Quote: Michael Soldwisch

Quick question: Did you walk your previous dog as a puppy? I have heard that hip issues can happen, when you take then for walks before they are at least a year old, and I wonder if that could be true.

Over-exercise, jumping down stairs, slipping on shiny floors, too much walking, but not normal short walks.

This is my understanding.

Where did you hear that puppies under a year old should not go for walks at all? Not an attack .... just that I've never heard anyone say this.

Short walks on grass & dirt is preferred to pavement for pups. You pup should be a little bit tired after an 'outing' but no where new very tried or exhausted. If he is you did way too much.

Walks for pups is mostly for socialization & exploring the world as opposed to real exercise or training....other then to learn to walk on a leash with you calmly.

I would be very careful not to overexercise/over run any GSD before the age of 2 yr when the growth plates close. That includes treadmills.

My breeder told me. Reasoning behind that is, that the puppies hips and muscles around hips are growing and shaping slowly. While in nature wolf puppies just play around the den on their own will (they stop when tired), a regular walk on any surface will change the natural growth, because of the repetitive movement in the joint area with muscles not yet being strong enough to hold it together, and tendons and bone structure growing sometimes at different speeds. It kind of makes sense, if you think about it. She was referring to especially large dogs of any breed.

My neighbor has a young Bernese mountain-dog, I asked her about it, because she was walking it on a daily basis, but she never heard about it, and kept walking. I saw her on a daily basis. When she suddenly stopped after not even 2 years, she told me about hip and elbow surgery on that poor dog. Now, I don't know, if the daily walks played a role, that's why I was asking about it in this forum.

For my dog, I followed the advice, but I am missing out on some socialization, I would have had on walks. Now he is a little tense around dogs he meets during our walks.

Your pup didn't leave your property for a year?

Also, I don't know how tense you mean by "Now he is a little tense around dogs he meets during our walks," but if we can help with some desensitizing hints, start a thread.

Even without a thread, I can encourage you not to be at all tense. Don't allow any feeling of anxiety or tension for the dog travel down the leash. Stand tall and march on by as if strange dogs are nothing more than inanimate objects. Keep your dog's focus on you.

But also, don't hesitate to ask for more info about this. You want a calm dog who tolerates/ignores strange dogs and focuses on you.

We did not go on walks for a year, we walked around during our training sessions, or took him in the car to the training place.

New thread started here:

http://leerburg.com/webboard/thread.php?topic_id=33308&page=1#376398

Edited by Connie Sutherland (04/12/2013 03:09 PM)
Edit reason: moved new topic

IMHO, no forced exercise for any dog under 2. If the pup wants to run, let him, but make sure he always has the option to chill whenever he wants. This would include restricting games like 2 ball to few repetitions or short throws.

My vet said walks were good for my GSD puppy, and like Anne said, on good surfaces and not to tire them out.

He said he had heard some breeders say not to exercise them at all for 1-1/2years, but he did not agree with that.

I also agree with David. I find my boy loves to play ball, but not on and on. After a few throws, he will come and cuddle with me. He is telling me, he's had enough for now. I never push him.