Is there anything as energetic as a puppy? We struggle to find something on a par with that furry bundle of joy from the moment it enters your home. Of course when they aren't eating or running around the whole house, puppies need an awful lot of sleep too. One moment they are raising hell, the next they're out like a light. So, just how much exercise should you be encouraging in your puppy to take? If your puppy is having fun playing games with you, does that count as exercise and how much of it should you allow? It might seem crazy to consider stopping the fun but as the owner of a puppy you need to be aware of how much activity is wise and how much could be potentially causing longer-term issues.
Exercising puppies: here are the facts!
Puppies can go for walks. Yes, really. The official recommendation states that your puppy should be walked 5 minutes per every month of their age up to twice a per day. Of course, this can differ depending on how your puppy is responding but this is a great rule of thumb to get you started.
Different strokes for different folks counts for puppies as well. Did you know that smaller breeds reach maturity whole lot faster than giant breeds? This means that you will have a puppy on your hands for longer the larger the breed is. Making sure that your large breed puppies aren’t over-exercising is very important as their larger size can lead you to believe they are capable of a bit more than they really are.
No one likes heading out in extreme temperatures and puppies are no different. While they're young you need to be particularly aware of what the weather is doing, whether that's a heatwave, a snow storm or just temperatures that more delicate dogs might find challenging underfoot. Opportunities for very very cute puppy coats are widespread, though.
While humans do enjoy a constitutional after a large meal things are a bit different when it comes to puppies. Be sure to give your pup the time to properly digest their meal before going straight for the lead. Failure to do so can increase the risk of your puppy developing life-threatening conditions such as bloat or gastric torsion.
To be able to get out and about with your dog no matter what their age is but when it comes to the very start of their lives we need to be mindful of what our puppies can handle.
