What would be an appropriate time to spend on a treadmill for a 1.5 year old 9 lb terrier? We have had an awful time with ozone pollution here since Tuesday with Earl approaching to the point that except of absolutely necessary trips we would not even go out of the house. I have been having her do 5 minutes at a time varying 1.3-1.8 mph, then break with OB, 3x in a row. Then crate, later on more treadmill time. She does have weak knees so I am afraid I will overdo it. Any suggestions?

Lenka, with a small dog like this it probably won't be too difficult for you to provide all the exercise by playing tug and fetch with him.

This way your dog will show you exactly how much exercise he needs so that you won't overdo it. Besides interactive games provide both physical and mental stimulation

I could see how a treadmill could be very useful but in this situation I'd probably try the games first. Keep myself in shape too Core strength and all that

I am asuming that you are using a people treadmill, due to the size of the dog....but make sure that the tread surface is level & not elevated to keep the knee strain to a minimum. I would give a bit of a warm up & cool down at a walk for 2-3 minutes then a couple of minutes at a trot & then another cool down of a couple of minutes. The work on a tread is much more 'concentrated' then playing & running out in the yard. I would be careful not to overdo it.

I have big dogs & use a jog a dog treadmill to augment endurance & overall conditioning, but I also use it if the outside conditions are not good. So I am not sure how much would be too much overall for a day for little dogs. I will often use it multiple times a day (for 20-25 minutes @ a time) if the weather is really bad & they can't run outside.

As Ana said, mental exercises gos a long way to tire them out. Maybe some 'find it' games which will incorporated physical & mental activity. Not sure that I would want to teach my dog to run around the house with playing fetch. Not sure that I would want to teach an adult dog that. But then again, I have big dogs.