Am I walking my dog too much?

[davy]

A lot of my neighbors complain, or mention, that I am always walking my dog.

Bowser is a 9 pounds mutt and currently due to weather, short days, he gets 3 20 minute walks on a weekday, and 2 1 hour walks in the park and 2 20 minute walks at home.

When the weather gets nicer, I hope to make the walks at least 30 minutes a day.

My one coworker even said I walk him too much.

Bowser enjoys these walks! His whole body wiggles when he knows it's walkie time.

Is it possible I am walking him too much?

 

[honoringintimates]

@davy Vet tech - unless he is morbidly obese and can't breathe/a brachycephalic that also can't breathe (this is most important in hot weather) enjoy all the walkies you like. It's good for both of you.

 

[davy]

@honoringintimates He actually could stand to gain maybe 1 pound but my vet is not concerned about his weight. (You can see the back 2 ribs and feel them)

Right now he can't have walkies because he's only 5 days post neuter and we have 2 more to go.

 

[honoringintimates]

@davy He's fine, walk him as much as you want.

 

[jiokee]

@davy Spoon of dog safe pb for the little guy? It helps fatten them up!

 

[lordimyre]

@davy Just do the math with calories burned and calories going in. The calories going in should be more than being burned and you’ll be fine. People who have no clue on canine health often are the quickest to spew utter nonsense.

 

[blueorchid]

@davy Maybe they feel guilty because they don’t walk their own dogs nearly enough.

 

[davy]

@blueorchid That's possible... I never see anyone in the neighborhood walk their dogs

One of them was what we called a land whale. This poor labs stomach reached her knees

 

[misslou]

@blueorchid I mean, wtf? Who in the hell ever heard of too many walks for a healthy pup?

 

[imagebeastmarkbeast]

@blueorchid For real!!!! Don’t get me wrong…I’ve seen and heard of pet owners forcing dogs on long walks when the dog does NOT want to go…but if the pet enjoys it and he has no underlying anatomical or medical conditions that make a lot of exercise risky…let them do it!!

 

[zrayish]

@davy That's ridiculous. Walks are so good for us and them.

 

[davy]

@zrayish I lost a little over 5 pounds walking him! I find it a great way to bond and make him so happy

 

[zrayish]

@davy I agree with the bonding experience it's special. And walks are so simple! And can't argue when it keeps you trim

 

[msmellylynn]

@davy if he isn't too tired or avoiding the walks, i don't see why it's a problem.

 

[belov]

@msmellylynn Yes. You’ll know when they don’t want to go.

 

[robynnicole]

@davy does your co-worker own dogs? If not then I can probably understand their comment because they have no idea about walking dogs. 30mins- 1hr walk per day is pretty standard for any healthy dogs. It’s sad if their outdoor time is less than half an hour per day.

 

[davy]

@robynnicole They do, but their S.O. walks the dog... I think twice a day for about an hour.

I figure since sniffing is super important to dogs, why not take a long stroll and let him enjoy himself.

 

[robynnicole]

@davy if I were you, the next time they tell me “you’re walking too long!”, I’d act in shock “omg your walk is shorter than this? poor fido!”

 

[pasofinodude86]

@davy I would say that it's not their business.

 

[davy]

@pasofinodude86 That's a fair point

I'm having issues trusting myself with this poor little dude. I'm trying so hard to do right by him