Walk question
 

Is a four mile walk too long for an 8 lb. Yorkiepoo? Because she thinks she's a greyhound, Scarlett gives us no signs of fatigue when she walks. None, nada. She just prances along enthusiastically, but we noticed, after we took her on a (rare) fitness walk, that she was lethargic all day afterwards and uncharacteristically tried to sleep in this morning. We also found 3 ticks on her-despite FRontline, so we panicked and took her to the vet. They tested her, and she is fine, so now I'm back to thinking lethargy was the result of the walk.
If four miles is too long, how many miles is appropriate?

I imagine so. My Tibbe barely makes it 3/4 miles and he's 6 lbs. With those short little legs, that's a lot of work and movement for a little 8 lb. dog to do to keep going for 4 long miles. Did you slowly work her up to the 4 miles over several days or weeks or just do it one day and she was lethargic afterward, which would seem logical? Well, so would the lethargy after a gradual build-up to 4 miles, too, though, for a dog that small. Heck, I'd be lethargic and tired after 4 miles the next day! :D:);)

No it's not at all! An 8lb dog is still a dog... my friends 4lb and 6lb yorkies regularly walk 4 1/2 miles. I mean I wouldn't say throw a dog right into it if they're not used to it, but even if you're doing it once a week, or whatever... for a normal healthy dog, it shouldn't be a problem. Being somewhat tired is a good thing, it means they are worn out! I love taking the pups on a nice long walk and having them come home and crash. If Jackson is super active for a few days, he is more likely to be a lot more tired the next day and laid back.

My 17lb Jackson walks 4 miles easily but one day we hiked for 7 miles, it's not something we do daily, weekly, or even monthly, but I wasn't at all worried about him making it or having to 'build him up' for it. He will let me know if/when he's tired, as most dogs will. As long as your dog isn't showing signs on the walk of wanting to stop, keep going! Walking is good for everyone.

Barely makes it 3/4 mile? That's like less than a 20 min walk? lol... come on Tibbe! :p:D

My dads overweight dog is like 21lbs and should be 15ish. He will walk forever, it's not strenuous or anything and he's way out of shape. I keep telling them to walk him every day, but they don't :rolleyes: but whenever we've gone together, we usually will do 1.5 miles or so.

But most normal healthy dogs should at least be able to walk a mile w/o problems IMO.

LOL - maybe it's me that's the one slowing down after 3/4 of a mile but Tibbe seems quite ready to do that and I kind of linked it with his compromised liver and very poor nutrition the first 9 months of his life before I got him. He's been shedding recently, gained some weight and I have to have his thyroid checked so that could also be part of his readiness to quit when I do. Still, I don't think I'd walk an 8 lb. dog over a mile to a mile and one-half at any single session, especially after the reaction this dog had. Dogs that size don't have really long legs like dogs twice as big.

It doesn't seem normal for a dog to be suddenly lethargic for the rest of the day and hesitant to awaken the next day after a long walk so I'd probably want his cardiovascular, endocrine system, thyroid and liver checked in some depth before another long walk but that's just me. After Tibbe's liver diagnosis, I think I gained an extra dose of paranoia.

Yeah I know poor Tib has been through the wringer w/ health problems.

I don't know... the OP would have to be more specific. How old is your dog? I mean... Jackson will gladly sleep until noon if he's had a lot of exercise the day before. But of course I wouldn't call him 'lethargic'. He'd be up in a heart beat if I asked him if he wanted to go for a ride or a walk. But I know this is normal of my dog. It could just be that the dog is simply tired because he doesn't typically get this much exercise.

I respectfully disagree that a dog 8lbs can not walk 4 miles in one session. These dogs may be little but they are terriers. Most are perfectly capable. Like I said, my friends 6lb yorkie can easy walk 4 miles and used to every day. Have you ever seen Papillons? Those little dogs can FLY and most are under 8lbs, yet they are some of the fastest and highest scoring agility dogs. While of course there are going to be some size restrictions with having a little dog, walking is not something I would worry about in the least (so long as it's not too hot of course).

1 mile is really not a long distance at all. It's about a 20 min walk for me. A 1 mile walk does absolutely *nothing* for Jackson's energy lol. A 4 mile walk? Will have him laying down & calm.

No, it is not too much as long as water is offered, it is not forced, pup does not get overheated, they are allowed to stop, and you build up to it.

Being quiet after a long walk for several hours is normal. Being out of it the next day is not right unless this is new to pup.

There - the doggie oracle has spoken. I always defer to Crystal's thoughts as she knows so much about all things dog(she's becoming a veterinarian) and personally saw to it that I got my dog proper testing for a possible liver problem when his own vets didn't think it was necessary at first as all his routine blood work was WNL. We can't do without her on YT!

:thumbup::thumbup:

If my boys have had a really big day, they are more relaxed the next morning and not chomping at the bit to get outside again. However, they are not lethargic.

4 miles is fine, great. We have a short-legged Yorkie in our hilly neighborhood who runs at least 4 miles with her daddy. She is an energizer bunny.

:thumbup::thumbup: Max and Teddy are 9 pounds, but can easily do 4 miles -- as long as it isn't overly hot or humid.

Yeah, Jackson does not do well in long distances in very hot and humid weather either.

Not at the beginning of the running season, but shortly thereafter Cali who is just under 4 pounds can RUN a 3K with me as long as the ground is not gravel or too hot. Of course she has been doing this for 4 years. Runs any longer than that she gets popped into the stroller because the ground may be too rough for her little feet and short legs.

She will come home and get her ball to play with!

That's awesome!

I know, we came home from a 7 mile hike and Jackson still wanted to run around and play... crazy boy... sometimes the more exercise I give him, the worse it gets lol

It seems the more we walk and do, the more my little girl wants to do. She can't walk too long in the heat, but she has no problems walking a lot otherwise. I always carry water. Katie will run to fetch her ball well over an hour if she has her baby pool to cool off in.

My last Yorkie was walking over two miles a day until she passed away at close to seventeen. Her vet was very surprised at how fast she was, and although she had an enlarged heart, her heart and lungs were strong.

That is wonderful! I hope my boys make it to age 17 and can still enjoy their walks.