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Arkansas Democrat-Gazette dog walking illustration.
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette dog walking illustration.

When I go for my exercise walk every day, I take my dog with me. The walk is usually for 30 to 45 minutes, sometimes an hour. My sister says my dog (a 47-pound "super mutt" named Yancy) probably needs more walking than that. What are your thoughts?

Getting a dog out of the house for a walk every day not only helps the dog burn off energy but also gives him a chance to flex his mental muscles. While one walk is a good start, adding another or even two to the routine can benefit him even more.

When taking Yancy for a walk, consider the reason for the outing. Most people walk their dogs for potty breaks or to give them a chance to stretch their legs. These purposeful walks are usually short. Ideally, a walk should last long enough to allow a dog time to sniff, investigate and mark territory, which means you might have to take your dog for a second walk to give him time to explore his surroundings.

Veterinarian Karen Becker of healthypets.mercola.com suggests varying walks by purpose. For example, your daily exercise walk is probably at a pace that's comfortable for you, but might not be challenging enough to give Yancy the amount of physical exercise he needs. Consider taking him for a more vigorous outing, where he can get aerobic exercise in which his heart rate is elevated for at least 20 minutes. That might mean a run or a trip to the dog park, where you can turn him loose to romp with other dogs. Another option is enrolling him in an agility class.

In addition to exercise walks and short purposeful walks, add a training excursion to your repertoire. During a training walk, practice leash manners and basic obedience commands. You also can use these walks as a chance to work on a dog's socialization skills. If he's shy about meeting people, for example, take some food treats with you. When you encounter a new person, give that person a treat and have him speak to Yancy and hand him the treat. That will help your dog learn that meeting new people is a positive thing.

Walks should be mentally as well as physically stimulating. While using personal exercise outings as a chance to walk the dog is an efficient use of time, sometimes we're so focused on our routines that we hurry the dog along. We're focusing on moving while our dogs want to investigate the exciting scents he's picking up. So consider taking the dog for a purely investigative walk, where he can stop and sniff at a leisurely pace.

Mixing up routes and routines is critical to keeping a dog intellectually stimulated, according to an article in the May issue of Your Dog. If a dog has to walk the same route day after day, it's the same as if we had to read the same magazine article over and over -- boring. Since a dog is reading his environment by sniffing as he walks, the reading material needs to change periodically. Vary the route of your daily walk as well as take Yancy to new places (another neighborhood, a park or a nature trail) a couple of times each week.

If your schedule doesn't allow you to add another walk, include some variety in the current daily jaunt. You could also consider enlisting another family member or a friend to take Yancy out for a sniffing expedition or simply to play fetch in the backyard. The more time the dog spends outdoors exercising his mind or body, the happier and more satisfied he'll be.

Family on 04/27/2016

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