Walking and exercise

[JRandallC]

How often do you take your Mastiff walking? Our ten week old, we try to take him once or twice a day so that he gets his proper exercise, but he usually plants his feet down and refuses to go walking. He is really hard to get going, but he has no problem running around in the back yard playing. Exercise isn't an issue, just walking. My wife can usually make him walk, but the rest of us have a real hard time. This may be a walking issue, or it may be an attachment issue. Any thoughts or ideas? What do you do to make sure your Mastiff gets his daily exercise?

 

[Jadotha]

At 10 wks your puppy should be getting the majority of his exercise through free play. The walking is important though for obedience training and to teach good leash manners; however walks should be short. We take our 5th old puppy on two walks of about 10 minutes each (if it is not too hot). The way we got Boris to walk was to first teach him 'come', then -- on the leash -- we gave a tug and said ''come' in a high, excited voice as we moved forward. If Boris DID walk forward, we would praise and have a happy party. At the very beginning we would also treat. If he didn't move, we would encourage him with a treat.

He now walks on the lead very nicely. We also vary where we walk him -- sometimes down the street, or we drive to the outdoor mall or a nearby forest preserve. These keep his interest in walking and expose him to new sights and sounds.

 

[JRandallC]

Thanks, Jadotha, for the reply. We will work more with treats and praise on the walks and see how that goes. Maybe we were just expecting too much of him. As long as he is getting enough exercise in free play, which he does, then we will take the walking improvements as they come. Thanks, again.

 

[DennasMom]

We let Denna dictate how long our walks were to start with. At 8-9 weeks, she went about 2-3 blocks, and that was plenty. By 12 weeks, she was happily walking over a mile. I also let her set the pace to begin with... using the leash as nothing but a tie between the two of us (no tension... ever). If she stopped, I stopped. To get her going again, I'd use the puppy-voice and call her to me, and as soon as she starts moving, I'd start moving.

She does really well on leash now, but does still like to stop and smell the flowers a lot. She also will bolt after a leaf flying by... so we still have some work to do.

 

[musicdeb]

Welcome aboard~ What kind of Mastiff do you have? Pics? Titan has always hated walking in the heat. If he didn't weight 115 lbs, I'd pick him up and bring him out. He walks twice a day. The morning walk is easy because it's cooler outside. The night walk, I have to tell him, "Let's go potty so we can go night night." If I say anything else, he doesn't want to go.

Yes, he has trained me well.

 

[Robtouw]

Cruiser did exactly the same at your pups age! He would walk a little then lay down with the funniest face. I think he is just trying to see what you will do. I encourage on leash training as early as possible, but at your pup's tolerance level. In the beginning we made walking a game. Cruiser is now 15 weeks and loves to walk. Just be patient, you pup will mature and the walks get easier! They spend alot of time testing boundries early on!

 

[Bentleys Mommy]

When Bentley was 10 weeks he was just free playing. I didn't start structured walks until he was appx 4 or 5 months. I tried to limit his play while his bones were still fragile. He didn't like the leash at first but I put it on and let him drag it around the house and he was fine outside. Now, we usually walk twice a day, morning and evening. With the Florida heat, it varies depending on the temperature. I ALWAYS take a bottle of water for him.