When we talk about the well-being of a dog, many times we insist on the importance of it going out for a daily walk, since sharing quality time with your dog, as well as having it exercise, is of vital importance for its proper development and well-being.
On the contrary, and as you will read in this article, there are many consequences of not taking a dog for a walk. And unfortunately, these have a great negative impact on their health, character and coexistence with them, since by not doing this activity, your dog will not receive all the benefits that walking brings.
Is it necessary to take the dog for a walk?
First of all, we must bear in mind that the routine of a dog’s walk is not a whim of the dog, but a necessity, since dogs, like many other animals, are not made to be still. In nature, it is normal for most animals to move and explore their environment in search of water and food.
However, by welcoming a dog at home, it has the sustenance it needs to survive at its fingertips, but to have a happy and healthy dog, it needs daily stimulation and exercise through walking. Let’s see then, what are the benefits that going for a walk brings to your dog:
Exercise
Like us, dogs need daily exercise to stay fit and not suffer from long-term health problems, especially if your dog is hyperactive.
Stimulation
The dog needs to explore its environment through its senses, this provides it with mental stimulation that keeps it active, either through smell, sight, hearing, touch and palate. Just as preconception also works if you have the opportunity to walk through different terrain and obstacles.
Erroneously, many people believe that by having a house with a large lot or garden, the dog already has this need covered. However, no matter how much space the animal has, if it is always the same, it will not have the need to go out to explore it because the stimuli will always be the same, and it will not have the need to move to look for food. Taking the dog for a walk is necessary so that it knows new elements every day.
Learning
When going out for a walk, the dog encounters new situations to face. It is in these circumstances, we can guide you on how you should behave through positive reinforcement, so that the next times you find yourself in the same situation, you will be safe, since you will have clear guidelines on what you can and cannot do.
For example, if when you go for a walk you see a cat for the first time, you should maintain a calm and indifferent attitude, let it smell it from a distance and reward it if it is not upset. In this way, it is quite likely that the next time you see a feline he will be calm and reliable, although that does not mean that you can let him go, because you do not know how he will react if he approaches.
Socialization
In the same way, walking your dog gives him the opportunity to meet other people and dogs of the most varied. This will give you the opportunity to learn to relate appropriately with other individuals and to have a dog with a safe character towards strangers.
Now, we must always make sure beforehand that the other dog knows how to relate in a friendly way to avoid bad experiences , as some dogs have difficulties in relating to their species due to bad past experiences or poor puppies socialization.
Strengthen the bond with the owner
Although your dog surely adores you, going for a walk with it is vitally important to strengthen a bond with it. This is because, as we have commented, you establish a basic obedience and, therefore, a form of communication between the two, as well as your dog associates you with a most pleasant activity
How many times to take the dog out a day?
Now that you know why it is vitally important that you take your dog for a walk, it will be necessary for you to know how the walk routine that you establish with your dog should be.
First of all, it should be noted that each individual is unique and, for this reason, there is no routine that is standardized for all dogs, but depending on factors such as race, age or physical condition, each dog will have its needs specific, which is necessary to know.
However, whatever the characteristics of your dog, they should all go out daily between 2 and 3 times distributed throughout the day, depending on the duration of the walk. Regarding the recommended walking time, this should be between 20 and 30 minutes depending on the number of walks or, if due to specific circumstances, we can only take it out once a day, it should last at least one hour. In the same way, as the most common thing is for the dog to go outside to relieve itself, obviously, a single walk will not be enough, since it will have to endure too long and it will end up doing it inside the house.
As we have mentioned, you should inform yourself about the individual needs of your dog or your future dog, if you are thinking of hosting one and want to know which one will best suit your lifestyle. That is, if it is of a rather active breed, we will not be able to limit ourselves to taking it out once a day. In the same way, a young dog should go out more often than an older one, as it has more energy, in addition to socialization, stimulation and learning will be key to forming a reliable and stable character in the future.
What happens if a dog does not go outside?
It is a reality that not taking a dog for a walk directly harms his physical and mental health, as well as it harms living with him at home. For this reason, before welcoming a dog into our family, it is necessary to consider whether it can be properly cared for, because unfortunately, there are people who have not become aware of this responsibility before taking in a puppy, which often leads to his abandonment once he is an adult and has begun to manifest behavior problems. For this reason, let’s see what the most common consequences are:
Health problems
Physical exercise is necessary to take care of the body and mind. On the contrary, if a dog does not go for a walk easily, it can begin to gain excess weight, because it will eat more than necessary due to anxiety or boredom and it will not burn these extra calories, leading to problems such as:
- Obesity
- Diabetes
- Muscular weakness.
- Joint pain
Hyperactivity and irritable mood
Not meeting the physical needs of your dog will end up seriously affecting his character, since being locked in a space without being able to get tired, implies that the dog ends up with an excess of energy which cannot be derived towards carrying out any activity with which exhausted, therefore, you will find yourself frustrated, bored and easily upset by exciting stimuli, such as moving objects, noises or people and dogs walking down the street.
Behavior problems
This is undoubtedly the most easily observable consequence in the short term, because related to the previous point, due to this excess energy which cannot be redirected in any physical activity, the dog will begin to develop multiple behavior problems, such as:
- Barking: either to attract the attention of its owners, as a consequence of being upset by some external stimulus or in a more serious case, due to a stereotypy(compulsive behavior).
- Breaking objects: the need for activity generates anxiety and frustration which the dog directs to different household items. For this reason, it is not strange to see the dog do damage, be it breaking plants, his bed, etc.
- Inadequate urination and defecation: Generally, it is preferable to train a dog to relieve itself outside the home. Now, if you do not take him out for a walk enough, obviously you are not giving him the option to do so. In addition, once a dog has learned to relieve itself at home, it will be necessary to undergo a slow re-education process so that it learns to do it outside.
- Eating excessively: boredom can lead to the dog being distracted by the only thing available, in this case food. As well as anxiety, we also associate the dog with overeating. Sometimes, even if the dog does not have food at its disposal, it could develop a pica syndrome and, therefore, begin to ingest objects not suitable for consumption, such as paper, dirt, clothes …
- Aggression: as we have seen, the dog that does not walk can develop an irritable character. This can lead to bad experiences and compromising situations, which can lead to the dog performing aggressive behaviors such as growling when you approach his bowl of food, toys, etc. Unfortunately, these kinds of long-term behaviors can become badly entrenched.
- Insecurity and protection of the territory: due to a lack of knowledge of new stimuli, it is natural that the dog can develop a rather scary character in the face of any unknown element that you incorporate into the home. In the same way, it is also natural that this insecurity creates the need to protect what is owned by strangers. Therefore, in these situations, it is common to observe excessively vigilant dogs with their territory, for example, barking every time someone approaches the door or when there are guests.
Finally, it is important to understand that if your dog has a behavior problem derived from a lack of exercise, it will not be enough to re-educate him to correct the behavior. And it is that, when we want to solve a problem with a dog, it is necessary to know if it has its well-being covered, that is, if the owner attends to all the essential needs of the animal. Since behavioral problems, apart from being a consequence of poor learning, are often derived from behaviors, which are natural in the dog, but cannot perform properly, as in this case, due to the lack of exercise and stimulation that the ride would offer.
