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This was a particularly rough time for me at work, and I wound up working 12-15 hours/day at the office this week. I booked extra sessions with the dog walker, and had friends come in to take the dog out, but instead of her normal workout (a brisk 30 minute walk in the morning, and 60-90 minutes of fetch/free play at the park in the evening), she would get maybe one cumulative hour of leisurely walks each day.
The result? She was fine on Monday & Tuesday, mildly hyperactive Wednesday and Thursday, and a total basket case on Friday. Besides the noticeable change in temperament, I attempted to hold to the same training routine throughout the week (usually three ten minute sessions per night). She was thoroughly untrainable on Friday - she couldn't hold still, didn't pay attention, and was non-responsive towards commands she used to be able to do in her sleep.
Today, we got up at 6:30 this morning, went on a 2-mile walk before spending another 2 hours at the dog park, walked the entire 5.5 mile round trip to/from obedience school, rested up, and spent another half hour playing fetch in the park before rain forced us home. She's now asleep, but she's back to being her old self again.
The lesson: exercise matters. A LOT. She's really not even a high-energy dog, but she still needs a 90 minute, moderate-intensity workout each day just to function. I can't even imagine what it's like to live with a bored Lab or Border Collie.
The result? She was fine on Monday & Tuesday, mildly hyperactive Wednesday and Thursday, and a total basket case on Friday. Besides the noticeable change in temperament, I attempted to hold to the same training routine throughout the week (usually three ten minute sessions per night). She was thoroughly untrainable on Friday - she couldn't hold still, didn't pay attention, and was non-responsive towards commands she used to be able to do in her sleep.
Today, we got up at 6:30 this morning, went on a 2-mile walk before spending another 2 hours at the dog park, walked the entire 5.5 mile round trip to/from obedience school, rested up, and spent another half hour playing fetch in the park before rain forced us home. She's now asleep, but she's back to being her old self again.
The lesson: exercise matters. A LOT. She's really not even a high-energy dog, but she still needs a 90 minute, moderate-intensity workout each day just to function. I can't even imagine what it's like to live with a bored Lab or Border Collie.