Going for walks - pls help!

[Cozza]

Winston is going to be 2 yrs old in Sept. He's never been a great lover of walks and unlike most dogs, when you mention the word walk or park, they are at the door. But mine runs the other way and sometimes into his pen . Mention the word "car" tho and he's at the door (doesn't involve walking - lol).

He even makes me chase him round the table just to get the leash on! When I eventually get him out the door, it's more like a chore or punishment for him to walk round the block and I get the feeling he just wants to be in the cool house taking a nap!Sometimes I'll walk him round the block and all of a sudden he'll just decide to lie down in the street Crazy boy!

He absolutely LOVES to play with other dogs tho and when his best buddy, a cocker spaniel who lives next door comes knocking, he can't get to the door quick enough. But sadly this is not a daily thing (maybe twice a week).

So my question is, how do I get him to exercise? I play with him in the yard (tug of war with his play rope) but is this enough? I hear of so many bully owners going on 1-2 hr walks with their dogs and I feel so bad cos I'd love to be able to get him out. Is it just laziness? Should I be more persistent? Think he needs a permanent playmate. That'll wear him out for sure.

Any advice at all from experience??

 

[Bulldogg]

A playmate may be a great solution for you.

As long as he is getting some exercise each day and he is not overweight, I would not worry about it. I personally do not walk my dogs ever. I have had ours stolen before- call me paranoid but that's the way I roll now.

We have a large yard, and throwing, chasing the ball and playing with each other, our dogs get a vast quanity of exercise. So much in fact, that when they come inside they just plop onto a cool spot on the floor and nap for a few hours.

Don't beat yourself up about it, just find what works best for you and your Winston

 

[froggz]

I agree with a (or a few) playmates as well. Jay and Sadie have play dates with several of my friends and their dogs and its so fun to watch them all wrestle and play fight in the yard, or play a hearty game of chase for the ball.

I'm curious, what time of day do you try to walk? The only time we walk Sadie is after 8pm at night, when the temp cools to about 70 or less. Granted she only goes around the block but she's an absolute doll except for leaning against lead pressure, but hey, she is a bulldog lol!

 

[Sandman1200]

I think a playmate would be great...My son has a dobie (what WAS he thinking)and when the two go out, usually i find my tank laying at the back door a few minutes later...Like I read in a book before i became a bully...If youget a bulldog to run laps with you, he/she will be content to sit on the porch and count your laps for you..If you want a lap dog, great, the bulldog thinks he/she is a 65lb pekingnese...haha..as long as they are getting a little excercise i wouldnt worry about it...I very rarely walk Tank

 

[Mugzilla]

during the summer, my bullies never go for walks. it's too hot for them. they get their exercise by playing with the other dogs and swimming and if it's not a 'really' hot day, i play fetch with them in the yard, with a kiddy pool for them to splash around in and cool off with.

your dog just seems to not love walking . plenty of humans are that way too if he likes playing fetch or playing with other dogs or chasing after you (in the house or outside), as long as he's getting some exercise in, that should be fine. especially during the hot months.

 

[Mugzilla]

ps, my dogs would NEVER last on a 1-2 hour walk. their walks, even in the winter time are about 20 minutes long. we do that a couple times a day, but they're always short walks. they'd never make it on a long walk. they're just not made that way. some are better at it than others, but my guys wouldn't last!

 

[LisaRN]

Oh my.. I could have written your thread!!! Chester is SO bad.. it's like tug of war My shih tzu - Milo - would walk all day.. but baby bully is a bullhead His exercise is chasing Milo around the house and yard though... he wasn't built for speed, and Milo will stop.. wait until Chester catches up...then takes off. He looks like a linebacker running down field after a wide receiver to be quite honest

 

[BullDogMom]

Hello~ Not all Bullies can walk for 1-2 hours... and it also depends on how the outside temperatures are. Is Winston a chubby body type or on leaner, slender side?
Some dogs can go for a while on walks, and tire out... and lie down as you described...etc. Just a suggestion... but if you think he tired out easily or after a short jaunt... I would take that as a sign that he is telling you that he is tuckered out... and can only do so much.
Is he a good breather? Does he seem overheated when he decides to lie down in the street?

Winston is going to be 2 yrs old in Sept. He's never been a great lover of walks and unlike most dogs, when you mention the word walk or park, they are at the door. But mine runs the other way and sometimes into his pen . Mention the word "car" tho and he's at the door (doesn't involve walking - lol).

He even makes me chase him round the table just to get the leash on! When I eventually get him out the door, it's more like a chore or punishment for him to walk round the block and I get the feeling he just wants to be in the cool house taking a nap!Sometimes I'll walk him round the block and all of a sudden he'll just decide to lie down in the street Crazy boy!

He absolutely LOVES to play with other dogs tho and when his best buddy, a cocker spaniel who lives next door comes knocking, he can't get to the door quick enough. But sadly this is not a daily thing (maybe twice a week).

So my question is, how do I get him to exercise? I play with him in the yard (tug of war with his play rope) but is this enough? I hear of so many bully owners going on 1-2 hr walks with their dogs and I feel so bad cos I'd love to be able to get him out. Is it just laziness? Should I be more persistent? Think he needs a permanent playmate. That'll wear him out for sure.

Any advice at all from experience??

 

[Cozza]

Thank you all so much for your advice. It's quite reassuring to know that there are other bullies out there who don't like walking either. I feel like a bad mommy now trying to force him to go when clearly he doesn't want to . He loves playing with other dogs which is why I think we will eventually adopt another bully as a playmate once we move back to FL in Sept. He is not much of a "fetch" dog if you throw a ball but does enjoy playing tug of war with his rope and chasing it round the yard with me. He jumps quite high too for a bully -lol. He is definitely not overweight, 56lb of solid muscle and yes thinks he's a lap dog teacup poodle

Froggz - It's now so hot in Louisiana and it's impossible to walk him during the day and to be honest after 6pm, he shows no interest in wanting to go for a walk and would just prefer to sit and chew on his toys which he enjoys so much so I just leave him. He wears himself out anyway chasing the empty water bottles all over the house - lol.

As for swimming, our new house in FL has a pool so we definitely need to work on that. Besides his drinking bowl, he's not so keen on water right now and runs away from baths, pools, sprinklers and showers. We bought one of those round kiddy pools for him and he didn't look impressed. Just gotta get him used to it I think.

Bullpapa, sorry to hear about your dogs that got stolen. Can't imagine what you and your family must've gone through at that time. How do you get over it and move on? I'd be devastated beyond words.

Anyway thanks again to all of you for putting my mind at rest and reassuring me that it's perfectly ok for Winston not to love walks and what we are doing right now is working just fine.

 

[emangan]

Hello, I am curious if he enjoys playing in backyard tug of war can you make the idea of walking more positive in his eyes by getiing him to use side gate?? Also I use a bubble machine you can get at target or wal-mart they love to chase bubbles around for my bullies to also play (exercise) in back yard. I would try when he is playing hooking leash on and letting it hang for few min then taking off and putting away to make the reintroduction hopefully fun for him.

 

[NASTYNATI]

a few questions... are you using a leash and collar or are you using a leash and harness? I know that most bullies do not like to be walked with the leash and collar technique due to the excessive pulling. Ive read that its quite common that bullies will cause damage to their throat by pulling so hard on walks. What age did you start the walking process? I started walking mine around 10 weeks . She hated the collar so I bought a Holt Harness and she absolutely loves it... she can tug all she wants and its made of soft rope so it doesnt cause any discomfort. Try taking a small container of training treats (very small pieces) with you. Start off slow, when you hit certain distances offer a treat as a reward. Reward when you can put the harness/leash on without a fight aswell. Keep in mind each dog has his or her own personality of sorts. Some will do well right away and some need work. Patience and a nice reward when they do what you ask with little effort will go a long way. hopefully your bully will love to walk as much as you want them to!!! Best of luck. BTW what part of Florida are you moving to?