Is walking the dog around the block enough exercise for the dog?

It does depend on the size of the dog. My son, who had a Brittany spaniel, had to walk the dog for an hour at least twice a day.

Also depends on the age of the dog. I have an elderly cocapoo which regards going outside with the same level enthusiasm as your avareage potato couch approaches a marathon.

@Lightlyseared Good point.

It also depends on the breed of the dog. A Siberian Husky needs LOTS of exercise whereas a similar sized Chow won’t need as much. I have a small dog. He is a mutt. I call him a Yorkhole. I think he is part Yorkie and part asshole. But we walk him probably a mile or more per day. But he also gets out to roam the yard several times per day a well. That seems to be all he needs.

Most dogs will be all right if they have a ½ mile walk per day (for exercise). Younger dogs and more active breeds need more. My ½ English Setter ½ Dalmatian needed three 45 min. periods of running off-leash until he was two years old. But Dalmatians were bred for endurance to run 20+ miles per day with carriages.

How do you know if your dog is getting enough exercise? If the dog is getting fat?

No dog in this world (excluding the very young, the old, and the ill) is even remotely “exercised” after a walk around the block. The idea that small dogs need less exercise is false, and it’s partly responsible for the high number of tiny dogs who are neurotic and angry. I’m a dog trainer, and the behavior problems dog owners experience often just disappear with an exercise adjustment.

It’s true that some breeds need to be more active than others, but anyone who is unwilling to take their dog out for two – potentially three – hours most days is better off with a senior.

Interestingly, dogs that suffer from lack of exercise over a longer period of time often seem like they’re doing okay. If your dog wants to lie around all day (while not old or ill), that should not be seen as a sign of him getting enough exercise from a twenty-minute walk. Rather, it is a fair bet to assume your furry friend is depressed due to lack of stimulation. If they had a human five-year-old lying on the couch all day, I bet most people would be worried.

My sister’s Maltese mix (six years, 8 pounds) just stayed with me for three months. She went from weeks of hardly any exercise to almost daily two-hour forest walks with another dog. When she arrived, she was gloomy and had trouble sleeping. She “wanted” to spend her days staring at the wall. Now, she’s back to being bouncy and curious. She walks and runs with her companion, then naps contentedly, her brain full of entertaining dreams.

For a big dog it might be good if you take it for long walks.

My neighbor walks her cocker spaniel twice a day, every day, for about 20 – 25 minutes at a time and it obviously is not enough for that portly pooch.

@rojo That may be more the food it’s allowed to eat rather than the exercise.

IMHO it depends on the size of the dog and the block. If you have tiny toy poodle or chihuahua a trip around the block might be a good walk for the dog. If, however, you have a larger breed of dog, that will definitely not be enough exercise for the dog.

On weight, I agree with @janbb. There are dogs who go for three-hour runs and then get fed cheese all day.

Good question. I’ve always wondered that myself. To me, exercise for a young dog, or a kid or young person, means running and jumping and stretching, not walking.

Somewhere with trees and a bit of grass is better and of course dogs like chasing sticks.

Somewhere with a lake with lax leash laws, too.