Hoping to get younger with every step I take W

MY wife and I are animal lovers and have had several cats and dogs over the years.

But we have never considered baptising them, which is what 7% of pet owners said they would do in a More Than study.

Dogs wouldn’t mind. They would consider it fun and a prelude to play time and splash back.

But cats? Have you ever tried to wash a cat? Or give it a pill? It’s impossible because they do not acknowledge being pets: they consider themselves wild animals who allow humans to provide food and a comfortable bed.

Can you imagine the reaction if you poured water over its head?

The screech would have neighbours calling emergency services, the pot ALKING is an aid to health.

Every other week another report comes that proclaims its benefits.

A brisk stroll every day can help prevent heart disease, stroke, dementia, cancer, type 2 diabetes and asthma, boosts vitamin D and gives you energy, experts say.

It’s logical that exercise should be beneficial and I walk regularly on medical orders.

After a check-up a few years ago, the nurse gave me a look that condemned fried breakfasts seven days a week and suggested I get my walking boots on instead. Which was fine.

It’s on the National Health so it didn’t cost anything. The walking I mean; I bought the boots myself.

One website said a daily walk can add between three to seven years to your life which, at my age, has to be an incentive.

But there is a difference of opinion about how to walk and how far. Is a brisk walk better than a slow stroll?

My wife does occasionally accompany me and is more of a stroller and, if I’m not careful, I tend to leave her behind as we take a woodland path. I am wary of this as, some years ago, Maria would take our dog Lucky for walks in the woods. parrot on the mantelpiece would be in pieces, the curtains Tiddles ran up would be shredded and, if you had made the mistake of actually holding the cat in your arms whilst administering the water, you would probably need stitches in your arm and a blood remover for the carpet.

Never try anything foolish with a cat.

At the time, she was experimenting with similar but alternative names for the beast, which we inherited, and famously took these same paths shouting out for “Nookie!”.

The animal eventually responded but so did a flasher and she and the dog both ran home at Olympic pace. The name remained Lucky for safety reasons.

I went online for advice and was surprised to see one health site recommending walks with budgies.

Good grief. Did I need a bird in a gilded cage to reap the benefits of exercise? Then I realised I had misread it: It was walks with buggies, for young mums.

A beneficial walk should be between 20 and 30 minutes, some say. Others declare a target of 10,000 paces a day. But how far is 10,000 paces? And do I have to do more because I have short legs?

According to the walking site. com, 2,000 steps is a mile, so a healthy target is five miles.

Oo-er, mum. That sounds like a long way. Except a daily total also means the paces you take around the house and garden and back and forth towards the bar. A few times up and down stairs as well would help.

Counting them out loud wouldn’t work, of course, so I’ve invested in a pedometer on a strap around my neck to keep track for me. Twelve quid from Amazon seems a small price to pay for immortality.

Oh, didn’t I mention? Another expert, albeit from America, claims walking 10,000 paces a day can trigger an anti-ageing process and help repair old DNA.

How far do I have to walk to be 32 again?