Exercising Dogs Under 2years Of Age

[taters]

I was wondering what advice breeders give to puppy/young dog buyers in regards to excercisie/walking.

My Mum bought a pure large breed dog about 6 years ago and was told by the breeder not to walk him over a kilometer for the first 12 to 18 months of his life.

So I was wondering if this is just a large breed "thing" or is this the case for all different size dogs

Thanks

[Dogsfevr]

"was told by the breeder not to walk him over a kilometer for the first 12 to 18 months of his life."

Are you sure they said that distance??

Its crucial not to over do it under 12 months & then ideally build up after 12 months to get the dog in good fitness before just lifting the distance too much.

[Danois]

I can only speak from having a giant breed but have been advised that I should restrict walking Angus on road/ footpath etc for the first 18 months and certainly no running on these surfaces! This is because the growth plates etc are still developing and the impact can cause damage.

As a result - Angus' exercise is confined to playing the park and only on the road/ foothpath to get to the park. When I go to Sydney Park (15min walk) I drive down to avoid walking him on the hard surfaces for the 30 mins.

[taters]

"was told by the breeder not to walk him over a kilometer for the first 12 to 18 months of his life."

Are you sure they said that distance??

Its crucial not to over do it under 12 months & then ideally build up after 12 months to get the dog in good fitness before just lifting the distance too much.

Sorry,I just confirmed with my Mum, he wasn't to be walked further than a kilometer up till 12 months, then gradually increase.

[taters]

Thanks for the replies

so does anyone know if this is similar for small and medium breed dogs

[sandgrubber]

I think the quality of the walking is as important as the distance. By all means, avoid forced walking. And avoid things that will cause them to jump and twist, particularly on hard surfaces. My pups start going ~ 1 km at 6 months and by a year they're going 3 or more km. They also play a lot of dog tag on two acres of sand. The last four sets of hip/elbow scores I've gotten are 2:1 h 0:0 e, 2:1 h 0:0 e , 3:1 h 0:0 e and 3:1 h 0:0 e. (Most of these are improvements on sire and dam's scores).

[APBT Lover]

I think the quality of the walking is as important as the distance. By all means, avoid forced walking. And avoid things that will cause them to jump and twist, particularly on hard surfaces. My pups start going ~ 1 km at 6 months and by a year they're going 3 or more km. They also play a lot of dog tag on two acres of sand. The last four sets of hip/elbow scores I've gotten are 2:1 h 0:0 e, 2:1 h 0:0 e , 3:1 h 0:0 e and 3:1 h 0:0 e. (Most of these are improvements on sire and dam's scores).

could you tell me what the ratings mean 2:1 ect???

[SilverHaze]

We start running our siberians short distances in harness around the age of 6 months. By the time they are 9-10 months we are doing around 3kms with them. The youngest one we have is 11 months, straight racing lines, and has just graduated to doing 5km runs - and showing no signs of wear - she's looking better than the older dogs when we get back from a run . However please note these are short distances for dogs designed 10 times that distance in a day if trained correctly.

The next older dogs we have who are approx 20 months now have been having their first real race season. They still however have not run much past 6 kms in one race. Next year the distance they run will be increased.

Just thought i'd give you an insight into a breed that was designed to run. This excerise regime should not be applied to most breeds i believe.

Edited August 16, 2007 by SilverHaze

[dee lee]

i have a medium sized 8 month staffy x kelpie and had two different answers when she was 6 months old: dog trainer said restrict running til one as her bones are still growing and the vet said this was nonsense as she is a muscular and strong boned dog. i chose to listen to the vet. I honestly cant imagine how i would stop my dog running anyway. she is the fastest in the dog park and hard to tire out when jogging with me. no signs of damage so far, however im sure id probably be more nervous if she were more of a fine boned kind of dog like say a whippet.

Edited August 16, 2007 by deelee2

[taters]

Thank you very much for your replies everyone

Much appareciated

was just curious to see what the answers were for different size breeds

and to see if times had changed over the last 6 years

thanks again

[pegasus]

I'm just as careful with my young Whippets as I am with our much larger Borzoi. While I don't restrict the amount of free exercise in the yard/runs too much, I wouldn't go for anywhere near the same length walks with a puppy as I do with the adults. I wait until about 18mths old to increase the distance.

[Poodle wrangler]

I think hip dysplasia is much less common in the smaller breeds.

I wasnt advised to avoid overexercising with a miniature poodle (adult ~8 kg), but I was with a standard poodle (large breed, >30kg as adult). Also, no jumping e.g. in and out of cars, on-off lounges, beds etc. and no running up and down flights of stairs. Other advice: Keep a large breed lean and do not feed ordinary puppy food, but one specific for a large breed (if you feed dry or canned foods).

Hip dysplasia is multifactorial- heredity, exercise, weight and diet all have an effect.

[taters]

Thanks again everyone