How Long do you Walk your Yorkie for?

[Junebug]

Originally Posted by miezzi

Luigi & I usually walk for about an hour to hour and 1/2. I take water with us but he never wants it unless its in his bowl. But we started out a lot less time. Yesterday, it was soo nice out we went for 5 walks about 45 mins each. He couldn't get enough.

Wow, that's a lot of cardio! You both must have excellent hearts.

[frankiesmommy]

Originally Posted by Junebug

Smart mom! You are correct. Don't place Frankie on any public ground until he's fully vaccinated.

I get so upset when I see people bringing around tiny tiny newborn puppies because they think it's cute. Well, it isn't. It's highly dangerous for puppies.

Ok, thanks! I can't wait until he has all his shots!

[miezzi]

Originally Posted by Junebug

Wow, that's a lot of cardio! You both must have excellent hearts.

Luigi wears me out, I have a hard time keeping up with him. I have one of those leashes that extend out far and when he goes and has to stop cuz the leash runs out, he stops turns his head at me and pushes forward. I think he gets mad at me. Now he expects to go for a walk everytime we go peepee outside. He does his thing then takes off down the driveway. And barks if I don't walk with him. He is sooo crazy!!!

[simonandhallie]

Simon is a walker as well. He and I go hiking and he can outwalk me every time. We usually walk for a few miles and he never gets tired, I'm thinking it is possible he has a hyperactivity disorder He just loves walking and being outside. Hallie on the other hand gets tired after about 45 minutes and I end up carrying her. Sometimes I even take Simon running with me and he can keep up. I have a travel water bottle with a bowl attached to it and he drinks out of that. Amazing how much energy these little creatures have isn't it??

[simonandhallie]

I forgot to add....Simon ALWAYS carries his little soccer ball with him on walks, he won't leave the apartment without it. If we meet up with strangers he will spit it out at their feet and bark at them until they throw it. We make a lot of friends that way.....

[yorkipower]

Originally Posted by Junebug

The weather here has been gorgeous. For the past two days Otis and I have taken walks for about an hour long, uphill and downhill, in 70 degree weather. He is slightly panting, and there's no water until we get home. He doesn't ask to be carried and he seems to enjoy himself, but I'm concerned that an hour up and down hills is too much for his little body.

I noticed when we get home, he drinks a ton of water, then plops down on the cold kitchen floor for about 1/2 hour.

How long do you take your doggie on walks for?

Junebug I put up another post (long post) on Yorkie exercise, I hope it will answer your question. I do have a suggestion on the water. A number of companies now sell fanny packs that allow you to bring a water bottel and fabric/portable dog bowel so your dog can have sips of water while you walk. Outward Hound makes one for example. Another thing, I pour water over my dog's back and on his pads when it is hot. The long coat helps keep the dog wet and the wet keeps the dog cool. Hold on . . . I'll find that old post and re-post it . . .

[yorkipower]

Thread about exercising Yorkies

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I want to make the caveot that I am not a vet and the advice I'm giving here is based soley on what I've read, have been told, and what I do with my own dogs. Ringo and Honey - the best advice I can give you is to visit Chris Zink's website and read her books:

http://www.caninesports.com/fitness.html

"An exercise program should start gradually, should be consistently applied, should provide variety, and should progress towards a specific goal. Conditioning is not just a weekend activity. A Golden Retriever that is being prepared for the National Specialty 2 months away may be taken swimming on Saturday when there is more time for travel, and on Sunday it may undergo skill-training (practice stacking, free-baiting, and gaiting) in the morning and a 30 minute trot in the evening. During the week, when the handler has less time to devote to conditioning, the dog may be trotted for 30 minutes on Tuesday and Thursday. On Monday and Wednesday, the dog may be worked on cavaletti and conditioning jumps, and on Friday it gets to watch a movie on HBO."

Her book, Coaching the Canine Althete is my bible.

Now, with the preliminaries over, here's my advice: before you start any exercise regime with your Yorkie. Have your vet do a full -going over, including blood work to rule any physical or congenital problem. Aside from the obvious orthopedic problems, you want to be sure that your dog does not have a heart murmur, liver shunt, diabetes, etc. If any of these problems exist, they will need to be addressed and controlled before you start your exercise program. If you think your Yorkie has an orthopedic issue (many have patella luxation including both of mine), a canine orthopedist might also be worth visiting to determine the degree of luxation for example.

Now, I'd get a base line for your dog. You want to know what your dogs resting heart rate is, what his capillary refill time is, normal temperature, and the normal color of his gums. I say that because you want to be sure that you can read when your dog is in distress. Next, you also want to be able to know how to test for dehydration and distress. What I do for my own dog is pinch some skin on his side and see how long it takes for the skin to come back. This should be instantaneous. If the skin tents, this means my dog is very dehydrated. To test your dog's capillary refill time (CRT), lift your dogs lip and press your finger against the upper gums. The gums should return to their normal pink color within 1 and half seconds (almost instantaneously).

One advantage we have as small dog owners, if our dogs do tire or have problems, we can simply pick them up and carry them the rest of the way home, so there's no need to push them beyond their limits, even if you are stuck on a hiking path, six miles from home (I once had to carry a bleeding Basset Hound to the vet, six New York City blocks away!).

While small dogs are not prone to this problem, you should also be aware of gastric bloat. Bloat is a situation where a dog's stomach builds up with gas. I don't think they know what actually causes it but I do know it is thought to be related to dogs swallowing air. It is potentially fatal. I bring this up because while you definitely want to provide water for your dog during exercise, you do not want him to be gulping his water. I usually carry pediolyte (sp?) with me mixed with water in a 1:1 ratio. I let my dog sip some (in other words, a few laps) before exercise, in between and after but I do not let him gulp it and will take it away from him if he starts to gulp his water. I also do not feed my dog his dinner or any large meal before or during exercise (I do feed treats while training for agility but these are giving in small pieces over the course of the training session).

Another you must be careful about his heat exhaustion. I literally dunk my dogs in water during hot days in order to keep them cool. I strongly recommend reading up on heat exhaustion (this would be a topic of another long post) and know the signs!

One of the best pieces of advice I've been given actually comes from my horse years. "Always trot the last mile home." Basically, it means you should sufficiently warm up your animal before exercise and after - just as you do for yourself when you exercise.

As for whether a Yorkie can walk three or four miles? Yes, he can, if he is properly conditioned and is in GOOD health. Don't just slap on your pup's leash and say "OK, we're going to a three mile hike today!" Especially with a new dog, I'd start with "OK, we're going to walk around the block today." And build from there. One block, into two, two into four and so on. Always with a good stretch beforehand and after (Chris Zink and Susann Clothier each offer stretching exercises in their books). IF I am going to jog, or do some agility/jump training, or jog my dog on a treadmill, I will also start out with a slow five minute walk beforehand and a slow five minute walk afterward.

The most important piece of advice I can give you is to learn to read your dog and know when he has had enough. Don’t push him and don't let him push himself past the point of exhaustion. Some dogs are very good at knowing when they have had enough and will "Tell" you. Others will work themselves into the ground. Growing up, we had a Yorkie who was insanely crazed about Basketballs. She would play with them until she had soars on her chin. IN order to keep her from playing herself, literally, to death, we wound up having to hide the basketballs! My little boy, is good at telling me when he needs a break. When we jog in the neighborhood, I usually, have him tied to me with a "Buddy System" Leash; he's wearing a harness (so that he can pull against the leash). When we start out, he's usually ahead of me and the leash is taunt. When he begins to tire, the leash will begin to sag. When he is running in tandem with me, I know he's had enough and we will slow to a walk and walk the rest of the way home

[Gale]

Nemo loves to walk also, so I take him out for three 20 minute walks a day, and usually it is with him charging full speed ahead and dragging me, I usually have to tell him to slow down.....

Gale

[Bailey'sMom]

A coulpe other things I've read too...
-always have water with you for longer walks/exhersions (inflateable bowls are great!)
-puppies are prone to hypoglycemia and should limit playtime/excercise to 10 minutes - then rest (and I'm a big fan of Nutrical 2 times a day for at least the first 5 or 6 months)
-sweaters are cute and FUNCTIONAL - in cool/cold weather they should be wrapped up or in a sweater - especially as puppies

And for the person about whether walking on a leash is natural - Bailey did that too! He would not budge! And he'd want me to pick him up! I thought I had the prissiest boy in the world - a dog that refused to take a walk?!?! But after a couple times, he got comfortable! Now we go twice a day and he's as bold as can be!!! Just be patient...
~Kelley

[SoCalyorkiLvr]

Hefner and I have only been on short walks. We have several outdoor mals and I've taken him shopping many times. He loves it and I let him walk, or rather, run when we are outside going from store to store and then I carry him or out him in the carrier when we go inside a store. He loves this and is always pooped when we get home and he sleeps well that night!

We also go to the park with the bigger dogs and he loves to run in the grass. I do limit the time on this becuase sometimes I think he doesn't know his own limits and he would go forever!!!

[StewiesMom]

Originally Posted by YorkieLover9

Is walking on a leash a natural thing or do they have to be taught. The first and only time I put one on Beau, he just stood there frozen wouldn't even move when I called him and tugged slightly.

ditto.

[bettyeanne]

Originally Posted by miezzi

I have one of those leashes that extend out far and when he goes and has to stop cuz the leash runs out,

I am sooo glad you made reference to this type of leash! I think they are absolutely wonderful ... but ... have been meaning to tell you all about an experience my Patrick and I had recently that absolutely terrified us!! We had stopped off at Petco to pick up food for Toto and it was just beginning to get dusky dark. As we were about to back out of our parking space ... it's just a reflex I have to glance out the passenger window for Patrick because people are so inclined to meander in parking lots and not watch for cars backing up ... there was a man that had just come out of the store and I noticed that he had one of those recoiling leashes in his extended hand ... it struck me like a bolt of lightening that there had to be a dog on the end of it!!! I screamed for Patrick to stop! Evidently the man had just bought it for his dog and brought him out with it on and immediately let the dog way out with it ... we almost backed over the dog!!!! Although it certainly wouldn't have been our fault, we would never have forgiven ourselves if we had injured an animal! The man was terribly embarrassed!! Just be very careful with this type leash if you get one for your dog [we plan to get one for Toto]. I'm sure this man never thought about it being so dangerous for his dog to be that far from him but one would think that in a busy parking lot, common sense would rule!!