Cheryl’s voice trembled with frustration as she described Luther’s latest antics, “We have to put him in the crate whenever people come over. He’s just out of control. Nipping for attention, jumping up on people. He runs around the house like – an animal!”
Luther is an 11 month old male German Shepherd. A big, friendly boy, his 85 pounds of boundless energy was beginning to overwhelm the entire family.
Most dogs don’t get enough exercise. But when your dog is a young, high drive dog like Luther, lack of sufficient exercise, play and mental stimulation is a recipe for all kinds of behavior problems.
People come up with lots of reasons why their dogs don’t get the exercise they need:
“I can’t take him for walks – he pulls on the leash.” A good obedience trainer can teach your dog to walk nicely on the leash in a very short period of time, without complicated, expensive equipment.
“I can’t take him to dog parks because he is dog-aggressive.” Dog parks are not appropriate for every dog. But luckily, the dog park is not the only way to exercise your dog. Fetch, jogging, long walks in the park or around town, swimming, taking your dog to work and playing games like tug-of-war are all great sources of exercise, play and mental stimulation.
“But we have a big back yard.” Dogs need to play with you. They should not be left alone to exercise themselves. Too much time alone in the yard will not solve behavior problems. In fact, it will often lead to more behavior problems like excessive barking, digging, chasing critters, fence fighting and eating foreign objects. It may actually increase, rather than decrease, a dog’s level of frustration. An active, involved owner with a small back yard is a lot more fun for a dog than a detached, aloof owner who banishes the dog to “go play” in a big back yard.
“We were thinking about getting another dog to keep him company.” Okay, so now you have 2 bored dogs instead of one? Not a great plan. There is no substitute for human attention, love, guidance and companionship.
Exercise is extremely important, but it’s not a “magic pill” that will solve all behavior problems. Don’t assume that the solution for all bad behavior to simply wear your dog out. A total solution involves exercise and interactive play along with good obedience training and proper pack structure and communication.
