Dog Exercise?

I want to know if I'm giving my dog enough exercise, because he seems like he's still entergetic all day long. He is a ten month old American Bulldog and I take him for a walk every day. We walk a little over half an hour. Is this enough exercise? He is still so rambunctious when we get home though. I'm afraid he's also getting kind of bored. He has been doing a lot of barking and is chewing anything he can get his mouth on. He's chewed chair legs inside and outside. He is a great pet and we go for daily walks. Sometimes I will take him running in the morning, but I only do this about once a week. Every once in a while I'll take him hiking and swimming at the nature park. I was thinking of hooking him up to my bike for more exercise. Is this a good idea? What about weight pulling? Is that a good thing to get involved in? What about tracking? I want to get him into something that will let him expel all his extra energy.

Get 2 balls... for him I think they should be kongs and throw one out.. as he runs to get it as he is picking it up call *bring*... make a big ta-do as he comes back to you. When he is close - show him the other kong and say *drop*... when he does then toss the kong you have in the opposite direction as you did the last one... as he runs to pick that one up you scarf up the one he dropped... yell *bring* to him again and repeat for several minutes several times a day.... this can be done in a small back yard if need be.... you may need a 30-40 foot long line for him to drag if your yard is unfenced.

About biking... get a *springer attachment* for your bike and keep him on a 4 ft leash as well.... great way to run your dog and they learn so easily...

Walking is good too but he is a working dog and needs to be worked... you might even learn how to track him.

to find a breed club so you have someone to talk to and learn how to do more things with your dog - go to:
http://www.awdf.net

Good Luck,
H.O.T. Dog
Handler Owner Trainer of GSD's
Member U.S.A & A.W.D.F.
http://360.yahoo.com/sewwoodyou

no weigthpulling before he is fully developed you can harm his bonestructure

carefull with biking as well, sertainly do not make him do more then a trott

i'd walk him more, hour to hour and a half, on a long leash so he can explore and use his head, this way he both get excersise and mental stimulation

when both your body and brain is tired then you calm down, if just one is then you become reseless despite being tired in either mind or body...you have the need to be tired in both

get him a kong toy as well, should entertain him some, you can stuff it with various treats

How about teaching him to pull you on a scooter? I've seen so many dogs doing this this summer. See the website below - it's neat.

Sorry but I think you need to spend at least an hour a day - if not more - exercising this dog. Depending on your schedule - maybe you could take a quick morning walk before work/school. Then take him to your local off-leash park for an hour in the afternoon/evening. He needs more activity. I also like your idea of weight pulling - here's a site but I'm not sure which club is "better" - there were several.

RE: his teeth. At 10 months, teething should be slowing down. Have your vet check his teeth to see if all the adult teeth are in - just to be sure.

I would recommend 45 minutes minimum or a 30 minute brisk walk, or maybe 2-3 short walks throughout the day if you're up to it. He's a puppy, and he's teething, so he's bound to chew on things - strong, durable toys like kongs are good for this, and a bitter apple spray [for things you *don't* want him to chew on] apparently works wonders, and doesn't stain your stuff.

He is definitely too young for weight pull, as it could deform his bone growth, but you could research it while he's growing up for the future if you're really interested in it. I think your safest bet would be to take him on 3 walks daily if that would fit your schedule, for only around 15-20 minutes each, to get his beans out all through the day. Also, if he's into playing games like fetch, you can tire him out that way.

Hiking and swimming is good, though I'm not sure if he could handle biking at his age. At 1.5-2 yrs he should be matured enough to begin harder 'workouts', but make sure that the transition to them is fairly slow or you could overwork him.

Good luck.

http://www.american-bulldog.com/weight_p...
http://life.familyeducation.com/dogs/exe...