Walk – Stop – Sniff – repeat – and repeat – and repeat — and repeat! This is the walk routine my beautiful dog, Jillian, has always done since we adopted each other. Jilly spends her entire time with her head down – sniffing any and everything that comes into her line of sight — or should I say smell.
At first, her behavior frustrated me (the stopping) as I was out there for her (and my) exercise. Then I can across this article “The Importance of Letting Your Dog Sniff” (akc.org).
And what a surprise to me when I learned that dog sniffing on a walk is a great form of canine mental stimulation and it also increases their respiration rate, so it does become a tiring activity! A “sniff walk” (as I now refer to it) will definitely be slower than an average dog walk – but it is about quality, not quantity.
According to Penny Leigh, CPDT-KA, certified dog trainer and director of the AKC GoodDog! Helpline: “I don’t think the length of time is as important as the quality of the walk. Dogs can get a whole lot of sniffing done in 20 to 30 minutes and can be just as tired as an hour walk without sniffing.”
A sniff walk is good for them on two levels: mental stimulation and walking exercise. I now understand and I have embraced Jilly’s sniff walks – she so enjoys them.
Remember, during these “sniff walks,” there is quite a lot of STOP & SNIFF – watch my Jilly’s body language during these sniff walks – she looks and acts so happy!
So, the question becomes: Are you walking your dog for your dog’s exercise? Or yours?
Resources: for more information, go to:
Penny Leigh, CPDT-KA, certified dog trainer and director of the AKC GoodDog! Helpline
Exercise Those Noses! Letting Your Dog Sniff Makes Them More Optimistic – DogTime
The Best Exercise For a Dog is Using Its Nose – The Other End of the Leash by patriciamcconnell.com
