner with green beans, they make him "feel" full. The "petite" frozen beans are very nice and don't contain the salt that canned beans do. I cut his breakfast in half, I was simply feeding too much, and also his dinner, but with the dinner I added 7-9 green beans that had been microwaved for one minute. His weight has stabilized, and we have continued the diet because it keeps him at a healthy weight. |
Perhaps to get her interested in walking again, you could try some park or some place that would be interesting for her? Kacee asks to go over and over and over again! When it's nice out, she really enjoys it! I let her tell me when she's ready to come in. She'll start looking up at my face when she's getting tired or hot. |
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The walk is for the sole purpose of excercise.... they have so much energy, and its just to help them expend it. Plus its an outlet for me too.. i love being outdoors. I was concerned that I was not giving them enough walk-time, but reading some of the posts, I guess its okay. I'll just keep going until I see them getting tired. I'll be taking them again tonight when I get home, and we'll see how it goes :) And the greenbean thing- great suggestion!! I have changed Jenna's diet completely... and her portions. She was free-fed before, and now its half a cup to three quarters a cup of food a day in total. I break it up into two-three portions (though.....sometimes she ends up eating Jaya's portions too :rolleyes: little brat lol) Its funny, one hates to eat, the other loves to... I really have to keep my eye on them. |
When I take Lola out to eliminate we only stay out for 10 - 15 minutes. She does her business and then we take a trip around the neighborhood. Of course we do this a few times a day. We also go on excercise "runs" to the park. We walk and run around there for at least an hour once a day. If she has a bunch of energy and is extra playful sometimes we'll stay for two hours or we'll make two one hour trips. |
update. okay! Well I guess I answered my own question. Right now, it seems like one hour is good, whether that is one hour once a day, or half hour twice a day (if far apart) ...... today was hotter than yesterday, and the moment we walked into our yard, they dropped and then rolled around cooling off on the grass. We did two hours yesterday, and it was like I was cutting out play time. Our evening play and cuddle sessions are very important to me and I don't want to cut into that time. Also, I figured out what Jenna's issue was....... since the girls' surgery, we changed their harnesses... and I don't think Jenna liked it. The last four walks, she has been in her old harness, and she's been completely consistent and keeping up. |
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