Exercise is not Enough

Here in the Wood River Valley, we love to hike with our dogs.  Very popular breeds in the valley are some of the herding dogs like Cattle Dogs, Aussies and Border Collies that have enormous energy which needs to be used up every day! These breeds seem like a perfect match for we hiking dog lovers! They are indeed, not the ONLY breeds that need exercise!  

Almost all dogs are getting enough exercise in our valley, but some seem to have some other behavior difficulties.  Many times, we just assume some of those behaviors are who the dog is and accept them as part of their nature.  Many of those behaviors go unnoticed, tolerated and even sometimes inadvertently encouraged.  Certain behaviors can ultimately become very self destructive for the dog in the home or with people and other animals such as jumping, excessive or demand barking, etc..

I see exercise as only one eighth of the things we need to look at in order to have a dog that is well adjusted and happy.  

All dogs need direction from their owners or they will make doggie decisions about things that come up in everyday life.  Many doggie decisions are socially unacceptable, and sometime even dangerous.  And, as I have talked about before, many dog behaviors are a result of anxiety for the dog that manifests itself in ways that many people do not recognize as anxiety.

Exercise is vitally important for the dog’s mental health.  It’s also vitally important that we are clear about how we want our dog to behave, just like children, so they can function and be SUCCESSFUL in our society without stress or behaviors that are destructive to others.

When we think of our dogs, we need to remember that they are about the equivalent to a 2 year old child.  You don’t open the door and tell a child to go play endlessly.  That would be dangerous to the child who could decide to go play in the street, or throw stones at another child.  Two year old children need supervision and guidance, just like our dog needs it to feel secure and relaxed.

A huge part of being a parent or a dog owner is to look ahead and see what the potential dangers are that could hurt our child or dog.  Then, we take steps to set our dog up for success so the danger does not occur.

As a simple example, if we take our dog hiking and he doesn’t have a 100% recall no matter what, it could mean he leaves for long distances only to run into a predatory animal in the woods and we never see him again. We know this, but our dog doesn’t. It’s our job to teach our dog a recall, and to set boundaries so he follows our commands, and doesn’t get hurt.  

THAT is the part beyond exercise that we must always consider.  We must think beyond a behavior, ANY behavior to the potential harm that can come to our dog and others. Then, we must set our dog up for success in performing another, safer and more comfortable behavior to create a happy, well adjusted dog.