What time is the best to walk a dog?

The time of day when we walk our dogs is very important. This is because the quality of the walk is directly related to the quality of your dog's life and the schedules you choose have a lot to do with it.

Walking makes the dog a dog. Walking allows the dog to get some exercise, to socialise and to develop appropriate hygiene habits, as well as being one of the greatest bond creators: playing, training, educating, good experiences…

For all these reasons, for a healthy dog (physically and psychologically) there are no better or worse times to go for a walk, but it is important that they are done routinely and, on a daily basis, for more than 2 hours divided between the 2, 3 or 4 walks that you should do.

The perfect walk at the right time of day

The perfect and ideal walk should ensure that dogs go out around mid-morning (10-11 am) and before sunset ( 6-7 pm) in cold weather and earlier (7-9 am) and a little later (7-9 pm) in summer, avoiding the peak heat of the day, particularly in cities and on paved areas. It is obvious that we can't always adapt to these schedules, but we can always try to fit in as close as possible.

On the other hand, it is our responsibility to know what type of dog is living with us ( physiognomy, breed, needs, and so forth) and whether it is likely to suffer from cold or overheating, while following all these precautions in order to find a solution. As, for example, a Chihuahua in Winter or a Siberian Husky in Summer.

Times for walking insecure, reactive or aggressive dogs

If our dog has a behavioural problem, it is worth choosing less busy times of the day as a support to our work on changing their behaviour. In this case, an insecure or fearful dog, for example, should be walked early and late during the months when we are working with the trainer and ethologist.

Similarly with reactive or aggressive dogs, we need to limit unpleasant or triggering experiences (that bring about a certain behaviour) as much as possible while giving the dog a repertoire of tools to better manage these interactions.

Walking a senior dog

From the age of 7-8 years onwards, a big or giant dog will start to "ask" you to take it easy: in other words, you will have to slow down the time and speed of your walks. This is another phase where, if there are bladder or digestive problems, you will have to go out more. Whereas, if there are still no problems, it will just be a matter of changing the pace and speed of your walks with your dog.

When should we walk a puppy?

Puppies are learning hygiene or bowel movements and should be walked an average of 4 to 5 times a day, although many of these walks may be shorter.

• Remember that the puppy is not allowed to go for a walk until the immunisation schedule is over!
• Take this opportunity to take the puppy outside when it wakes up, after it has eaten or after the two of you have been playing, because these are the 3 situations in which the puppy usually makes a poo or a wee.
• Don't stress, because the puppy doesn't have perfect sphincter control until he is 5-6 months old: he is still a baby (a baby dog)!

Javier Ruiz, educador canino em Dogventura e educador ambiental pela UB. Redator publicitário e autor de: De cómo los animales viven y mueren.