best way to WORK a dog

[tz1]

well, basically i was just wondering the most time efficient way to make a dog tired. whenever my akita pup zero gets hyper , or needs to burn energy, he starts misbehaving..

he misbehaves by...lgutting pillows, running around the house, biting everything and anything (including our toes), etc. so whenever he starts getting hyper I always take him out to our backyard which is not so big, and i chase him or play fetch.

chasing him is really the quickest way for me to tire him out since he literally sprints the whole time...but even so, this takes about an hour to really wear him down...and I get worn down way worse than him in the process

so basically what i'm wondering is what i could do to best work this darn dog? because I know he is not a bad dog, he just needs lots of daily exercise. he is a growing pup and full of energy, and I want to be able to find better ways to tire him out. its also freakin cold outside now...fine for him but FREEZING for me

i was thinking about weight pulling...or some other activities, but are these practical?> weight pulling seems like it takes a lot of time & energy to train ..and money. does anyone have any info on this?

[Husky_mom]

well this may sound weird but i knew this person, who had a belgian malinois and couldn´t work him properly because he had some health issues, so what he did (i dont know if its right but it worked for him) he walked his dog while driving, of course at a slow speed, and very careful, but maybe you can get Zero to pull a bike with you in it, or get him a companion so they get exhausted with each other.

[Pembroke_Corgi]

When Adele was younger she had TONS of energy, so I taught her to "run up stairs." I'm not sure if it burnt off much energy or not (that was the idea), but she would run up and down the stairs. But she only weighs 50lbs, so it might not work for an Akita.
Does Zero really like to fetch? That's the easiest thing I can think of unless you have a dog park nearby. Then he could run and play with other dogs, and you could just bundle up and stand there and watch (or play too).

[BC_MoM]

well this may sound weird but i knew this person, who had a belgian malinois and couldn´t work him properly because he had some health issues, so what he did (i dont know if its right but it worked for him) he walked his dog while driving, of course at a slow speed, and very careful,

My Uncle does that with his Border Collies. His fairly young, in shape, healthy.. people who are health-wise doing great and do this REALLY tick me off. It's such a lazy way of excersising your dog. The dog's energy level is NO excuse. Get another breed if one breed is too energetic.

Have you ever heard of a Chuckit? I hear those things are pretty good.

If he knows sit and stay, you can go run and hide somwhere, and call him and that can wear him out, too.. but I guess you have to be good at hiding if you wanna play that.

[tz1]

I really wish I had a big indoor pool that he could swim in...I heard that swimming is really tough for dogs and tires them out pretty quick

or...one of those doggie treadmills hehe...that would be nice for the winter

there are a few dogparks around us, but the problem is he isn't neutered yet, I plan on getting him neutered when he's a little over a year old...i heard that if you neuter too early it is bad for their bones/development. he is 7 months old now.

[dab_20]

7 months old is plenty old enough!! Acctually if your dog is 6 months old, that is the best time and it is WORSE to wait after that age. Hope you find some way to burn down his energy!

[IRescue452]

Dab_20- lare breeds get neutered at about a year because it harms bone development if they are neutered sooner.

Autumn and I play catch with a ball up and down the stairs. If you are in a safe area you can play hide and seek, which takes up more of the dog's energy than yours.

[dab_20]

Ohh, sorry about that. I've never had a large breed dog before, and thought it was the same for all dogs.

[tz1]

Ye, I've just heard around that for large/giant sized breeds it is better to wait a little over a year. he's around 80+ pounds now.. pretty big! I just hope he doesn't get hip dysplasia.

[RobiLee]

Well, you probably aren't going to like my answer...lol.

I have found that the best way to tire my dogs out is the good old fashioned way...take them for a walk. It works every time!

So I say bundle yourself up, snap that leash on Zero and have yourself a nice little walk!

[finn's mom]

Well, I know with Finn, I'd have to walk him for four hours to wear him out. And, maybe one day I'll be in good enough shape to make it that far. But, for Finn, I always tire before he does. Unless it's swimming. I can kayak and he swims beside me. That has been the only way that I can wear him out without help from others. He played ball one day at the dog park for a good five hours, I had so much help, though, from other people, throwing the ball. I plan to get one of those bike attachments for sure. I'd do the car thing too if I wasn't afraid something bad would happen. I'd walk him myself for a bit, but, that would certainly help after an hour or so. Good luck!

[cali]

lol I have border collies so in my case the best way to tire em out is to work their BRAIN. for example I will put them in a stay behind an object on the deck then go and hide a toy in a play that easy to see but tricky to get to, then I tell em to "find it" because they are running around the yard jumping and climbing they are working their muscles, but at the same time that have to stay behind the object till I give the go ahead, find the object, and figer out how to GET the object, then they must bring it to my hand, and I play fetch with then for 2-3 throws and we do it again. working the mind and body together tires a dog out MUCH faster then only working one or the other.

[finn's mom]

lol I have border collies so in my case the best way to tire em out is to work their BRAIN.

That's so true. Those food cubes used to wear my roommate's husky out in fifteen minutes, because he'd have to really use his head. Making finn search for stuff is another trick I've used...

[cyber-sibes]

I found that playing fetch is a good way to give Star exercise without wearing myself out, too. Plus they both love to run at the dogpark. I walk around & around while they race back and forth - great exercise for all of us.

[BC_MoM]

Well, you probably aren't going to like my answer...lol.

I have found that the best way to tire my dogs out is the good old fashioned way...take them for a walk. It works every time!

So I say bundle yourself up, snap that leash on Zero and have yourself a nice little walk!

Here here! Since the snow started coming, Mick and I have continued doing our 3 walks a day, and only miss Monday's BUT that's because I have Drivers Ed so we only get 2 walks in. The rest of the time we're either playing/training in the backyard, or playing inside or.... my favourite... SLEEPING.