Backyards: Your Pet's Possible...Prison?!

“We have a great backyard!  Plenty of room for the dogs, kids, us…it’s awesome!  There’s a fence so Spot is secure…a great place for him to just run around and chill when he wants too, which is fantastic because he can get his exercise out in the backyard.”  What’s missing?  Planned and deliberate exercise, e.g., leash walks, leashed bike runs or off-leash running!

After the walk or run, it’s also a good idea to incorporate some breed exercises in your dog’s energy-reduction schedule.  A couple of breed exercise examples are as follows:

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• German Shepherds are of the working breed.  Have them carry a dog pack for 20 minutes or so.   Put a few things in it to weigh it down like a couple of water bottles and have your dog bring you the water every couple of minutes.  Make the full 20 minutes deliberate by commanding him/her the whole time
• Huskies love to pull!  A great exercise for them would be to put a harness on them which is attached to a car tire (not too heavy or too light).  They can pull the tire to you as you call them from the other side of the yard

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Additional notes … dogs are followers by nature.  They need leaders and if no one steps up to take the lead, they will out of necessity.  As their Pack Leader, they look to you to take care of their needs and establish boundaries, which also include exercising them.

Your dog’s need for exercise isn’t optional but rather a necessity.

Remember, a dog’s “energy tank” registers full every day for a fresh start!  What does your dog’s energy tank read today?