You may not realize how important exercise is for your dog, but it is every bit as important as exercise for yourself. As a dog ages, without regular exercise, he or she can become overweight, which can lead to a myriad of health problems such as diabetes, worsening joint pain, and added pressure on their spines. Typically, exercise does not mean you have to enter your dog into a competition. It simply means you must begin some type of exercise program to help keep your dog as healthy as possible.
Exercising your dog will improve its overall health, the same as it does for humans, but your dog is unique and therefore he or she will require his/her own unique form of exercise. Typically, small or toy dogs do not require as much exercise when compared to larger dogs simply because it takes more exercise for a small dog to walk around the block than a big dog. Moreover, some breeds, such as working breeds, need more exercise naturally, because they were bred to work, and therefore, without exercise they easily bore and can become destructive.
If you have an unruly dog, chances are, you are not providing it with an adequate amount of exercise and boredom has set in. Think about a time in your life when you were bored. You probably began engaging in activities just to not go crazy from boredom. This is the same concept with dogs; they are bored with a lot of pent-up energy and therefore, they begin digging in that sofa cushion until they have it destroyed. You come home and are angry that the dog would do such a thing, but you fail to realize that he or she did it because of lack of exercise.
Therefore, if you are physically able, you should begin taking your dog on at least one long walk each night to get all the pent-up energy worked out. You will notice that your dog is calmer, happier, and more attentive, and does not engage in destructive behavior. Exercise can in fact do all of this for your dog, which is why you should not assume that your dog is fine with minimal exercise because it is not true. If you cannot physically go on walks, you can engage the dog in a long game of fetch, which most dogs adore. Once the dog has the hang of fetch, he or she will never bore of it, but they get the same amount of exercise or more what a long walk provides.
There are always ways you can exercise your dog, and when you are giving him or her the exercise he needs, your dog is suddenly the best-behaved pooch you could imagine. Dogs need exercise, that is the bottom line, and if you are not exercising your dog, you are not experiencing the best dog you could. When your dog receives adequate exercise, he or she is no longer bored and is healthier internally as well as externally.
About the author: Kelly Marshall is a dog lover who writes for ohmydogsupplies.com, an online destination where you’ll find unique dog supplies like elevated dog bowls, dog feeders, and more cool dog gear than you’ll never find at your local pet store.