A Day in the Life

[Ben_jamin]

Mornin all! I have a couple of questions about energy levels. I understand that one of the biggest needs of a DS is sufficient exercise, both mental and physical. Bearing in mind that individual dogs will all be slightly different because of age, personality, genetics and several other factors, I'd still like to try to get a better understanding of just how much excersize is required.

So with all of that in mind, what does a typical day in the life look like? How much time do you all actually spend walking, biking, jogging or in general exercising your pup. Also, how much time is spent in training (for daily life or competition)?

I'd love to hear for all, but specifically I'm curious about those participating in protection sports.

[shana]

Bella is a rescue and I got her at almost a year old so I can't say much about puppyhood but as an adult she needs tons of mental and physical. Once a week we go on a four hour hike. Two days a week we train with our PSA group. Then on top of that a day consists of her going for an at least two 45 min fast paced walks 30min of an off leash run and plenty of obedience mixed in. She also goes with me to work twice a week where she runs with her pup friends for about six hours doesn't stop the whole time. If we skip a week without her going a to work then your looking at three hours of walking. Some days we do two walking and one running with the bike. She's lovely in the house AFTER all her exercise otherwise she's trying to get into everything which means we play hide and seek with toys to keep her mind working. It's a commitment from my experience much more then other breeds but if your up for the challenge the rewards are great. Bella is my protecter, friend, hiking buddy, and the most loyal dog I have ever had the chance of sharing my life with. I couldn't imagine a life without a Dutch.

[LyonsFamily]

I work from home now and train and groom dogs professionally, so mine might be a little different than most people's. My dog's get up in the morning with my husband, usually around 5:30/6, but sometimes they sleep in. They go out for a free run in the mornings, probably only 10-15 minutes. It would be longer if we had the fence up or there wasn't snow on the ground, but nobody wants to stand outside with them for much longer in the morning. When it's not winter, my husband runs with one, probably 2 miles every day or so.

They're up for a few hours while I get things ready for the grooming, washing towels, filling shampoos, etc and usually get an antler or peanut butter kong to work on. I try to do a quick training session before I head out to do work. The easiest is probably nosework. I'll hide a scent they know somewhere around the house and then let them search for it 3 times each. They nap most of the day while I'm working with dogs. They get a run/potty break for lunch and I might do recall reinforcement then, if I feel like it and we have time.

Most of the training comes after work and we do 2-15 minute sessions or a half hour session at a public place like a farm store or a pet store. Most nights I'll train one for 15 minutes, head to the farm store for a half hour with the other and then come back and do another session with #1. Our training sessions vary, sometimes I'm in the barn, sometimes in the yard, sometimes in my small training room. Right now, Odin can't do a ton of physical stuff, so he's learning object identification for retrieving things like his leash or bowl and Elli's learning basic agility and long distance recalls.

They have a big meal after work and I feed prey model raw, so that's usually a good 15-30 minutes of chewing through bones and large meat.

Aside from that, they probably get 2- 1 hour sessions outside with each other with supervision. My husband and I take turns. It's a bit nicer having 2 rather than just Odin. I don't hand walk anyone around the neighborhood much anymore, but we have 5 acres and they chase each other. We're setting up a treadmill in a week or two so they can get some work in during snow storms. That one's mainly to be easy on the humans. They love to play in the snow.

I try to take them each to one sport a week in a different facility if I can. Elli's been going to barn hunting lately because it's easy, but she's not really into it. I stopped Odin's Rally lessons for now, but hopefully he'll be doing some rehab soon with a clinic that incorporates positive reinforcement training into their physical therapy stuff. It's like agility for injured dogs. If we aren't in classes and can't find a drop in class, I take them to my parents' property to go hiking for a few hours.

I hope to get into a PSA or French Ring club in 2014 and do that once or twice a week with her, but most meet on Saturdays a few hours away and I can't spend that time away from my facility. I've also set up a few herding lessons in the spring with her with a woman that uses malinois for her sheep, so if that goes well, I'd LOVE to get a mini herd for her to work here.

[johninny]

nowadays with 3 - all very young with 2 real puppies - they exercise themselves when outside which is a lot - basically whenever they want to be - but probably 6 hours a day. i still take each for a c45min off-leash walk/romp on the beach and streets. for years with just one, we generally walked briskly 3-4 hours a day, but that was not necessary to keep him sane. it was more for mental stimulation and health. and, of course, he had free rein of the yard [when not in the city ] to stalk, hunt, etc. and we would play a lot and get out-and-about a lot.

i wasn't going to write all that. i responded because my main message is that mental stimulation far outweighs physical exercise in keeping a DS happy - at least once they have passed the demonic puppy stage [ and exercise then is really more about keeping you happy than keeping the pup happy ]. if they have not had sufficient time for the exercise of curiosity, investigation, observation, problem-solving, and relationship building [ with you], then they will not be as happy and perform as well as you would hope for.

[Karin]

With Tygo a normal day is 1 hour walk in the woods in the AM off leash. Then he goes to work with me and is crated. We walk for 30-45 minutes at lunch on leash doing heeling. Usually work in a couple of training sessions. And then 30-45 minutes in the evening off leash. The more mental stimulation the better. I still haven't figured out how to exercises his jaws... he chews and chews and chews. Antlers work but he can lose interest in them. He loves eviserating beds. and chew toys don't last all that long. Getting ready to order the black kongs. Weekends he gets a lot more hikes and SAR training.

[Raven]

I don't compete. I adopted my five-year-old guy when he was 18-months. He had too much energy for walks to satisfy him; I nearly blew out a rotator cuff throwing balls. I set up a course with some old agility equipment (now, he's fine, but back then he was more of a bulldozing brute with the grace of a two-legged elephant, so it was more of a freak show than an energy release and focus-builder.) He was a pro at searching/tracking and loved it.

They're pretty adaptable once they know your rhythms and get a little older. When they're young, they're like sharks...always on the move.

I'm home all day now, so on/off all day and night, he gets his two favorite exercises: chasing/returning and searching/tracking.

Though he'll never turn down the opportunity for either, there are times he's clearly more interested in doing chores/jobs/tasks, or curious/eager to learn something new. Always have something up your sleeve.

For the last couple years, I'd have to say mental stim seems more important to him and does a good job of taking the edge off his energy. Even if I'm only putzing around the house, he's always in a heel, volunteering to help or waiting for "instructions."

OB is still a daily thing and will always be, and a lot of it is used for his needing to work for something, which actually just reinforces it all, including focus.

None of this is as exciting as protection work, but it keeps him healthy and happy.

[Stacy_R]

OB is still a daily thing and will always be, and a lot of it is used for his needing to work for something, which actually just reinforces it all, including focus.

Ditto that.

[Raven]

Holy crow--how did I neglect to add tug to the list of favorites? Burns energy while building motivation and focus.

And if you hate sit-ups, you can sneak a few lazy, DS-powered ones in.

[Ben_jamin]

Thanks, everybody, for the replies. I'm gaining some good insight into what to expect and I have to admit that the more I hear, the more positive I am that a DS is for me.

As for the sit ups, unfortunately my bosses think I need to stay in shape for my job. Cheating with the tug does sound mighty appealing though (hate sit ups).

[LyonsFamily]

Thanks, everybody, for the replies. I'm gaining some good insight into what to expect and I have to admit that the more I hear, the more positive I am that a DS is for me.

As for the sit ups, unfortunately my bosses think I need to stay in shape for my job. Cheating with the tug does sound mighty appealing though (hate sit ups).

Well, if we haven't scared you yet, you just might be one of the lucky ones to be able to put up with all the shenanigans and enjoy the company of the DS. My two are a ton of work, but I wouldn't trade them for the world. We've talked about getting a third in a few years and I might actually go the puppy route that time if I still think it's a sane idea.

[Stacy_R]

Holy crow--how did I neglect to add tug to the list of favorites? Burns energy while building motivation and focus.

Tug...absolutely tug. I also use a flirt pole, but would not suggest it until you know how to use it properly.

[Ben_jamin]

I'd actually never heard of a flirt pole before. Just looked up some videos and that's awesome. Like a giant cat toy. I've always enjoyed playing fetch as well, I'll throw a tennis ball just about as long as a dog is willing to bring it back.

I'm thinking I shouldn't have problems with the exercise at this point. Between playing, training, hiking and , once he or she is done growing, some mountain biking I think it should be alright.

Thanks again for everyone's input.

[Owned-By-Hendrix]

As far as puppy stages go, you'll realize quickly that they sleep a lot, mental stimulation, as others have mentioned, is such a huge and tiring thing for them, and anything that activates drives burns the energy quickly. My guy is happy playing fetch, tug, chasing rags, recall games, or rapid fire obedience games, or going somewhere new and exploring. At almost 4 months he can only play hard for not quite 45 minutes before slowing down to the level where he just wants to chew. Do that roughly 3x a day, add in a little walk 1-2 twice a day, and some mental stimulation and he's a happy and tired pup. I think that their exercise levels are manageable as long as you're active and willing to commit to their energy level (or as I call it, Countdown To Tired Time).