3 Stages Of Behaviorally Healthy Exercise

3 Stages of Success for Exercising your Dog

Does your dog leave the house wired for a walk? Or maybe when he comes home, he's a little extra revved up and struggles to regulate his emotions?

​He might run the zoomies immediately AFTER he gets home. He might get mouthy, picking on you or his housemates, get destructive with toys or beds, jump and attention seek like crazy? You are not alone!

Right when you think your dog is supposed to be tired and take a good nap, he may do just the opposite before finally crashing later. Or maybe he does crash immediately but then wakes up soon after ready to roll again! This is not necessarily a matter of needing more exercise, but instead, a matter of needing to learn how to self regulate his emotions.

I'm going to share the 3 stages of Behaviorally Healthy Exercise that every dog (and dog moms and dads) could benefit from...

Stage 1: The Warm-Up

Long Line Sniffing is a great way to warm up your dog prior to more aerobic exercise. Give your dog a chance to take in the environment and move his body slowly and freely before asking/allowing him to move faster and harder.

Try scatter feeding if you need to encourage sniffing! Take a small handful of stinky treats and scatter them around the environment, then settle in and let your dog's nose do the work. If your dog struggles to find the food or doesn't seem food driven, then it's likely time to take a step back into a less stimulating environment.

​Food hunting and seeking is such a natural behavior for dogs that when they struggle with such an instinctual behavior, I take it as a sign that we have bigger issues at play (fear and stress being my #1 concern and health being a close #2). If your dog is not food motivated or driven at home and you don't see other signs of stress, I would highly recommend that you consult with your vet. And don't settle on "he's probably just picky" as an answer. If he does seem stressed, even at home where he spends the majority of his time, it may be time to consult a Veterinary Behaviorist or Veterinarian knowledgeable in behavior to discuss generalized anxiety and nutraceutical or pharmaceutical options to help!

Alternative Warm-Up Exercises: Doggy Push-ups (Sit-Down-Stand on repeat) or other basic training skills, tricks that encourage focused movement, & pattern games. Leslie McDevitt teaches lots of pattern games through her Control Unleashed Program, and I have a couple of examples here: Up-Down Pattern Game and Side to Side Pattern Game 

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Stage 2: The Main Activity

This can look different for every dog. It's important to know what kind of exercise your dog enjoys, especially when you're aiming for behaviorally healthy exercise. If your dog is stressed during exercise, he is likely to come home and be wild because he finally feels safe at home, and he may become sensitized to that kind of outing over time (becoming more sensitive is never the goal).

Some dogs may enjoy running, while others may enjoy ball chasing, tug of war, neighborhood/trail exploration, dog-dog play, training exercises, flirt pole play, sports, etc. Learn your dog's limits and which exercises would benefit him most.

And if your dog is still growing or new to you, remember to acclimate his body to this over time - especially with the higher intensity exercise. Just as we would train for a sport or train to run further/faster so we don't kill our joints and muscles, our dogs will need to do the same. If you're not sure if a specific type of exercise would be good for your dog, talk to your Vet! In the meantime, keep the activity sessions short and successful, with limited jumping/quick turns. ​

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Stage 3: The Cool-Down

After exercise, always end with a cool down period. In my opinion, this can make or break their behavior when they come home or come into the house. Lack of proper cool down can directly lead to remaining in a high arousal state. This may cause you to directly end up with a dog who can't self-regulate from that high arousal and acts out (i.e. mouthy play, humping, jumping, destructive behaviors, resource guarding, redirection to other pets).

That being said, don't discount the more distanced antecedents (the warm up and chosen activity). Even if you cool down your dog after a stressful activity or lack of warm up, you can less directly see poor ability to regulate emotions after finishing the cool down.
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The cool down could include activities such as chewing (or...blanket sucking - as my dog demos in the video below), using a lick mat (pictured), or intentional relaxation exercises

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In Summary...

Set your intention for your next outing with your dog! What's your warm-up, chosen activity, and cool-down plan? Comment below or over in my Facebook Post