Daily Walks?

[shadows_mom]

I'm just curious how often everyone walks there cairns and how far?

When we moved about 9 months ago we started letting Shadow out during the day with our lab. They mostly stayed on the porch and slept. Well about a month ago Shadow decided he needed to go to the neighbors house (about 1 mile through the woods) daily and stay till about 10 o'clock or sooner if we drove to pick him up. Well I didn't like Shadow doing this even though the neighbors just love him. I started putting him back in his crate during the day. I'm worried because he spends all night in the crate and now during the day too. I have been taking him out in the morning to do his thing and taking him with me to feed the sheep, then we play catch in the yard for about 20 minutes, then it is to the kennel. He comes in and goes right down to the basement and hops right in. Then when I get back from work I take for a two mile walk/jog (Mostly walking... I'm still trying to get back in shape to do the who jogging thing again). And then it is back for more catch in the yard. We usually come in the house about 8:00 and Shadow passes out on the couch. I think he seems to be getting enough excersise because I have to wake him up when I get home from work and I have to wake him up in the mornings. But I was just curious what everyone else did to keep their cairn's happy and healthy.

[savannahsmom35]

It sounds like to me that Shadow is getting plenty of excersie. I used to walk Savannah every evening and we would go about a mile but recently Savannah has decided that she would rather play fetch than do pretty much anything else (she is starting to be like Finch and the frisbee!) I still take her on walks but not as often since she is usually ready to rest after a good game of fetch.

The thing about Savannah is she will NOT stop! She will run after that ball for as long as you will throw it. I usually end up having to put the ball up after she is panting hard just to get her to go drink some water. She is like the Energizer bunny!!!

[kjwarnold]

Packy is also an Energizer Bunny Cairn. We walked over 3 miles with him on Saturday and he wanted to do it all over again! He usually gets at least a mile walk in each day. Now that summer is here and the lake is warming up, he gets to swim sometimes, too.

I'd be worried, too, about Shadow going a mile to the neighbor's house and staying for a few hours. You never know what he might run into on the way there or back. We have owls, foxes, coyotes and all kinds of wild animals in our area (I even saw a small black bear once!), so we don't let Packy run loose.

[Eliz222]

I take mine on lots of walks, but it's not every day. Finch gets plenty of exercise chasing the frisbee. We throw it for her numerous times during the day. When I go back to work, I will have to walk them every day.

Their favorite place to walk is the park. We have one close to us and one about 10 min away. They now know that when I pick up their Sporn Harnesses, that they are going for a walk!

[tena]

Sophie is a city dweller and we measure walks by blocks. She takes a 3 block walk in the morning and afternoon as well as a 4 block walk later in the evening....so about 10 blocks a day. This seems about the right amount of excersize for her. Of course she would go all day but if she gets less than this...she's rowdy.

She also gets to play inside and sometimes we take another stroll.

[shadows_mom]

Thanks everyone for your replies... it was great to hear how everyone wears their cairn's out.

[Lisad]

Harry gets a lot of exercise (average hike of 4+ miles/day 6 times/week). I want to keep him conditioned for mountain hiking so I need to keep him active. He also gets two planned playdates a week with his pup friends. He is always the last pup down to rest when he's playing with his buddies. Of course, we started him out very slowly and gradually worked him up to the long hikes. He does really well. I think our pups will thrive on what our schedule allows and what they are used to. Sounds like your pup is getting plenty of exercise and is very content

[dufunny]

I am new to the board and have not uploaded any pictures of Siggy. He is about two and a half and walk/jogs anywhere from 4 to 6 miles with me 6 days a week. On his "off" day I still take him for a thirty minute stroll, he just enjoys being outside. We live in Mississippi so during the summer he wants me to pick him up and carry him several times throughout the long walk and we make two water stops. He loves it so much that he goes to the door and whimpers if it seems to him like I am not going soon enough that day. It helps him sleep through the night.

[Hagar]

I started out slow with Renny when he was about 12 weeks old. We started with up and down the block a few times, and gradually increased to around the block and eventually were doing about two plus miles every evening.

About 10 days ago on the first good hot day, we took our normal walk and were both overheated when we got home.

I decided to try taking him for about a mile in the morning, and again in the evening. This has worked out well except that the evening walks are gradually getting longer again, since part of the idea of walking in the evening is to "poop him out" so I can relax and watch a little TV. We have not missed a day since late last December, although I have cut them short a few times because of heavy snow or super cold weather. We have gone for at least a short walk at -15 degrees.

I also live in town, so the walks are measured in blocks. Here the blocks on the Avenues are slightly longer than a block on a Street. Our evening walk was up to 24 blocks ( depending on who you talk to, a mile is about 10 or 12 blocks ). When I decided to split it up, I started with 12 blocks in the morning and 14 in the evening. I have been adding to the evening one and tonight we were back up to 20 blocks, but I will cut them short if we start getting too hot.

I also carry water for Renny and we make a water stop at least once per walk, more if it's hot out.

One great side effect is that MY Doctor is very happy with the exercise I'm getting as a result of having an energetic dog. He'd been nagging me about getting more exercise, and finally got his wish!

Hagar

[Cairnmania]

I'm just curious how often everyone walks there cairns and how far?

When we moved about 9 months ago we started letting Shadow out during the day with our lab.  They mostly stayed on the porch and slept.  Well about a month ago Shadow decided he needed to go to the neighbors house (about 1 mile through the woods) daily and stay till about 10 o'clock or sooner if we drove to pick him up.  Well I didn't like Shadow doing this even though the neighbors just love him.  I started putting him back in his crate during the day.  I'm worried because he spends all night in the crate and now during the day too. ... But I was just curious what everyone else did to keep their cairn's happy and healthy.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Part of "happiness" for a dog is mental stimulation and attention. I suspect Shadow found that he could find both during the day with your neighbors. I know this sounds harsh, but I think it is cruel to crate a dog for most of the day and then again at night. Yes, you can wear them out physically by hard exercise - but it is not a substitute for simply "being" a dog and watching for the mail man, or hunting for mice, or protecting the yard from large birds, or nodding off to sleep whilst on guard duty, or any other normal doggy activities.

Is there any way you can let Shadow outside or even just keep him in the house (not crated) during the day until you get home from work? In my last two homes I've had a set up where I've had a dog flap from the house into a small fenced yard. That way my dogs were free in the house during the day and could go outside when they need to or were in the mood. However, if Shadow is housetrained he should be able to "hold it" well enough until you get home without needing a dog flap.

[dufunny]

siggy (2 1/2 yrs) stays home and romes the entire house. We started doing this about 8 months ago and have not had a single problem with it. Hope this helps.