How much should he walk?

[dmouse66]

Not sure if this is the right place for this question... I know from experience if you try to walk a mastiff for too long, they decided when they've had enough and you cant get them to budge but... how long & often on average, should I be walking my 5month english neo? Currently we are at about 25 minutes once a day and if he's exceptionally hyper when I get home from work at midnight a second 15 minute walk... and it's cut short because he gets nervous from all the night animal sounds and I can only get him to go so far... even the daytime walk he gets nervous from cars and trucks... I make him keep going and praise heavily when he's back to a normal pace...

 

[Marrowshard]

I've never had a dog just lay down and decide they were done walking. I figure that a dog in good health should be more than a match for my own level of activity and plan accordingly. I make sure to periodically check paw pads for cuts or signs of overuse, plenty of saliva, good capillary response, etc. On a daily basis, I usually take Oscar for his morning exercise which is a fast-paced walk for about 20-30 minutes. He gets smaller walks/playtime outside throughout the day, and on weekends when the weather's nice we try to go to the local state or city parks for a change of scenery.
It sounds to me like he's getting plenty of structured walks. Do you do a lot of freestyle play with him as well? I get home late like you do and I know it's not the best time to be walking around (especially on the road) and I can understand he'd be jumpy. The thing about praising heavily when he gets back to a "normal pace" is he might start to associate the stop-be scared-go cycle with the praise and think he has to react to everything to get positive feedback. I might be reading your statement wrong. How do you react in the first few seconds after he jumps at a strange noise/sight?

~Marrow

 

[dmouse66]

I just stay calm, and talk to him telling him things like, 'it's okay it's just a truck, come on good boy' or give him the 'leave it' command. He's getting better, but he is still just 5 months old and I think most of it is just because he hasnt had much exposure. His praise is mostly just 'That's a good boy!' with a pet on the head.As for play we spend a good half hour playing tug with his toys, when I'm at work husband plays with him and then when hes awake during the day and I'm cleaning, he brings toys over and we play as I clean or cook... not to mention him chasing the cats...

 

[stephanieb]

Hi;

We live inner city so lots of traffic, construction, people, bikes, you name it. Our EM is 4 months and is now almost bullet proof with noise (other dogs and small children he is still wild to see but that is getting better). We got him 7 weeks ago and he came from the country so I would think that just plenty of exposure to new things. I will say that Stonewall is VERY placid though.

As for walking. We take him out for a quick bio break at morning and again at lunch and then when we get home from work (I live close to work so have the luxery of coming home at noon to feed and do a quick walk) we go for a longer walk or to the dog park. Usually we let him dictate. We are lucky in that he is incredibly bright and knows what HOME means. If we are on a walk and ask if he wants to go home he either grabs his leash or if he knows where we are starts towards home. If we are at the dog park, we usually walk about 1 - 2 hours, but by the time he stops to meet new dogs or we stop to answer question about how old he is, what is he, his coloring (he is a brindle) 2 hours usually amounts to maybe half a mile???? I guess I have just found that I try and let him dictate how far he wants to go. For some reason it is pretty easy to tell with him if it is a bio break trip or if we are going for a longer walk. I started out with the premise of a block for every month of age and discovered that as long as i try and pay attention to when he wants to walk, and adjust my pace to his it might be more or less depending on the day.

Hope this helps a little.

 

[dmouse66]

I have noticed that he knows our route and tries to lead the way! And when he gets nervous he turns back to head home... I've been training him on the word 'home' as well. There is a lot of conflicting info on raising mastiff puppies! They must get plenty of exercise to avoid being over weight... don't let them be too active or walk too long or you risk permanent joint damage... a quick romp in the garden should be all the exercise they need... take them for long walks weather they want to or not to avoid a lazy dog... Enough to make your head spin!*edit: Also found out after we got the pup that his dad is a very nervous & shy dog... trying to desensitize Raistlin...

 

[Marrowshard]

I would say first: don't react at ALL when Raistlin spooks or tries to stop at a vehicle/noise. You may inadvertently be teaching him that he'll get kind words for balking at strange noises and sights. As a way to get him used to such things, repetition of course is key but you could also "camp out" in the yard a safe distance from the street and car-watch. Maybe go walking in a parking lot. We try to keep Oscar's route changing so he doesn't get into the habit of trying to lead the way. He's not allowed to walk in front of us at all and any attempt to pull us in a direction results in us slowing or stopping, making him sit, and waiting until he's calm to continue. That way he learns that yanking or trying to be the leader results in a stern time-out.

~Marrow

 

[CowboyBebop]

I have to agree with Marrowshard on not responding at all when they balk/try to flee. Castle use to do the same thing at traffic noises and other barking dogs. I completely ignored him, no eye contact or verbal response and continued on at whatever pace we were already walking at. After about 3 weeks of daily walks, he now pays no attention to your run-of-the-mill traffic noise and he no longer tries to flee from a barking dog, rather he usually tries to greet (which in another problem in some situations).
As far as the walking goes, I wouldn’t go on a marathon or a high paced road march with a mastiff, but absolutely walk them. If you walk your dog properly it is great bonding time. I never let Castle lead or decide where we're walking. I subscribe to Ceaser's pack leader mentality. My fiancé is more of a play buddy, "let's have fun" mentality, and their certainly is a difference in how well he listens and behaves for us especially if he is off leash walking. We both think that he listens better for me. This past week has been rainy and Castle only got walked a few times and there was a HUGE difference in his behavior. He was unruly and very stubborn and inattentive. The nice thing though was that he returned to his normal self after resuming his regular walking schedule.
Castle usually gets 2 walks a day anywhere between 20 to 60 minutes depending on the weather, time of day, and our work schedules. If it isn't too hot shorter walks are usually at a faster pace. So while we don't encourage high-impact activity like wrestling, jumping up or off of things, walking in my opinion is a necessity.

 

[dmouse66]

LOL! Have to laugh at the ignoring and keep moving! Something scares him and he just stops... and getting him to move is almost like trying to push a car in park!He finally got to meet a little yapper (yorkie) that had him scared and he wanted to play with her, so much so I had to force him to leave! And he's gotten better with basic traffic, he wanted to chase cars before bu enough firm 'leave it' commands & he doesn't anymore. Loud school busses we just got him use to by getting my grand-daughter on the bus (he wants to jump on with her & meet the kids).When he tries to bolt ahead I do stop until he sits and then just start walking forcing him to follow... will have to try the different routes though until he has it firm in his mind that I lead although difficult with my neighborhood... we have no sidewalks and have to go in the development just around the block. He's slowly getting use to having to sit at the door and let me out first...

 

[Arcadius Di Troy]

I remember when we would walk Arcadius at that age, it would be for 15-20 Minute walks, although he could walk further, but since his bones were and still are growing, you don’t want to much impact on their joints. Even now at his young age of 13 months I still don’t over walk him or have him jump on and off of things that are too high, his joints are still growing. We power walk for 30 mins in the morning, than a nice long hour walk in the evenings, I sometimes do short jogs with him and it has to be on grass or dirt, not the concrete. Again the impact could have injuries to his joints.

 

[dmouse66]

The good thing with the development is that it's new and still has vacant lots so we can alternate between that & the sidewalk. I try to only let him romp in the fields & then only if he's behaving on the walk. Latley near the end of the walk he gets real hyper and starts jumping around, throwing himself in the grass & grabbing his leash with his mouth to try & lead! He's on an easy walk harness to give me better control but when he's decided he's had enough he grabs his leash making the harness ineffective! And then we battle with 'sit!' 'drop it' and me walking past him for easily 5 minutes! I've also tried just standing there ignoring him, but that only makes his game last longer & get him more hyper!I have had him on glucosamine treats since @10 weeks old (happy hips) but not on the full recomendation for his size... gives him the runs.

 

[Marrowshard]

I've had Oscar grab the slack leash once and try to run with it and on two instances he went into "hyper" mode, dashing around, jumping, not necessarily trying to bite but with his mouth wide open. I sensed a challenge and both times I rolled him to restablish the hierarchy. One hand tight on his scruff and the other to sweep his legs. Thirty seconds on his back with my hand on his neck (in the "bite" position, if you will) and he was back to being calm and manageable. There's a fine line between an exhuberant dog playing hard and one that's trying to rough-house with an alpha. Him trying to grab the leash and yank me home is unacceptable for me. What if there was heavy traffic? Other dogs? I won't run the risk of a large dog running amok because he thinks it's time to try my dominance.
That's not meant to be harsh at all, just realize that challenges get harder to put down the bigger they get There's a time and a place for rambunctious behavior, but on the end of a leash isn't one of those. Sounds like he's a feisty pup and a handful, but not a "bad" dog at all!

~Marrow

 

[Caleb]

A good rule of thumb for walking a mastiff puppy is walk them no longer than they want. For weight gain and fitness reasons, it's not really critical while they are growing, and too much activity/exercize can harm them. Usually a good romp around the yard is good while they are still growing.

 

[CowboyBebop]

Well I did start when he was 9 weeks old and only 24 pounds. But I can sympathize, Castle is at 55 pounds right now and when he doesn’t want to go I notice. I have had some luck with a gentle lead head collar, but Castle hates it so much I only use it as a last resort when treats and all else starts to fail. Usually only a few minutes of the head collar and then he is agreeable all over again.

 

[madd]

At least one 25-30 minute walk a day now which was built up to with Trinity (CC), sometimes two. She responds great- afterwards. The stubborn in her is taking longer to get out of her than I'd ever imagined.

 

[Nasek718]

I walk Isis and Siris anywhere from 45 minutes to a hour a day. The rest of the day I'll let them lose in the backyard but DDB are lazy ad have no problem just laying around all day.

 

[babyjoemurphy]

we just adopted a 2 1/2 year old EM, and I have no idea how much he should be walking. I don't wanna push to far and have to go get the truck to bring him home, and not too little that he looks at me as if I'm new. As far as I know he wasn't walked in his previous home as much as I want to walk him but then again he had a massive backyard that he could run and run in. He is 165 lbs. Any help appreciated

 

[musicdeb]

Well... Mastiffs usually do not like to walk very long. Titan will walk about 15-20 minutes twice a day in the summer, MAX! In the cooler months, he'll walk about 30 minutes twice a day. Mastiffs are particularly lazy dogs and like to sleep more than walk. At least, for Titan that is the norm.

It so funny, when he's done walking in the heat, he darts for the car (we walk at the park). If I make him walk more, he'll just lay down and basically tell me, "whatever, I'm not taking another step." Stubbbbboooooorrrrrnnnnn....

 

[bellareea320]

That's too funny! I walk Luna at least twice a day. 15- 20 min in the am and 30 min in the evening when it's cool. She's almost 16 weeks. Is that too much? We walk not run or walk fast

 

[Duke]

When I first picked up Duke I took him for a walk and he quit about 3/4 of the way through. I cant blame him the rout is about 1.6 miles and he did really well but i figured it was too early for that kind of walk. I'm going to take hime today for the first time since (this was a month ago almost). Hopefully I dont have to carrry him back because he's pretty much grown by %50-60.

 

[Rugers-Kris]

I have found with Ruger (EM, 5 months) that 1 walk a day for about 25 mins. (evening after the sun goes down) is all that he enjoys. On the weekends I sometimes do a bit more walking and take him to some property to run and he loves it but the truth is that it takes longer to get to the property than it does for him to wear himself out. LOL I suppose every dog is different but Ruger is definitely your old fashioned lazy EM. I do have a nice big yard and on occasion he will do some moving around in that and we play throughout the day but he goes to work with me every day and other than potty breaks and a rare zoomy moment he lays around. He is in very good shape, looks great so I figure is it works, go with it. I remember when I brought him home and was so worried about too much or not enough, etc. I have found that Mr. stubborn and clingy will let me know if there is something he needs or wants and so far just trying a few things and seeing how he reacts to them has been working out pretty weel.