# Get rid of that energy!



## donedeal (Jan 28, 2009)

My dog has a lot of pent up energy because she is crated for 5 hours a day while were at work. What are some activities we could do to relieve that pent up energy quickly?

We go for runs (but she is much faster than I)
We attempt fetch, but she doesnt return (see previous post)
We go for long walks in the park (not always convenient)

Anyone tried biking with their dog? 
Any other games/activities outside or inside? (its cooooold out now)


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## GeorgeGlass (Jun 5, 2008)

I've always found mental stimulation tires my dog out just as much or more as physical. So in addition to exercise stuff, I work on drills of his tricks and also on (trying) to teach him new things.

With my dog, a walk will never tire him out, so sometimes we go on very focused walks where he has jobs. Walk right next to me without sniffing. Sitting before crossing any street. Sometimes I'll stop and make him do some tricks in the middle of the park.

Now, I don't like doing that all the time. I know some people make this much more of their usual walk. But he seems to really enjoy sniffing everything, and I wouldn't want to take that way from him regularly. If he seems particularly full of energy, this "power walk" really wears him out.


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## KBLover (Sep 9, 2008)

GeorgeGlass said:


> With my dog, a walk will never tire him out, so sometimes we go on very focused walks where he has jobs. Walk right next to me without sniffing. Sitting before crossing any street. Sometimes I'll stop and make him do some tricks in the middle of the park.


Wow, really? That'll tire a dog out? I ask because I've been doing that kind of walk with Wally and when we get back in, he's about ready to crash out (or if it's dinner time, he'll eat...then crash out heh) 

I guess I still don't have a grasp of what qualifies as mental activity/mental effort for a dog! And on top of that, it seems that waiting to do his business until my command and on my command must tire him out too. 

Maybe I don't realize how much mental work it takes for a dog to hear command -> understand command -> remember the action I'm supposed to take -> execute action. I think I keep forgetting that focusing is a mental effort. So him just looking at me (and not anything else) "costs" some mental energy for him.

He makes it seem so effortless. I say sit and he's sitting in like 2 seconds. I guess, though, in his head a lot of fast associations are going on and that consumes energy. That and maybe the change up of activity? Walking - then suddenly sitting. Then walking, then sitting, then running, then lying down, etc.


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## melgrj7 (Sep 21, 2007)

Just curious how old your dog is? Different things will be recommended for different ages.


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## skelaki (Nov 9, 2006)

anything that uses the dog's mind as well as it's body is more tiring than just straight physical exercise. And you can have fun with this. Games such as doggy versions of Follow the Leader, Find it (an object), Hide N Seek, and even Red light Green light make your dog think and you both have fun. You can also set up backyard or even in-house agility objects, which use both physical and mental energy. For example, plungers can make weave poles, a hula hoop can be a jump and, depending on the dog's size, a child's toy tunnel or large cardboard box can be a tunnel.


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## donedeal (Jan 28, 2009)

melgrj7 said:


> Just curious how old your dog is? Different things will be recommended for different ages.


Her birthday is February 8th, she'll be 1.


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## GeorgeGlass (Jun 5, 2008)

KBLover said:


> Wow, really? That'll tire a dog out? I ask because I've been doing that kind of walk with Wally and when we get back in, he's about ready to crash out (or if it's dinner time, he'll eat...then crash out heh)
> 
> I guess I still don't have a grasp of what qualifies as mental activity/mental effort for a dog! And on top of that, it seems that waiting to do his business until my command and on my command must tire him out too.
> 
> ...


Oh yeah. If I take him on a walk where he just sniffs around, he enjoys it but it has little effect. If I take him on a focused walk, he's ready to konk out when I get him home.

I recently taught him "Watch me." He's still not perfect, but when a dog walks by and I'm telling him to "watch me," that's a huge deal. He wants to sniff the other dog and say hey. But if I'm giving him the command, he's (usually) listening to me and focused. I typically only do that when the other owner is struggling to hold their dog back as its tugging toward my dog and the other owner seems concerned there could be a problem. I like Snyder to get dog-to-dog interaction where appropriate.

Physically, I can't tire him out. I took him on a five mile hike up and down hills, jogging for parts of it this fall. At the end, I was wiped out. He was ready to go again in 20 minutes. But a focused walk knocks him out cold.

ETA: I do want to say I'm not advocating stopping exercise-centric activities. I think it's good for him physically (and me) to go on longer treks and such. And there's nothing to say you can't push it physically for four miles and then do a more mentally challenging walk for the last one.


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## RonE (Feb 3, 2007)

> We go for long walks in the park (not always convenient)


In the long list of reasons to have a dog, I've never seen "convenience" listed. 

For my dogs, swimming in the summer and running in the snow in the winter seem to be the most efficient way to wear them out.

I don't actually swim OR run in the snow with them, so both require some special accommodations.

I used a doggy daycare for Esther when we lived elsewhere. It was expensive but, by the end of the day, I had a very mellow dog.


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## donedeal (Jan 28, 2009)

RonE said:


> In the long list of reasons to have a dog, I've never seen "convenience" listed.
> 
> I've come to realize this
> 
> But i've also come to realize dog ownership is a way of life. Sacrafices must be made, but the rewards of coming home to a wagging tail and floppy ears are worth it. Plus I'm no longer out of breath when I walk up a flight of stairs!


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