This is really a good question! What is the correct amount of exercise? The answer is depending on the condition of the pet. From PAWZ Road's point of view is to consider the dog's physical ability, and also to consider whether the dog's ability to move is compromised.
There are many dogs with long periods of joint pain due to accept improper exercise or training. Persistent muscle pain is a common problem. Therefore we're going to discuss this topic.
In terms of exercise, the biggest problem is repetitive stress. Any movement that let a dog to repeat it is likely to cause major problems. If most exercises can be done in a limited way and make the dogs warm up, which won’t be a problem. But if it becomes a regular exercise for dogs, even if do every day, it will cause repetitive strain.
The examples of repetitive stress are various, here are two exercises：
Chasing Game
Tossing balls or flying disc allow the dogs to constantly chase and run to reverse the body, causing serious problems in the dog's body. The problem is that dogs naturally feel that it is too fun to stop by themselves, but this causes a lot of repetitive strain. We have seen too many dogs panting while walking or going to the park, and the owner has a tossing bat and a ball. This is overexercise.
Running With Bike
It seems to complement each other, people can ride, dogs can exercise, but the hidden effects of such sports may be in many ways.
First of all, because people ride easily and lack empathy for fatigue, it is very likely that dogs will be overly demanding. The dog will also adjust its speed according to the speed of the bicycle, which means that the dog will run/ jog (or worse, pacing) at a constant speed most of the time. At this time, the muscles will begin to be overused, only contracted in a fixed range (fixed range = step pace is same, there is no change.), the muscles may become enlarged and appear to be well developed, but because it has only a fixed range of contraction, this is not healthy and may cause the same problems as the bodybuilders. The muscles will build up and block up and can’t play full functionality.
Another serious problem doesn’t need to be repeated too much, just look at how the dog manages to avoid getting too close to the bike. Any dog would rather keep the distance, and we wouldn't want to let the tires run over my feet, so the dog runs in an evasive manner, putting the whole body in centrifugal pressure, which can lead to immense problems, usually caused by excessive amounts of inappropriate movement.
There are also other problems with dog running or cycling with dogs: Continuously running on hard surfaces or continuous running on soft ground may affect the muscle function and general health of dogs. Dogs need to pass through different floor materials rather than overly touching the same ground.
"Weekend Warrior" - This practice may cause too many problems for dogs! Weekend warrior refer to dogs taking two walks a day for about 20 minutes each week, but on weekends they may take a walk for an hour or more! It’s hard for dogs to bear and the dogs are left home unmoved during the week. Then when the family wants to "walk the dog," they suddenly have to become the best athletes for physical activity. We can often hear people say, "I want to walk my dogs well" "It's a dog, it should be able to..." "It should take a couple of hours to walk the dog" These almost unbearable to any dog. Dogs are not " walking machine”, them need someone to care and manage, otherwise their body will be destroyed!
Imagining that a people walk twice a day for 20 minutes each day, and then suddenly running for one hour on the weekend. This seems to be a difficult task, but we expect our dogs to do so.
This mode of exercise has caused many dogs to be extremely sore on Tuesday and Tuesday. They are tired and do not want to move. People may misinterpret it. This "happy and tired" state can be recovered in Friday after resting, and greet to the greet to the next over-exercise in the two-day weekend again. Similarly, dogs can’t speak and complain (but they express soreness in a stiff and quiet manner).
This pattern of exercise has different effects compared with the repetitive movement. If the body continues to tolerate this pattern without caring, leading to the overexercise sore muscles, the muscle will be turned into a compact structure, therefore cause a great pressure on the joints, which may develop the antecedents of osteoarthritis.
Its main problem is that most dog over-exercises results from a good intentions. The owner wants to provide the activities that they think the dogs need. They are generally not wrong, but in many cases, the good principle is that less is more, and we must take various forms of exercise. Therefore, all of the above repetitive movements can be included in your dog's exercise plan, but it should be done in an appropriate amount, and there should be other forms of exercise.
For example, the best way to exercise is to take a walk. The owner can throw a ball: Take a good ten-minute walk first, and then maybe just throw the ball twice, then let the dog walk with the ball; in addition, try to get close to the floor when losing the ball. Nearly, a dog doesn't have to jump up and turn the body; also try to hide the ball and let a dog follows the scent. Sniffing has a stimulative physiologic influence on the dog's body. It also exercise the brain and other muscles. This is a relatively comprehensive way of sports. As for flying disc, I personally forbid dogs to play it! I have seen flying disc dogs suffer great damage due to jumping, twisting, and landing.
Similarly, if you can only walk the dog on the weekend, it's great to bring your dog out, but to provide multiple breaks, you may not go too far or split into two not long walks. These small changes ensure that dogs are healthier and may reduce the medical assistance they need when they are older.
How do you arrange the training for your beloved pets? Welcome to share with us!
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