PUPPY + EXERCISE = TRUE?

I have always had physically demanding puppies. Who needs to move much. And I want to be clear that so called "exercise" and puppies are not such a great combo, so I want to give some information about this. Because it depends on what you mean by exercise and with puppy…

What is exercise? What is adjusted exercise?

If we look at adult dogs, we look at their needs, breed, age, cardio, strength, overall health & wellness etc, before we go for a workout. There are different "guides" you can find to calculate how much the puppy can walk, train and exercise, but I think they are misleading.

We want to start with what kind of puppy do you mean? A chihuahua requires different adjustments to a rottweiler puppy as well as their needs, age, general health and wellness.

Others say that you should go on and use "common sense", that the puppy will lie down and rest when it is tired. I do not believe that either.
Some puppies run on until they vomit. Kind of like my puppies… They would never think of taking a break during a walk. So, then I have to give them a break and pause during the walk or activity that we're doing before they have gone too far.

Poor exercise for puppies

The reason I do not count kilometers or time when I talk about the puppy's exercise is because it is simply not relevant. Staying out for a long time does not have to mean that the quality of the exercise is right neither might a short walk be. Make decisions based on the puppy in front of you.

Good exercise for puppies

Regardless of whether you are talking about a puppy or an adult dog, there is one thing that will always be good, and that is...  Body Control, to get to know their own body in different ways.

To give your dog the ability to control their own body, get to know how to handle their own paws. How the paws feel on different things and generally keep track of their body is great. And you do not get that through monotonous walks on asphalt nor by throwing a ball or frisbee repeatedly in the park. So here's a list of great practice on the days you're out.

Practice body control:

• Walking Backwards
• Lifting paw movements - use shaping or paw targets both left & right sides.
• Balance training - wide, low and odd objects.
• Walking on different surfaces: grass, snow, moss, gravel, sand, walking in low water (approx. up to carpal pad)

​If you give this base for your puppy, the risk of injury decreases when the dog gets bigger & older.

Leica, Lucky and Elda were, as I mentioned, both active and physically demanding puppies.
We had so much fun, a great combination of rewarding them for being calm and having control of their body. At the same time, they got an outlet for their energy in a healthy way.
Always a little tricky, yet fun training!

What have you and your puppy enjoyed this far? Feel free to leave a comment!