Once Ryker got all of his shots a few weeks ago, we started going for extended walks. I have a greenbelt that runs behind my house, so we walk the trail for 20 - 45 minutes at a time, depending. At lunch it is usually only 20, but in the mornings/evenings it is longer. He is approaching the five month mark.

Texas gets EXTREMELY hot. Today, for example, it was already 70 degrees. By the time summer rolls around, it will be triple digits pretty steadily. I was wondering, what time of day do you normally walk your dogs, and how often? The weather doesn't seem like a problem now, but I am worried that as thick as his fur is, once Summer gets here walking him during the day is going to be torture for him. Am I just worrying too much?

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We give our 4 Corgis 11 walks per week, usually don't walk Monday and Thursday mornings and Tuesday evening.  Walks used to average 45 minutes but both my wife and I have become somewhat hobbled with bad legs so they probably average about 25 minutes.  We have a park across the street but try to go to different places often.  Ours are 40 lb. Cardi's with tons of energy so walking 2 at time at times becomes a chore - this is year 6 on this schedule or more.

This is Az and yes in the summer we walk early and late - this time of year sometimes our evening walks happen at 3 and our morning walks as late as 11.

Bogart gets his longer walk in the early morning - around 7 am, and that is about one hour AFTER breakfast (he is very regular). We walk about 35-40 minutes. Play time outside in the yard (and inside the house) several times a day, and last walk at 9:30 pm, which is 4 hrs after dinner. Probably 15-20 minutes. It gets hot in Georgia too, AND cold this winter, we even put a sweater on when it got down to the teens!

I work 8 hours (8-5) so we usually go about 45min in the morning during sunrise.

He does his business and we come back home for breakfast.   Then he's in his kennel until 12pm when I get home for lunch but lately I've been getting him used to longer time, as he has his water and toys with him.  The TV is on and the male cats usually stays close for company.

Then it's about 4-5km walk (1.5hours) in the evening when the weather permits.    During hot summer days I limits the walks in the sun for his pads not to get too rough on hot pavement or sidewalks.    But if we'll be in the sun I'll have some water with me.   I have to keep a close eye on his breathing and fatigue.

Here in central AZ, where it also gets very hot: in the summertime I wait until well after dark: around 10 p.m. I carry a hefty shilelagh with me after dark to fend off coyotes and two-legged predators -- we do live in a moderately high crime area.

I have to do a power walk of my own to keep the blood pressure down and the back pain under control, so I'm out there right at dawn (5 a.m. or so), but do not take the corgi because she wishes to sniff every blade of grass. Also if I happen to run late, it might be too hot for her by the time we would get home (6 or 7 a.m.).

During the very hottest summer days -- July, especially -- I don't take her out at all. It's just too hot.

Cassie seems most comfortable when temps are in the 60s or below. We walk a lot in the wintertime! Last night we actually ran about 1.5 miles.

I admire all you folks that get up and walk your dog first thing in the morning.  I'm lucky if I can stumble to the coffee maker!  Since I work a standard 8 to 5 job, Jeli gets her walk after I get home.   We usually walk for about 45 minutes, but I'm thinking she actually needs more than that.  She ususally still has a lot of energy when we get home.  Sometimes I'm able to go to a nearby park and let her run on a 30 ft lead if there are no other dogs around.  She loves it.  I throw a frisbee or ball for some retrieves to get some extra energy out.  It takes a lot to wear her out.  The other day we did our herding lesson in the morning, which poops her out for about an hour and then she is ready to roll again.  So I took her for a long bike ride (she rides in her doggy ride cart).  For some reason riding in her bike cart actually tires her out.  I think its the mental stimulation of watching out the window for an hour or two.  Its not physical exhaustion, but mental.  That night she actually snored!

 

Rigby is walked twice a day about a mile each time, once in the morning and once in the evening. He also goes out to play in the yard mid-day. Our vet made a comment about how muscular he was, but didn't think we were giving him too much activity. Rigby is now 20 months old.

I usually walk my dogs in the morning or in the evening.  I'm lucky enough to be a full-time mother, so I'm able to take mine out at around 9:00 or 10:00 in the morning to avoid the bustle of morning commuters and the noises associated with the extra traffic.  Here in NY, it's usually pretty cool until that noon sun hits so it works for us.  Similarly, I'll wait until 7:00 or so in the evening during the summer because it's a little quieter and the temperature (as well as the sun) has gone down a bit.

As an option, if you have a treadmill in your home you can always train him to walk on that.  :)  It doesn't replace the structure and "adventure" of an outdoor walk, but it would at least let you work out some of his energy on days where it's simply too hot to have him outdoors.  I had actually trained Yuki to walk on a treadmill before we purchased our home, as the winters here can sometimes be too cold for doggy toes, and he used to love it!  All I had to do was say, "Yuki...wanna go on the treadmill?" and he would practically fly into the spare room and dance around on the treadmill, whining impatiently until I started it.

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