With the nice weather out, you probably have been to a number of outdoor events, if not, have a list of events to attend to. But what about your poor pups at home? You are either too lazy or too tired to take your dog out, and give the lame excuse that you’ll do it “tomorrow.” Or for those who make an effort, you spend a couple of minutes walking just around the neighborhood, just enough to get the little fella all hyped up then shun his excitement. Sound familiar?
We always say that a dog is a man’s best friend, however, this is easier said than done. By failing to meet the responsibility as owners to walk our dogs, we are seriously jeopardizing their health. According to sizetheleash.com, exercising your dogs is important for their mental health because by instinct, dogs are walkers/travelers. When we walk our dogs, we help to release their mental and physical energy. A lack of exercise allows for the buildup of mental energy, which contributes to behavioral problems such as hyper activity, neurotic or obsessive compulsive behaviors, and more.
You can help to prevent these behavior problems simply by exercising your dogs. A dog that is walked will have less excess energy to cause any trouble at home. More importantly, doing this can also boost your own health! According to research conducted at Michigan State University, dog walkers had higher overall levels of both moderate and vigorous physical activity, and were also more likely to take part in other leisure-time physical activities such as sports. On average, they also exercised about 30 minutes a week more than those who did not have dogs.
It is inexcusable to lock up your dogs in your home with the gorgeous weather out. Rather than just walking around the familiar streets of your neighborhood, take your dogs to a nice surprise to a dog park! At a dog park, your dogs can get the full exercise and playtime off the leash under your supervision. Parks such as the Buena Vista Park would provide a great workout for you and your dog, with its large open spaces, steep paved and dirt paths that are surrounded by a scenic tree canopy. Knock two birds with one stone: boost both your dog’s and your own health, and spend some much-missed quality time with your dogs outdoors!
