Eight Ways To Jump Start Your Dog Walks

Are walks with your dog getting a bit too routine? Same route, run into the same people and dogs, blah, blah, blah? Don't fret—the good folks at Modern Dog magazine have come up with eight fun ways to add zest to walks with your favorite canine.

We tried one suggestion just today—add another dog to your walk. This is my first ever full walk with another pooch...meet our new friend Arianna!

Parental Unit's good friend, Karen, just adopted an adorable and very well-mannered Shih Tzu named Arianna. She's super cute and friendly and I couldn't help but like her. Parental Unit is thrilled that we walked so well together.

Enough about us! This article also recommends using your walks to sneak in some training time, socialize with other humans and dogs and simply mix it up by taking a new route. Let us know what tricks you use to keep your daily walks fresh. We'd love to know!

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National Walk Your Dog Week!

I'm ready to go for a walk, Parental Unit! And I'll even carry a few of my own supplies (treats, perhaps?) so I can have a job and burn more calories. 

Who knew that this week ( October 1-7) is National Walk Your Dog Week? Well, we all do now! And we're thrilled to call your attention to this important activity: It's crucial to the health and happiness of both your pet and you, to walk your dog every day. Letting your dog out in the yard, if you're lucky enough to have one, is simply not enough physical and mental stimulation for most dogs. And besides, canines are traveling animals, so walking many miles each day (with their pack leader, of course) is their natural state of being.

In preparation for National Walk Your Dog Week, our good friends at Pet360 surveyed more than 4,000 dog owners to find out how often the average canine is walked by a human companion. And the results are, frankly, a tad disappointing. According to the survey, only 56 percent of dog owners walk their dog at least once per day. What's up with that? And a horrifying 33 percent of the survey's respondents admitted they rarely take their dogs for a walk. 
Parental Unit claims she learned the hard way, that all dogs need more physical and mental stimulation than we think. She still regrets that my predecessor, Carson, a high energy Wire Fox Terrier, didn't get nearly enough exercise for his energy level. Although she took him for one or two fairly short walks every day, that wasn't nearly enough...and lots of destruction and unhappiness ensued. She feels guilty to this day, and firmly believes that her own lack of knowledge and inaction made for a less than optimal life for dear Carson. 

But the good news is that she's more than made up for that with me! In over six years, we've only missed two days of long walks, and both were because of ice storms. Even last year's trio of polar vortex hits didn't keep us indoors! But enough about us.. 

To encourage pet owners to hit the ground running or walking with their four-legged friends this fall, Pet360 has pulled together the Top Five Benefits of Walking Your Dog. The bottom line? Daily walks with your best furfriend provide huge physical and mental benefits for your both. And away you go! 

1.    Promotes Weight Control & Digestive Health – An overweight pet is an unhealthy pet. In addition to regulating your dog’s diet, regular exercise will keep your pet fit, agile, and limber. Daily walks also support your pet’s digestive health and aid in relieving occasional constipation.

2.    Alleviates Destructive Behavior & Hyperactivity – Hitting the pavement with your pup can help reduce or eliminate your pet’s destructive chewing, digging, or scratching. Pets are like children—if you don’t give them something constructive to do, they might take matters into their own paws. Evening walks can also help alleviate pent up energy, helping your dog feel more relaxed at bedtime. Be sure to follow these nighttime safety tips to make sure both you and your pet are protected.

3.    Strengthens Your Bond – Spending quality time together is extremely important to your dog’s behavioral development. Daily walks help strengthen your bond and promote a trusting relationship.

4.    Encourages Socialization – If you have a timid or fearful pet, strolling around the neighborhood can help your pooch build confidence and trust. Walks expose your pet to other humans and animals, which will help him or her adapt to new or intimidating situations. Check out these tips for ensuring stress-free walks with your dog.

5.    Helps Your Health, Too – Walking a pet is sometimes regarded as a chore, but it should be thought of as a way for you and your canine to stay active. Getting outdoors with your pup in tow is beneficial for all involved and may even help you shed a few pounds in the process.

                                 Here's to your good health and happiness!

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"Living With Your Pet" Tips: Sometimes It's About The Dog

We've written many times about how to prevent dog bites, most recently during dog bite prevention week a few weeks ago. The main idea is to prevent harm to humans, which we agree is a laudable cause. No one wants to suffer the physical and emotional scarring of a dog bite, including other dogs.

But we thought this recent post from our friends at DogTime Media was important to share because it puts a different angle on dog bite prevention: the dog and his or her feelings. And as the article points out, it's not just children who should be taught to always ask before petting a strange dog, it's adults, too.

   The author's dog, Lill, wearing her "Please ask first to pet me" vest.

Parental Unit, for example, doesn't think twice about letting all humans pet me, because she has never seen me be anything but embarrassingly friendly. I go crazy with joy when anyone pets me on our walks, and in fact, Parental Unit considers that extra lovin' a part of my daily "enrichment" and socialization. Just yesterday, Parental Unit and I stopped in a local store for a look-see, and a guy knelt down and petted and hugged me for a good few minutes—and we both got lots of enjoyment from our encounter. But she still thinks it's polite for all humans to ask first—and very few do.

That's why we think these vests are important for at least some dogs to wear while walking—it gives some warning to approaching humans that not every dog should be fussed over, most importantly without asking first. As this post emphasizes, some owners would prefer that their dogs not be approached and petted during their walks: they could be in training, shy or easily startled, or recently rescued, for example, and the owner doesn't yet understand their personalities. Whatever the reason, all humans, no matter their age or size, should ask the owner of a strange dog permission to pet that pooch...for the dog's sake as well as their own.

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Rainy Day Activities For Your Dog...And You!

Although we still go for our doggy walks if it's raining (there's usually some part during the day when it's not too heavy of a downpour), it's always wise to have some fun, body and mind engaging activities handy for your canine friends. In other words: It's important to play with your dog indoors, especially when the weather is bad and you might not be able to take a long walk. As we know, dogs are very social animals and love engaging with their humans in some fashion, whether it's a walk, a game of fetch, scent games or even massages—as long as you're involved, they're happy.

Our good friends at Dog Channel.com, Dog Fancy's online presence, came up with some great "rainy day" activities for you and your pooch, that we think are just great. As the folks at Dog Fancy say, it's all about having fun with your dog, while exercising and stimulating their body and mind. We're not all couch potatoes you know!

                           Did someone say couch potato????

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Sunday's "Living With Your Pet" Tips: Why Daily Walks With Your Dog Are So Important

     Fabulous photo of me by John Clark of Clark Creative

We're going to court a little controversy here, because we realize that the Dog Whisperer, Cesar Millan, is not everyone's cup of tea. But as you've read here before, we believe that he's brought paradigm change to the dog world. In other words (and this is from Parental Unit's perspective), he's given us an entirely new approach to dealing with our dogs: "exercise, discipline and affection, in that order". And he also emphasizes the need to set "rules, boundaries and limitations" with your dogs, so they have some structure. But it's not always easy to understand what those words mean in practice, unless you've read his books and listened to him explain his philosophies-and then try them out to the best of your abilities with your own dog.

One of the reasons his message has resonated so deeply with Parental Unit is that she realized (pretty much after the fact) that it was her inaction that led her beloved dog, Carson, to such orneriness-and that led to, shall we say, unwanted behaviors, like him scarfing down indigestible objects resulting in four (or five) surgeries. Yes, she took him for daily walks, but they were too short-he simply was confined to the house too much to drain off his energy-and that energy went elsewhere. And at that point in her life, she didn't take the time to give him those "rules boundaries and limitations" that ironically, would have made his life much more expansive.  Although she can't change the past and give Carson a better life, she can, and has, taken the time to give me lots of physical and mental exercise each day...but entrenched behaviors are difficult to change and she's still working on it!

We think this explanation from Cesar about why the daily walks with your dog are so important  (he calls it: "The Need To Keep Moving") will help to motivate you to make nice long walks at least a once or twice a day ritual. Have fun!

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BlogPaws Wordless Wednesday Pet Blogger Hop!

Today's "theme" at the Blogpaws Wordless Wednesday Hop is "Take me for a walk!" Check it out!

                                        Well...

                                O.K., now water please!

Why not join the BlogPaws Wordless Wednesday Hop while you're here?

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