At training classes I emphasise the importance of long line sniffy walks for on lead dogs as well as letting off lead dogs have the choice to stop and sniff.
So much of the human day is about meeting deadlines, working to a timetable, having a to do list that we can sometimes get into the same mindset when walking our dogs.
So many of our dogs read our "energy" and subtle body language clues and not being truly "present" for our dogs on our walks can affect the quality of the walk for our dogs.
Believe it or not a 40 minute sniffy/stop/investigate walk is far more satisfying for your dog than a 40 minute frogmarch. It is far more satisfying for us too.
Put away your schedule, your planned route, your need to tick this job off the list and relax into the walk. Your canine companion will pick up on this and will thank you for it.
So much of the human day is about meeting deadlines, working to a timetable, having a to do list that we can sometimes get into the same mindset when walking our dogs.
So many of our dogs read our "energy" and subtle body language clues and not being truly "present" for our dogs on our walks can affect the quality of the walk for our dogs.
Believe it or not a 40 minute sniffy/stop/investigate walk is far more satisfying for your dog than a 40 minute frogmarch. It is far more satisfying for us too.
Put away your schedule, your planned route, your need to tick this job off the list and relax into the walk. Your canine companion will pick up on this and will thank you for it.