Exercise

[Emerald]

Hello everyone!
My friend has a doberman, he's almost one, I think. He is very energetic and me and her were trying to come up with a way to exercise him. He doesn't behave very well on leash, so running with him isn't an option. His recall is pretty good, but he still gets distracted sometimes, so throwing ball at the park is kinda risky especially since there's a middle school right next to it. Any ideas on how he can be exercised to let all the energy out?

 

[AresMyDobie]

What type of training has he had ?

 

[Rits]

Obedience can be one of the best "exercises" because it works the brain and the body. Perfect time to work on that heel and recall!

Your other option is a flirt pole until his recall is solid. Also organized play dates with 1 other dog or 2 that you trust, in a fenced in area, can wear them out quick. DIY Flirt Pole

 

[GennyB]

I agree with @Rits work on obedience. A well trained dog benefits everyone including the dog.
The other thing to consider the amount of excerise it would take to wear him out puts him at risk for injury. Gotta be careful with excerise until those growth plates close at around 18 months.
There are also games you can play as well as toys that will hellp stimulate him mentally.

 

[Horselady]

Look for dog parks in your area (even my little town has one at the humane society. With an agility course and everything).

Some people here seek out areas that are fenced in like baseball diamonds, etc. Sometimes parks have tracks that are fenced in, etc.

I second not forcing play on a large breed dog until they are 2. It isn't worth the injury risk.

The flirt pole thing is real! They love it. I was shocked going "who knew?" But they really do love it. Depend on where you are located, I think the horse whip way is easy, but TSC horse whips are expensive. So if you have a tack store or other farm supply store like rural king you can buy a longe whip for 8-10 bucks and tie a toy at the end it is an affordable option.

 

[Emerald]

I like the flirt pole idea. Wonder why I never heard of it...

 

[Poppy]

formal obedience wears dogs out because it uses their brain...so expecting a lot from the dog in the way of obedience will help calm him down. I find that letting them play with other dogs is a great way for them to get exercise without over doing it...like can happen with forced exercise (hard on developing joints).

 

[WiglWerm]

FLIRT POLE!!

 

[Gelcoater]

@Emerald welcome to Doberman Chat from Riverside, Ca.

Some great advise given here so far.
Take special note of comments about growth plates and mental stimulation being equally taxing as physical exercise.

That said, in addition to what's been suggested I would add since he doesn't do well on leash that should be a primary goal to fix. It's a necessity if you intend to take him out in public. There are leash laws. Anything happens, your fault, his fault or someone else's, if he's not in a leash guess who's fault a judge is going to find?

Get him used to the leash.

Then running or even biking with him becomes an option. Heck you could even let him pull you on a skate board with a little work and practice. I have a god friend with a pitbull that pulls him all over the neighborhood on a long board.

**edit. But I wouldn't do the skate board till after he's at least two years..growth plates...*

 

[Gelcoater]

Oh, and if you have access to a pool!
Start working on getting him to swim, voluntarily.
It is truly great exercise.

 

[Poppy]

Oh, and if you have access to a pool!
Start working on getting him to swim, voluntarily.
It is truly great exercise.

yes, my dobes love swimming and retrieving from the water...makes them tired quickly too! here is a video of Mack running in heel..this is a great way to burn energy!

 

[Gelcoater]

yes, my dobes love swimming and retrieving from the water...makes them tired quickly too! here is a video of Mack running in heel..this is a great way to burn energy!

Great work!

 

[strykerdobe]

As mentioned above.
Yes on the mental stimulation and physical exercise. For sure on the Flirt Pole!

Would watch running (like jogging) and jumping on very hard surfaces for a long periods of time. Because of growth plates of long bones in legs have not closed yet. Depending on the dog and breed it could be from 14-16 months. Also growth plates can be affected by Neuter/Spay.


Spay Neuter And Joint Disease - Dogs Naturally Magazine
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com › spay...
The age at which the growth plates close is entirely dependent on the dog and the breed. In general, the larger the dog, the later the growth plates will close. In giant breeds, this could be nearly two years of age.

 

[Beerswimmer]

Hmmm.....I take my puppy to an empty field next to our house 2-3 times per day to let him run all of his energy out. We play chase. Also he really enjoys walks around my neighborhood now, about 1 mile. I never thought anything that he would want to do would be harmful. My last dog was the same, run run run out all the puppy energy.

 

[Beerswimmer]

Again, hmmmmmmm........ My puppy(14 weeks on 19DEC) has started to lead me on runs of 1.5 to 2.5 miles without stopping. It's now his favorite activity. I'm not running him, he's running me! He loves it. It's on snow packed roads.

 

[My2Girls]

As I preface all my comments- not an expert here ...but between the 2 dobie I have and the 4 different vets we've seen (yes I'm picky) they have all advised against excessive running and jumping at this age. Sure my pup would do the same if I let her but I don't.

 

[MyBuddy]

As I preface all my comments- not an expert here ...but between the 2 dobie I have and the 4 different vets we've seen (yes I'm picky) they have all advised against excessive running and jumping at this age. Sure my pup would do the same if I let her but I don't.

Exactly. Just like if your young child wanted to swim all day long and not stop or come in to eat. Sure, they want to continue. But, you, as the mother, know better, and channel the activities.

My puppy(14 weeks on 19DEC) has started to lead me on runs of 1.5 to 2.5 miles without stopping.

Continuous pounding on the pavement like that for miles at a time is too much for a 14 week old puppy. Even though a pup can seem non-stop, in normal play, there is a lot of stopping and starting....and napping. It's the non-stop run on hard pavement that wrecks havoc with their underdeveloped joints. You don't even see the damage its causing until later.

 

[GennyB]

Just food for thought....Drake is a VERY high energy dog. In an attempt to wear him out for some peace around here, I instead built stamina. *Caution* There is a very fine line between exhausting a pup and making the problem worse.....

 

[Tropicalbri's]

Just food for thought....Drake is a VERY high energy dog. In an attempt to wear him out for some peace around here, I instead built stamina. *Caution* There is a very fine line between exhausting a pup and making the problem worse.....

I so totally agree and I cannot find the fine line!!

 

[bomary]

I so totally agree and I cannot find the fine line!!

Yeah, I've started to think maybe I need to get Jax a little bit "out of shape!"