migrating is a natural instinct
While we humans are wearing ourselves out all day, our dogs are resting, resting, resting, and waiting, waiting, waiting. I often think how nice it would be if we could trade off a bit: I would rest a little more, and my dogs would work a little more. Maybe someday we’ll figure that out!
Until then, we humans need to be sure our dogs get lots of exercise. The kinds of exercise your dog needs, listed in (my best guess of) order of importance to the dog, are:
- Exercising the nose
- Exercising the body
- Exercising the mind
- Exercising the teeth and jaws
These all “count” as exercise. The best case is to provide some of each kind of exercise at least weekly and preferably daily. Luckily, many activities provide more than one kind of exercise.
Which is the most important kind? Definitely whichever your dog likes the most! At our house, Sage loves to hunt the most, and Logan’s highest priority is to cover a lot of ground. Out in a field, they both get what they need, so you might think they have the exact same interest. But their true colors shine through in a more “domestic” scenario – while we walk around the neighborhood on leash, Sage wants to stop every step and investigate (the ground, the bushes, the trees), while Logan has some serious “Forrest Gump” in him – he gets into a steady gait and could trot along for hours without sniffing the ground. So what is your dog’s favorite? Swimming? Playing with kids? Retrieving?
where is the best place to run where you live?
This series on exercise is by far one of my favorites. If there’s one thing we tell people… our secret weapon is exercise. So many behavioral issues stem from not getting enough of it. And so much goodness comes from getting enough of it! Which story to pick – I guess I’ll throw out the time my boyfriend and I went for dinner and accidentally left the front door unlatched. Well, there must have been a draft, as we arrived home to a wide open front door! The dogs were upstairs waiting on the bed (and I remember feeling totally unsurprised by this). They were glad to see us, so we could shut the door and get things back to normal. But they had no intention of fleeing – heck, they weren’t going to miss their quiet time after we’d worn them out all day!
So, yeah, sometimes it’s a stretch to get them out when you’re already tired. But man, they really appreciate it, and they return the favor to you in other ways.
