Why do we ask for a minimum of 3 days a week for walks? Simple. We want your dog to have the best possible experience with the group. After walking dogs for twelve years, I can tell you with certainty, that the dogs who do the best at integrating in to a group are the ones who go for walks 3 -5 times a week.
Routine:
The more they go out with the group the faster they learn what to expect on walks. Why? Think about when you were going to school…when you start back at the beginning of the year, you’re not really in the mind set to learn, you’re still getting into the swing of the new routine, the new teacher, the new kids, your new surroundings. But by the middle of the second week, you’ve got it down pat…..and your brain is ready to learn, because it’s made sense of all the other stuff. Same with the dogs. Once they are over the new routine, new dogs, riding in the car, the whole process of group adventure walks, they can settle in and start to make new friends, bond with the walker, and we can start working with them on their skills. What we’ve learned over the years is that one or two days a week doesn’t work—there’s just not enough frequency for the dog. They never get over the ‘newness’ of the process, so every day is their first day.
Exercise:
Your doctor / trainer / health professional doesn’t recommend that you exercise at least once a week. (I wish!) No, it’s more like 3 – 4 times a week. Same for the dogs. Most dogs need a good solid walk each day. That might include some off leash time where they can run and play with other dogs, or chase a ball, or go swimming. When dogs get regular exercise, they have less pent up energy and are more focused—this is really helpful for us. It allows us to work with them on their recall and their socialization.
Frequency:
Okaaaay…..so once my dog has been walking for a month or so, can we drop to one day? Nope. Because everything that can be learned, can be unlearned. (We speak from experience, here.) If you go to the gym four times a week for two months and hit your fitness goal, it doesn’t mean you can drop to one day a week and expect to keep those gains. No way—you’ve got to keep it up. Same with the dogs. These are skills, and skills take regular practice.
These two things: Routine and Exercise, help us integrate your pup into a group and help us socialize your pup—which is what you pay us to do. Therefore, we would not be able to deliver on our promised level of service if your pup only goes one or two days a week. We would just be doing both you and your dog a disservice…..hence the 3 walk a week minimum.
To find out more about what to expect from dog walking….click here.
