Keeping Your Dog Physically Fit : Exercise
Some daily activity and exercise is essential, allowing freedom to move about in a natural manner. Lack of exercise leads to poor muscle tone, obesity, heart ailments, bone disorders and often results in emotional problems and dog behavior quirks.
Dogs with no exercise subjected to overcrowding and confinement in cages for prolonged periods, often their entire lives, develop a great variety of physical and emotional disorders.
How Much Exercise?
How much exercise is enough depends on your dog’s age, breed, and health. A 10-month old Irish Terrier puppy is going to need more than a five-year old Whippet (you could appropriately sing, “Wild thing, you make my heart sing” as your puppy races around the house and yard). A sight hound needs short bursts of exercise; guarding dogs don’t need as much overall as sporting breeds who like to hunt all day. Even within a breed, the need varies. A highly energetic eight-year-old Golden Retriever could easily need more exercise than a calm three-year old Golden. And geriatric dogs still need to go for walks–just shorter ones than they used to enjoy.
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