Benefits to exercising your dog

DOGS are born to work for a living. They’ve worked alongside us for thousands of years, and most dogs were originally bred for a particular purpose, like hunting, herding livestock or providing protection.

Dogs’ wild relatives spend most of their waking hours scavenging and hunting for food, caring for offspring, defending territory and playing with each other. They lead busy, complex lives, interacting socially and solving simple problems necessary for their survival.

Like our own, dogs’ lives are now much more sedentary. The most common job for our companion dogs today, however, is couch potato!

They no longer have to earn their keep and instead have to adjust to our more sedate lifestyles. They get their food for free in a bowl and are often confined, alone and inactive, for most of the day. This lack of purpose leaves dogs no outlet for their naturally active tendencies, physical and mental, and it contributes to the development of behaviour problems.

Another problem modern dogs face because they rarely work anymore is a lack of opportunities to exercise. Some pet parents make the mistake of assuming that if a dog has access to a garden, she’s getting exercise. But your dog doesn’t run laps by herself in your garden or do much of anything besides waiting for you to come outside or let her back inside.

The good news is that keeping your dog healthy, happy and out of trouble with daily exercise is a lot of fun and provides many benefits.

With today’s more sedentary lifestyles, dog parents are often challenged to find enough outlets for their pets’ considerable natural energy. Dogs are more athletic than us. But take heart, there are a variety of ways to exercise your dog, from activities that don’t demand much energy on your part to activities that exercise both you and your dog.

Most dogs benefit enormously from daily aerobic exercise (exercise that makes them pant, like fetch, tug, running and swimming), as well as at least one half-hour walk.

I find that exercising my three Labradors is one of the most fun parts of dog ownership.

Did you know that dog owners walk an average of 300 minutes per week, whereas people without dogs walk only about 168 minutes?

Apparently, our dogs motivate us to stay active so discard the fitness app on your phone and enjoy the sunny weather with a dog walk.