Walking

[John Wood]

I have a 12 week old cocker spaniel and I’m walking him 5 mins for every 4 weeks he is old which is recommended, but my problem is when I get him home he is more hyper than when we left barking at us to play if we sit down and doesn’t stop maybe it could be that his teething is getting more painful . We walk out of the room when he barks now to try and stop it . But being a spaniel should I walk him more than the recommended.

 

[JudyN]

It's common for dogs to need to 'come down' after a walk, and normal for a 12-week-old to be hyper - think of a young child coming home from an exciting party. I would play with him or train him a bit more when you get home - let him burn off any energy, then focus on calming activities- maybe some training, maybe even something like chucking a few bits of kibble round the house or garden to give him some nosework.

The 5 minutes per month of age refers to 'just walking' - you can keep him out longer if you do plenty of sniffing of verges, sitting watching the world go by, and so on. That sort of activity will also relax him/tire him more than 'just walking'.

A couple of videos that might help are 'The Calm Settle'

and 'It's Yer Choice':

The first will help encourage him to settle down once he's burnt off his energy (again, think of the young child who was hyper at the end of the party and is now overtired but won't go to bed), and the second will help develop self-control - even when puppies know what you want them to do they may not have the self-control to actually do it.

 

[John Wood]

Thank you for your reply i am new to having a dog and I am second guessing everything I do but ultimately we want to do what’s best for the both of us .

 

[JudyN]

Sorry, I just noticed I posted the same link twice - I'vev amended my post now. Do hang around - getting your first puppy can be a bit of a culture shock and there is so much to learn. And so many people and websites giving you really bad information. We have some useful articles about puppies here Useful Links & Recommended Reading Do ask if there's anything you're not sure of, though, however trivial it might seem.

 

[John Wood]

Brilliant I’m sure I will have plenty of questions in the future . You could be a life saver