Dutch Shepherd Forum

Hey,
My little girl is now 5 and half months old and was wondering how much exercise I can give her??
At the moment she gets 3 x 15min walks during the day and an hour walk at night in the woods, where we
Cover around 4miles, I allow her off the lead where her predatory instinct takes over and she off into the darkness until we get Back to the van, once home she put into the kennels for an hour or so and then back
Out in our garden for some training followed up by playing. She just keeps going if I allow her two. I've started
Jogging with my other two dogs and would love to take my little girl amber with me as I guess she covers a lot
More ground when's she on a hunt.
As my other two are large mastiff dogs, over exercising them as pups is a no no, I'm very concern about the growth and damaged I may be doing to amber with all this exercise ???

Thanks
Paul

P.s I'm still having problems uploading pictures of her
But here's my YouTube page
Mrchildsey

Thanks
Paul

Paul, I don't think you're overexersizing her, however, I'm concerned about the letting her disappear into the darkness stuff. At 5 months old, there is no way you have off lead control over her. So, she's getting much more freedom than she's really been able to earn. That will eventually come back to bite'cha .

leih merigian wrote:Paul, I don't think you're overexersizing her, however, I'm concerned about the letting her disappear into the darkness stuff. At 5 months old, there is no way you have off lead control over her. So, she's getting much more freedom than she's really been able to earn. That will eventually come back to bite'cha .

I would add to that, if at 5 months you think you have some level of control, she is right at that age when they become teenagers. This could be a dangerous false feeling of control at an age when she is growing a mind of her own. Off leash exercise is extremely beneficial but I would be much more careful and keep it to some sort of a secure location (and maybe not at night in case she decides to take off).

Regarding taking her jogging, I think 2 yrs is the benchmark agreed upon age for most large breeds. Growth plates start closing at around 18 mo, I would wait at least until 20 months and introduce it gradually. It isn't so much the running itself that is harmful, it's the repetitive and un-natural regular pace of jogging (in case any one didn't know).

Hi leih/choochi,
Many thanks for your reply.
Firstly starting with exercise, thank you for your advise, I do tell people that jogging with a dog is so different from allowing the dog to run free while on a walk, I got to know this through years of working my dogs, sometimes I need telling 'myself and needed your advise on the growth time in d/s. as I've never worked or owned one before amber, I never really start any exercise before 18months old which will put pressure on their bones and joints, I can get carried away with my own dogs and need someone to keep me in line from time to time. If that makes sense to you two???
As for Amber's off lead, running free in the woods with my other two dogs, yes your very right there, and the reason for my post was that I came home that night and said to my other half, I thought I was chancing it a bit with her at such a young age, during the day her recall is so sharp and quick but I do have two tuggies to keep all her attention on me I guess I got carried away and let her off the lead with my other two for a good run at night, she does keep an eye on me and my other two on her, but I got a wake up call the other night when she lost her tuggie in the fields for a track laid by an animal which tells me hunting has now become much more enjoyable than me!!!!!! Like I said earlier I sometime need people to kick me up the a...... . So she is back on her training line at night. Normally around 8months I find the fun really starts.
Thanks again
Paul

Mmm, make that 9/10 mo...they have to much bananas in their ears between 5/10 mo

Mmm, make that 9/10 mo...they have to much bananas in their ears between 5/10 mo

Mmm, make that 9/10 mo...they have to much bananas in their ears between 5/10 mo

Hey selena,
I've just got in from working amber in prey drive with a bite cushion, must say her grip is pretty tough for a little girl and quite full!!
So I've got spite fire attitude as Megan calls it will last until she is 10months, my Boerboel had so many different personality 5/8/14/18/20/ months and settled at 3yrs old, Megan says the d/s females mature quicker than boys, what age will her bananas between ears disappear ?
Rgds
Paul

Hey Paul...

It's very refreshing to have someone take some well-intended advice so gracefully . You'd be amazed how many folks come and ask for opinions, then get defensive about the replies.

I agree with both you and Choochi...it's one thing for a dog to run on it's own, or for fetching and such, and quite another to run with a jogger/runner.

Sounds like you're on the right track...

I think the banana's go out of the girl's heads cos the boys steel them!

Leih,
I give out so much advise to close friends and friends of friends, 9 out of 10 don't listen but do the opposite and then it's a whole lot of work under doing their mistakes. Advise is good.
Congrats on your BH.
I'm training amber for ipo.
Rgds
Paul

Hi pUl, she will get some sense in her again when about 1 yo. Girls tend to be all growned up at 18mo, boys 2yo

Childsey1 wrote:Leih,
Congrats on your BH.
I'm training amber for ipo.

Thanks for the congrats, but we didn't earn a BH . I think you have me and Geyser confused with another team...

Good luck with your IPO training!

Whoops, after I sent the post Id relised you hadn't done your bh. Sorry