What is Your Doodle's After Walk Behavior?

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

Tara who is a 20 pound mini always returns home from her walks and just goes FLAT! I thought the mile and a half walk was not too far for her but lately I had started to think maybe I was wrong.  So today, after the walk she again went flat but I picked up her favorite ball and offered to play soccer. Well, we played about 15 minutes of soccer then I set up a make shift agility course in the house and she ran it for another 15 minutes...up and down...up and down.  She still wasn't tired but I WAS and ready for breakfast so I stopped. Hmmmmm.

Now I am wondering if her walks are LONG ENOUGH??? I live in an area with VERY steep hills so her walks are not on an easy flat surface. And her walks are at a fairly fast pace without many stops.  I also always assumed since she is 20 pounds that her exercise requirement would be far less then that of an 80 pound doodle. That she would only need about 1/4 as much walking distance to meet her needs.Is this illogical?

Now I am also wondering if she is just laying around totally bored waiting for me to initiate something?

So I am curious about how other doodles behave after their walks. Are they tired? Are they revved up and and ready for more?? What does your doodle do?

[Joanne ~ Spud*]

I think it depends on the dog. Starlit goes flat after walking from the couch to the chair and Spud goes non-stop all day.

Our walks are any where from 1.5 to 3.2 depending on the route we take. Spud can either go flat or get up and play and play.

Sometimes I think, Spud feels obligated to play as if it is his job to bring me a ball or a stuffie so I can throw. Yes, he feels I want/need to throw so he keeps me busy. I've seen him go non-stop and drop at 11pm just because a human was going non-stop.  Starlit, in this case, goes to find the cats to hide and nap with.

Maybe Tara feels it is her job too!  Honestly, I think about this often. Do dogs feel a loyalty to keep going just because they think YOU want them to continue?

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

That's an interesting question Joanne...I've never thought of it in that light. I'll have to give that some thought because Tara really does like to please us...I think at some point they would stop though. I think self preservation would prevent them from getting to the point where they would drop from exhaustion.

[Nicky, Riley & Boris]

Riley gets either one long walk or two shorter ones.  If possible I take him to the playing field or dog park where he can run free and ten minutes of running seems to tire him a lot.   I also play in the back yard with the ball too.  In between he is flat on his back or tummy!  I do notice that if I go back to bed in the morning he's quite happy to come back with me and seems to fit into whatever schedule I am on.  

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

Nicky have you ever tried initiating play with Riley during one of his flat times? This is what I did with Tara and found out she is ready to GO!!  I'm just curious...

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I'm not sure size has much to do with it.  Guinness is also 20 lbs but he needs as much exercise as Murph.  They get a 2 - 3 mile training walk every day.  There's lots of "work" involved because they do have to walk right by our side for most of the walk and we interject other training throughout the walk.  They always come home tired and sleep for a couple of hours.  Once they're rested they play with each other....the "chase game" or "I've got the toy...ha ha" game.  They can do this for about 45 minutes and then it's nap time again.  Most days we also do about 15 - 20 minutes of obedience in the afternoon before dinner (I do this individually and I'm working on different things with each guy).  After dinner, it's another play time for the two of them, their potty walk and then they're done for the night.  I guess I'm lucky because my two boys will exercise each other....when they're feeling energetic they know how to play together to run some of that off.

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

Wow Jane, after reading this I think Tara and I are slackers!!! LOL!

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

LOL, no you're not!  I'm just a "multi-tasker", so if I have to walk them anyway I find it easier to combine it with their training....plus that just keeps the walk way more interesting for me.  I think they'd rather walk with Dad who does NOT make them work on a walk.

[Kaytlin and Cooper]

Cooper and i walk 3km (almost 2 miles) in 1/2 hour - so reasonably fast pace, though its relatively flat. After the walk she lays down and sleeps. Though i know from experience she would walk and walk and walk (I have taken her on 5 hour hikes before) and she would play fetch after a walk too. Cooper will occasionally lay down during a long play of fetch and end play time, but if i tried to take her for a walk im sure she would be happy to go!

When Cooper was younger a 3 km walk would not tire her out. She had to be running so we would play fetch. Once she hit about 2 she calmed down and a walk is good enough

However, if i fancy a lazy day, Cooper is happy to chill as long as she gets to play (inside or outside). if i giver her a treat dispensing toy that will entertain her.

Im not sure if a small dog needs less exercise than a big dog - I think thats a myth. I know of a chihuaua, a schiperke cross and a jack russell cross who all go on really long hikes (4 plus hours)

[Ricki and Tara (doodle)]

I think you're right about the amount of exercise needed depending a lot of the breed rather than the size. I guess I can't use THAT excuse any more! :)