Don't take your puppy for a walk!

There, I said it! Do not take your puppy for a walk! 

We all know that it's important for puppies to get daily exercise. It strengthens their muscles, improves balance and coordination and helps their self confidence. But before heading out to explore in places where they could potentially pick up disease, puppies need to be fully vaccinated. Most Vets recommend waiting to introduce puppies to the wonders of local parks, beaches and walking trails until after the puppies are fully vaccinated at around 14-16 weeks of age.  

There are several other health risks involved with taking young puppies on walks. For one thing, puppies don't have the development of their cardiovascular system needed for endurance. Until they do mature, they are probably not able to build much endurance, no matter how much they exercise. Another consideration with puppy exercise is their "growth plates". Growth plates are soft areas that sit at the ends of the long bones in young dogs. These growth plates contain rapidly dividing cells that allow bones to become longer until the end of the dog's puberty. The growth plates will gradually thin as the dog approaches puberty, signaling the growth plates to close. Closure is normally completed by approximately 18 months of age. Until the growth plates close, they are soft and vulnerable to injury.   

In addition to the health risks, there is another important reason why you should not take your puppy for a walk. Your puppy doesn't know how to walk on a leash!

Here's why. I equate a puppy walking on a leash to a young teenager driving a car. When I was 15 years old I got my learner's driving permit. My father did not hand me the keys to the car and say "go for it". Instead, I started out learning the basic mechanics of the car and then learning how to back up in the driveway and negotiate some simple things. Then when I had that down, Dad drove us to the church parking lot and let me drive at a slow speed, practicing turns, parking skills, etc. When I had mastered these skills, I practiced on the quiet streets in my neighborhood. Eventually, after I had a good year of practice under my belt, I bought a 1973 Pinto and was able to drive. I spent a year learning to drive before I was "let loose".

If you take your untrained puppy on a walk before he has the necessary skills, you are doing the equivalent of handing him the car keys when he doesn't yet know how to drive. Let's take a step back and first teach the puppy how to follow you off-leash around the house and in your backyard. Then practice leash skills in those very low distraction environments where your puppy will be set up for success!

Just as with that year of "driver's ed" I had with Dad, you need to teach your puppy leash skills before beginning walks on leash. Your sessions on leash should be training sessions, not exercise sessions. When your puppy is very young, walks should consist of short ventures outside in your yard to go to the bathroom, with much more emphasis on indoor play than on long exercise sessions. 

So, how much exercise does your puppy need? My general rule of thumb is to take your puppy's age in months and multiply it by five to determine how long in minutes your puppy can walk during a training session. Allow your puppy's toilet training schedule to dictate your walks in the early stages of training. Your puppy will be going out frequently in the first few months, and each trip outside can be treated as a tiny training walk. So, a short stroll around the yard or a walk to the end of the driveway and back each time you take your puppy out to go to the toilet is more than enough at this stage for leash training. As your puppy gets older, keep most of the outdoor potty breaks quicker and turn two or three of them into slightly longer training walks.

 Until your puppy learns how to walk on a leash, you don't need to go for walks! You can get a lot of socialization mileage out of just sitting on your front step or hanging out in your backyard. Practice off leash in the house, then in your fenced yard, before adding a leash in the house and in the yard. Then later, when your puppy is older and physically ready, he'll be ready to begin going on short walks to practice leash skills. 

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