Walking the puppy

[Debknits]

Gus is 10 weeks old now and weighs 5.5 lbs. He's Very Active and I'd like to walk him to wear him out a little. He seems to want to keep going no matter how long we are out. Yesterday he did over a mile before he pooped out. We're briskly walking too, no dawdling or pulling.

Is this normal? He came in, took a 10 minute nap and then was ready to go again. It's fine now that the weather is decent but when it's sub zero, I'm not trotting around in the cold.

Deb

[Hagar]

Wow, Gus IS a frisky little guy. I got Renny at 8 weeks and I started leash training at about 10 weeks. At first he hated the idea, but gradually accepted the leash idea. We gradually increased the length of our walks as he(and me!)got used to walking. Our walks range from downright brisk to Renny taking his time to stop and sniff whatever catches his attention.

While Renny was still a puppy, there were several posts here about a danger in walking a young Cairn too much. Some thought that too much walking, too young, could harm their growing bones and muscles. That concerned me since our walks were getting quite long. A check with my vet said that longer walks are just fine as long as the dog is going willingly. So Gus should be fine as long as the walks don't turn into a forced march on your part.

Our walks have evolved over the time I've had him (he's 4 1/2 now) from one long walk in the early evening to 3 shorter walks daily. We go in the morning, early evening and late evening before bedtime.

Oh yeah, the weather thing? If they get used to regular walking, they want to go regardless of the weather (thunderstorms excepted!). Renny has gladly walked in temperatures ranging from -20 to 104 in most kinds of weather.

[tdavie]

I got Pebbles at 12 weeks of age, and the first day we had hre involved driving back 600 miles to our house, so no walkies for her. The next day was yard work, so she was in the ard exploring. But on day 3 I took her to a river park about 1/3 of a mile from my house. A few laps around the park, and it was back to my house ofr a 2 hour snooze. Day 4-7 went about 1/2 mile a few times a day. The following week she walked for a mile at a time. At 14 weeks of age she went camping and walked for about 5 miles. Very pooped out.

If your dog seems okay with 1 mile, I'd say no problem. I might walk them a bit slower than a brisk walk because *some* Cairns might suffer from luxellating patella (wobbly knee caps basically).

Just wait till the discovery of snow Fun awaits!

Tom

[Debknits]

I am looking forward to snow. It will give him something to dig in that isnt quite so...dirty. I had him out in the yard by himself for about 10 minutes this morning and when I went to get him, he had excavated a 5" ring around the base of my laundry line pole. And on one of our strolls around the yard, he dug up a rock, a bug and a long stem of cockle burs which got caught all over his ears. I really wish he'd stick to the mole and chipmunk holes.

It's like having a very busy little boy in the house again leaving little dirty handprints all over my house. ;o)

[avlsarah]

Maxwell is the SAME way and always has been. If we walk one mile, he wants to do a second. If we go to the park for an hour, he wants to stay longer. When Maxwell was a little guy, we walked about 30min. at a time, but several times a day in addition to romping around in the yard and playing inside with toys. Just like you said, we'd take a break and he'd lay down for maybe 10-20 minutes and then pop right back up and play with his toys. Never a dull moment.

Now, Maxwell and I take long hikes, and stay at the park for 2+ hours and he's still full on! The other folks at the park are amazed that he can run so much and never get tired. Of course, not matter how long we stay at the park, he's always sound asleep as soon as we get in the car. Last weekend, we went hiking with a group from the dog park and, of all the dogs there, Maxwell was the quickest and most energetic. He kept the lead the whole time. Then, on the way home he was exhausted and fell asleep on my lap; our friends said it was the first time they had ever seen him be still!

The only time Maxwell settles down is in the evening - after about 8:30. He likes to sleep with the cat on the sofa.

He's such a funny little guy. Other people seem to think its not such a good thing that he has so much energy, but I love it. He keeps my busy and its always fun!