As a rule, a pug needs to be exercised twice a day for several hours. This should ideally be done in the forest or where he can also run without a leash without any problems. The French Bulldog needs enough physical and mental exercise. Since this dog breed is not particularly well suited to jogging and cycling, it needs all the more long walks.
Your pet needs daily exercise. In addition, your dog can run around in the garden or go to a fenced exercise area.
Your dog needs to go outside at least twice a day.
Beyond that, you can decide according to your dog whether you go more often and how long your rounds will be.
Walking – When does the dog need to go out?
The question of how often a dog should go out depends crucially on its individual needs. Some dog breeds need a lot of exercise due to their special urge to move, while others are content with smaller rounds.
When a dog needs to go outside is also very individual. Decisive factors include cleanliness and walk training.
As a rule of thumb, however, dogs can last five to six hours before the next business is due.
This also tells you how often a dog should go out every day. Accordingly, you should plan at least four to five rounds per day.
Ideally, the walks should be scheduled over time so that nightly walks are not necessary. In this context, it is important that the most urgent walk is in the morning. The walk after getting up must be integrated into the daily schedule.
As a rule, a routine rhythm is established after a certain time, so that the morning round takes place at 6:00 a.m. every day, for example.
Dogs make themselves known when they have to go out
Normally, every dog makes itself known as soon as it has to go out. However, this only applies to dogs that have already completed their cleanliness training. It is not yet to be expected from puppies. As soon as the intervals between rounds become too long, dogs start whining, possibly barking, are restless and otherwise draw attention to themselves.
Some dogs may scratch at the door, others may put the leash at their master’s feet. Pay attention to how your dog makes itself known and don’t let it get that far in the first place.
Your dog will be in better health if you react before your dog even contacts you.
If you are going to be away for a long time and your dog has to wait for you at home, find out here how long your dog can be left alone.
Whether young or old – all dogs need to go out.
Puppies and seniors need more exercise
A puppy stays with the breeder until at least 8 weeks. At least with a good breeder. After that, you can take your dog with you.
Once you have arrived at your new home, the first few weeks are especially important. During this time, you must pay special attention to the walks. Everything needs to be explored, from traffic to the forest.
Experience shows that puppies need more walks than adult dogs. Until they are truly house-trained, it is recommended that you take your fur friend out at least every two hours.
This way puppies learn that they have to do their business outdoors and not indoors.
The amount of time between each round can be extended individually over time. In addition to puppies, seniors also need to go outside more often.
Your dog is getting old and counts as a senior dog if your dog is over 12 years old.
With age, dogs get difficulties to control their urge for a longer period of time. It’s a good idea to cater to your dog’s individual needs.
You could take your dog out more often, but for shorter periods.
If the dog doesn’t go outside – What can happen?
If your dog doesn’t get out enough, it will sooner or later do its business indoors.
However, what is much more decisive and to the dog’s disadvantage – lack of exercise leads to considerable limitations. Dogs that do not get out or only get out too rarely are often overweight, which has an impact on their health.
In addition, in such cases dogs tend to engage in destructive behaviour, for example by destroying things or starting to go berserk.
Among other things, shoes or furniture may be chewed up. Furthermore, the lack of exercise leads to aggression towards people and other animals in the long run.
Some dogs start to withdraw because they are not stimulated enough physically and mentally. In this case, the behaviour resembles a typical depression.
Other dogs, on the other hand, become hyperactive. Finally, the muscles of the affected dog can stiffen, which leads to considerable pain. Other diseases of the four-legged friend are also possible due to lack of exercise and too few walks.
How can I keep my pug busy?
To avoid overweight in a pug, sufficient exercise is important. Walks should be leisurely, but extensive. From the beginning, you should provide sufficient exercise and challenge your dog physically and mentally to prevent illness.
Some animals are limited by respiratory problems and are out of breath faster than other dog breeds. Depending on your dog’s condition, it is possible to take your pug on longer walks or even hiking tours, but the pace should of course be adapted to the individual.
If your Pug is not quite as fit, you can simply take a few short walks instead of a long one. However, it should be at least two daily rounds to ensure sufficient exercise.
He is modest and will accept the garden as a run, but in the long run this is not enough and walks should be regular.
The pug is rarely a friend of bad weather, so if it rains, put a mackintosh on him and lure him to the door with a snack if necessary. If you also provide him with an umbrella, he should be persuaded to go for a short walk in the rain. You will usually have to give him some time to get used to it and check that the mackintosh fits properly and is the right size.
If you want to keep your pug busy, games are a great way to do it, because he loves them. You can practise fetch with him and reward him with a low-calorie, healthy snack. Fetch balls are very suitable for a pug and are available in different sizes. Do not use conventional tennis balls, as they are not robust enough. It is better to use non-hazardous materials and specially labelled products.
Another useful activity is learning tricks and commands. Depending on the animal’s daily condition, you can start with small sessions of about 15 minutes to teach him some commands.
It is helpful to establish a regular daily routine and to plan a certain amount of time for such sessions. Start with short sessions and increase slowly, always taking into account the dog’s daily form, it is important to allow him to not feel like it.
He also needs a rest after walks or feeding and may want to snooze.
In addition, include skill and intelligence games in which the pug constantly learns new commands or tricks to keep him mentally fit. To keep the dog physically fit, tug-of-war or chase games are suitable. If you don’t have enough time for this, a chewing bone can keep the pug busy for a long time.
Do not forget to praise the dog extensively. Such a sense of achievement will motivate him for further training sessions.
More ideas and how to avoid boredom in dogs: Avoiding boredom in dogs.
How long can a pug stay alone?
The Pug is a curious little dog with a lively and friendly nature. He is loyal and loves the attention of his owners.
A pug should not be left alone for too long. This dog breed is very affectionate and needs its people around it.
Nevertheless, the Pug can also spend some time alone. The dog does not always need to have his humans around him. If you train with him lovingly, you can get the animal used to spending some time alone in his familiar surroundings.
There are many moments when the pug needs to stay at home:
- at parties
- work
- longer shopping trips
- and many unforeseen events
An adult dog can easily spend up to 6 hours alone at home. However, this should not be the rule, as the Pug in particular is a dog that seeks closeness to its owners and loves the company of people.
The more time the animal can spend with people who love him, the better it is
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