How far do you walk your mini?

[melsta]

Really looking forward to when I can take ziggy out on his first little walk.
Just wondered how far people walk on an average day? No gym membership needed I can assume!

[LouiseH]

I walk Kili about 2 to 2 1/2 hours a day on average, spread over three walks; he'd be fine with less but I have the time and it's good for me to get outside. If our walks are curtailed for some reason he's fine and I'm twitchy! I try to keep the time of the morning walk fixed because then he gets to walk with his favourite dog friend and I get an amble round with my neighbour, but the others are at random times of the day and random lengths. Sometimes we'll meet no-one much and we'll just walk into town or around the fields, in which case we probably total about 5-6 miles in the day, mostly off lead, sometimes we'll meet up with friendly dogs and owners and he might run round the park for an hour instead in which case I get a lot less exercise! I take him on the bus quite a lot to get to places to walk that are further afield and a bit more interesting- for me, at least- he never seems to tire of anywhere where other dogs have been!

[elizdavies0]

Hi Melanie ... Ffion is two now and she loves her walks. Typically we have an off lead up to two hour walk each morning in the local playing fields or on the beach (have to drive). She rests all afternoon and after her tea she "nags" until we go for another 45 minutes in the evening which is mostly on her lead because I live in a built up area. I've measured the total distance each day as 3 to 4 miles BUT if it's raining she is very happy to stay indoors!!! It's so exciting when you get to take your puppy out for the first time but you'll need to build up to longer walks first. Also, if you take him where there are other dogs he may want to play with them, which is very tiring!!! Enjoy little Ziggy ... precious times x

[Maty]

Our walks vary considerably, anything from 20 minutes to a couple of hours.

At the moment they are mainly shorter walks as Creggan is only 18 weeks and so we are building up slowly. If we are out for longer than 20 minutes he gets carried some of the way.

[melsta]

Wow! I can see I am going to get plenty of exercise! I've just been practising on the garden with him wearing his collar and lead. He looks very cute but was far more interested in trying to grab the lead than anything else! I dont want him to think the lead is a toy so I used a few tasty treats and pracised with him walking around on the lawn. He soon lost interest in the lead and focused on me. Trouble is, it says on the packet he can only have two a day, and I think we got through six in that little sint!
Anyway mission accomplished!
I am amazed at how quickly he is learning how to do things. We have some steep steps that lead from the decking to the garden. Up until yesterday once I've carried him down them he has been safe on the lower half of the garden where the lawn is.

Not anymore! This morning I decided to leave him on the bottom half of garden and nipped up the steps to pop a sweatshirt on. I had to go back up to the bedroom but could normally check on him from the window. Anyway I did a quick check through the window he was nowhere to be seen. With my heart in my mouth I turned to leg it back down to the garden, but didnt get that far! Who should be greeting me at the top of my bedroom stairs looking very pleased with himself was clever little Ziggy!
He had not only climbed the wooden steps outside of which there are at least ten but also now managed to climb my inside stairs! Consequently may need to get a baby gate on stairs!
He is like houdini! One minute he is right next to me, the next he's popped up somewhere else in a split second!
He's so entertaining, I dont think I've watched any TV in the last two weeks!
Thankyou Louise, Elizabeth and Kate for your comments.

[LouiseH]

Sounds like he's keeping you on your toes! Kili was hopeless at climbing so I didn't have the stair problem (it took him months just to figure out how to get on the low sofa). Have you tried just using kibble as treats? It doesn't always work but some puppies seem to be just as happy to be given that and you don't need to worry as much about offering too many.

[Joosy]

Cookie hasn't been interested in "puppy treats" that you get from the shop. Instead we've been using pieces of kibble (taken out of her daily allowance) and we've also made liver cake which she adores! The tiniest piece of that and she'll do anything!!!

[Dawnspell]

Barney has at least 20min walk in the morning but normally longer. If he is off lead it normally ends up longer as he's not always on the go. His neighbour dog friend gets let out lunch time so they have a run and play. Evening sometimes a walk but he's quite happy playing fetch or find it games in the house or garden. He will do that for 45mins sometimes just doesn't get bored of it It's my arms that start aching throwing toys

[zeta1454]

Although mini schnauzers can enjoy long walks and hours of exercise and play as adults you must be careful in the first year not to over-exercise a puppy. The generally accepted rule for lead walking is 5 mins per month of the puppy's age per day. So at 3 months the puppy should be having no more than 15 minutes and at 4 months 20 minutes building up to an hour by a year. Obviously the puppy can have play exercise as well but, as has been mentioned above,you do need to be careful not to overdo it as it can lead to problems later in life.

Puppy's skeletons are continuing to grow and mature until at least a year and during this time - until the growth plates close at around 10 months to a year of age - too much exercise can damage joints and stress the bone structure so that in later life the dog can suffer joint problems, cartilage damage or elbow/hip dysplasia and as a senior dog is more likely to develop arthritis. Climbing up and down stairs should also be limited for the same reason if possible.

Anyway - it should mean you can both build up your exercise plan together - have fun

[melsta]

Leah, what kind of kibble does Cookie eat?and could I ask how you make liver cake please!

[BeeBee]

Leah, what kind of kibble does Cookie eat?and could I ask how you make liver cake please!

There are a few recipes here http://www.schnauzer-forum.co.uk/viewto ... 18&t=10774
You could also try tiny pieces of grilled chicken, really tiny pieces, we were advised when training Renae to make the treat just a little taste of something more than anything bigger that they have to chew as you don't really want to distract them too much with eating, it's about keeping them really keen for more, keen on what you're trying to get them to learn. Kibble works well as you can easily take it out of the food allowance, but it gets boring for puppies so variety is likely to help keep them interested as they get older and familiar with things Sounds like it's all going well and is a lot of fun, it took Renae a long time to master stairs.

[jaegervalder]

[quote="LouiseH"]I walk Kili about 2 to 2 1/2 hours a day on average, spread over three walks; he'd be fine with less but I have the time and it's good for me to get outside.

2 1/2 hours!!! My goodness how I would love to have the time! Mine get 20 minutes in the morning and half an hour in the evening. Always off lead. Or when i come home for lunch half an hour then. At weekends we do much more but they don't seem to care . I echo what Zeta said about not doing too much while Ziggy is little as you can easily over do things.