In fact, when it comes to continuous puppy walking a good rule of thumb is that puppies should have no more than 5 minutes of exercise for each month of age, two times a day. So a five-month-old puppy would have no more than 25 minutes walking twice a day – and this should be decreased in larger breeds.
How Often Should You Walk Your Dog? We recommend that you walk your pooch, on average, 3 to 4 times a day for about 15 minutes. However, frequency also depends on the particular dog's: Breed.
A general guide for exercising puppies is to allow them one to two sessions of five minutes walking for each month of age, so for example, a four month old pup could enjoy walks of 20 minutes at a time, once or twice a day.
With a 10-week-old puppy, you might go out for a 10-minute walk two or three times a day. For the first few months, it's best to stick with short and frequent walks.
Most dogs need at least 1-2 walks per day (unless otherwise specified by your vet). A brisk walk is a great opportunity for your dog to burn off extra energy, and a slow, meandering walk – where you let your dog sniff and explore for as long as they want – is great for their mental health.
Be Careful Not to Over-Exercise
Your puppy needs exercise, but walking too much can be harmful for growing dogs. Too much exercise, or “forced exercise,” can overtire your puppy and potentially damage developing joints.
Watch out for signs of fatigue, such as your pet panting, slowing their pace, or lagging behind you or stopping. If you notice this, allow them to rest. Watch for overheating, such as your pet panting excessively, drooling, showing signs of agitation/confusion or vomiting.
Keep to a regular routine of taking your puppy outside at least every two-to-four hours and after every change of activity. This is especially important during house training and will keep accidents to a minimum. Several short play sessions during the day are better for a puppy than one long one.
Your puppy's age
What is this? A rule of thumb is a puppy can walk five minutes for every month of age starting at eight weeks. So a two-month-old puppy can walk about 10 minutes. And a three-month-old can walk for 15 minutes; and a four-month-old for 20 minutes.
Yet while dogs lifestyles have changed, their needs have not. And if you're concerned your daily 30-minute dog walk is not enough, you're probably right. Veterinarians recommend that dogs get between 30 minutes – 2 hours of low to moderate exercise per day.
Their activity levels depend on various factors that make up their breed and genetic and physical composition. Although activity levels range from dog to dog, you can over-exercise your dog. Like humans, over-exercising can lead to decreased activity levels, energy, and overall harm than good.
Taking your dog out in the morning before breakfast is a good habit to have, especially during the summer, as temperatures at that time are still mild and there being no need to worry about sunstroke. The morning walk should last half-an-hour to an hour and should be the longest of the day.
DF: I have found that the best feeding and toilet pattern for dogs is going out for a morning walk or yard run and eating a light breakfast, and then taking a walk about noon to 2 p.m. Before an evening meal (between 5 and 6 p.m.), go on a long walk or run.
A dog in good general shape can enjoy a 15 to 30 minute walk daily. Most breeds may need routine walks several times per day. Moreover, dogs with excellent health can enjoy long walks of up to two or more hours. Some will even hike with their owners for a couple of hours.
If your dog becomes uninterested in things that they would usually be excited about such as toys, walks or food, or they stop getting up to see what is going on or following you around the house, this can also be a sign that your dog is overtired. Look out for excessive yawning.
At what age are puppies most hyper? Puppies' energy levels follow a rough timeline as they grow into adult dogs, from their first few weeks all the way through to maturity, but you may find they're at their most hyper at two stages in their journey. The first stage occurs between 10 - 16 weeks.
“Age is definitely a factor, but so are breed/breed-mix,individual temperament and amount of daily enrichment,”Dr. Coppola told The Dodo. But, typically, you can expect your puppy to start to calm down once he's around 6 months old.
Modified 5-Minute Rule
One of the most popular answers to how long a puppy should exercise per day is 5 minutes for every month of age, twice a day. This means an two-month-old puppy should get 10 minutes of exercise twice a day. This is a good starting point, but not all dogs are the same.
Dog zoomies are normal.
There is nothing wrong with this normal dog behavior — as long as your dog doesn't run around in a place that is unsafe, such as near a road or through a part of the yard with dangerous objects.
A dog that is just walked will enjoy it but won't necessarily get tired just from the walking. To tire out a dog on a walk it needs to be mentally stimulated as well as physically exercised. When you walk your dog I suggest that you just take ten minutes during the walk and focus on your dog.