# How many miles do you walk your Golden each day? And do you enjoy it?



## Alfie's Girl (May 6, 2010)

I walk Alfie between 2-3 miles per day! (2 when I'm feeling lazy!) but he's only 5 3/4 months old!!! We walk about a mile in the woods in the morning so he gets a run around offf leash and 1-2 miles around the neighbourhood in the evening. I really enjoy our walks and I hope to walk longer as he gets older! We dont walk fast, just saunter along and enjoy the scenery. I'm not a fan of a fast walk - I think you miss so much when your focus is on walking as fast as you can to burn those calories and get fit!!!! I prefer to have fun - Alfie's currently enjoying chasing the leaves and the chesnuts on our walks in the woods! 

So how many miles do you walk per day? Do you enjoy them and take in the fresh air and scenery around you? Has your Golden encouraged you to get outdoors and WALK?


----------



## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

Until Jacks was 1, we only walked half a mile every day (worried about hips and elbows). Then we upped that to 1.5 miles. When he turned two, we upped that to what we walk right now - 3 miles. 

The longest we've ever walked was a 9 mile hike. <- I thought it was only a 5 mile hike when we started, so you can imagine how much I was starting to panic about halfway through. Jacks was a trooper though.


----------



## fostermom (Sep 6, 2007)

I walk my dogs on lead 2 miles a day 4-5 days a week. Those walks are for exercise and are fast paced. Another reason that they're fast paced is because I work all day and by the time I get home, get changed, get the dogs all leashed and harnessed up, loaded into the car and hooked in, drive to the park where I walk them, walk them, load them back into the car, drive home, unharness and unleash them, it's already 6 PM. Then I have to feed them and then make and eat my dinner. So time is pretty limited.

On the weekends that we go to the lake, they get a 2 mile hike off-leash in the morning and at least another mile in the afternoon. Plus plenty of playing outside.


----------



## Maxs Mom (Mar 22, 2008)

My dogs and I walk a lot. Our "walk" is about 3-4 miles, I try to 'walk' it 3-4 times a week. With Belle twice a week we bike the distance (strong trot out of her for the duration) and Teddi bikes once a week, don't want to over do because of her elbows. Depending on the weather and the time I have I might moderate it but I do try to get my girls out minimum of 5 times a week in some manner.

I love to take my dogs for LONG off the beaten path walks when we can on weekends. Let them be dogs, run, play, roll. 

Keep in mind Belle has agility class and trials in the course of the week a lot. Teddi gets two days a week off, she doesn't need the physical impact and that helps me with the schedule. She gets Wed off when I take Belle to class, and Saturdays, unless I don't have plans for the weekend then we go do something fun. Art is responsible for getting Quinn out unless he is working (Saturdays) or if he asks me. 

There is a park we go to up north. It has MILES of trails, and it's right on Lake Huron so we can swim too, dogs are welcome in the lake there. My dogs LOVE it there.


----------



## Cathy's Gunner (Dec 4, 2008)

Gunner and I walk every day, year round. Spring, Summer and fall we walk from 2-4 miles a day. The weekends we usually go twice. Winter I cut it in half depending how cold and amount of snow on the ground. Some people don't clear their walks. We live in the city. We also go to a park once a week and run off leash for 45 min. to an hour.


----------



## iansgran (May 29, 2010)

I just walk Jaro a block myself (I'm and old grandma) but my daughter walks him at least a mile almost every day and we run a lot in the backyard off leash. Grandpa keeps promising to walk him, not so much so far.


----------



## Jackson'sMom (Oct 13, 2007)

I walk the girls a mile every morning. I would enjoy it more if I didn't ALWAYS have a big bag of poop in one hand. Mila isn't up for a lot of walking, although sometimes on Sunday we will do 1-1/2 miles, with lots of time to sniff and explore.


----------



## mm03gn (Sep 24, 2008)

I just found this cool thing: *Google Map Pedometer

*I mapped our usual route and we walk 1.82 miles most days...


----------



## fostermom (Sep 6, 2007)

mm03gn said:


> I just found this cool thing: *Google Map Pedometer
> 
> *I mapped our usual route and we walk 1.82 miles most days...


Very cool! I bookmarked the page.


----------



## Ranger (Nov 11, 2009)

Ranger and I used to walk about 4-6 miles a day, broken down into 2-3 walks per day. In the spring, we were hiking 10-15 mile trails on the weekends which he LOVED...I bet he walked close to twice that since he'd run off, come back, run off, etc the whole time.

Now, my mom walks him close to 2 miles a day and I walk him close to 1 mile so he walks about 3 miles a day on leash. Twice a week he goes to the off leash park and runs around for 1-3 hours so who knows how many miles he does!

And yes, I enjoy walking Ranger no matter what the weather! Summer, spring, winter and fall! Fall and winter are probably my favourite seasons to walk him...I'm always glad to get out and enjoy the weather and see the sights - it makes it even better to be doing it with my best friend!


----------



## Alfie's Girl (May 6, 2010)

Thanks to all of you for responding!  

I'm having to walk him a lot atm as he has SO much energy right now. In the last few weeks he just gone from being tired from a 20 min walk to not getting tired till he's walked about 2 miles......! I was very careful to walk no longer than about 20 mins (slowly!) with him till he was around 5 months anyway. Those hips!!! I was told that once he gets to around 6 months then he could take a lot more. He's a pretty big boy though and for the last couple of months I've had to feed him more than was reccomended on the pkt (under vets supervision of course!) as he wasn't putting on any weight -and that was when we were only walking a very short distance!!!


----------



## msdogs1976 (Dec 21, 2007)

mm03gn said:


> I just found this cool thing: *Google Map Pedometer
> 
> *I mapped our usual route and we walk 1.82 miles most days...


Nice tool. Looks like on an average day, about 1.5 miles per walk twice a day. Two days a week, we go to a hiking trail and we walk 5 miles plus he gets in some swimming time. On those days, we cut out our normal morning walk.

I usually enjoy the walks. That is one reason I got him, to encourage me to get out and exercise. But on cold days, which are few here, I have a tough time getting out. But I usually do anyway.


----------



## Goldilocks (Jun 3, 2007)

We average probably 2.5 miles per day. I usually enjoy the walk as do the dogs!


----------



## GINGIOLA (Oct 14, 2010)

Ginger and I walk every day, for about 3 miles. In the weekends we usually go in country and run off leash for 2.5 hours.


----------



## New Golden Mom (Dec 17, 2008)

Rufus and I were walking 8-10 kms a day, seven days a week until July when it got so hot. Then we scaled back to 4 -6 kms every day. Now that the cool Fall weather is here, we're back to about 6-8 kms and we'll work back up to 8-10...in rain, cold, snow we're out there walking. We do several routes that include going through town so Rufus can stop and talk to all his neighbourhood friends (everyone on town knows him), running through big open fields and going on trails through the woods. Remy is soon going to be big enough to join us on the longer routes!


----------



## Sophie_Mom (Jan 21, 2009)

Google map pedometer is the coolest thing!  Thanks for sharing!!


----------



## Merlins mom (Jun 20, 2007)

mm03gn said:


> I just found this cool thing: *Google Map Pedometer
> 
> *I mapped our usual route and we walk 1.82 miles most days...


That's really cool! I never knew how far we walk until I did this because there are paths and golf course areas that we cover. It looks like we walk almost 2 miles, usually twice a day.


----------



## GoldenJoyx'stwo (Feb 25, 2007)

Only about a mile daily, but it's pretty much uphill all the way home. They also do 18 stairs over and over and over on a daily basis...They do get more exercise than this, but it's outdoors in the yard.


----------



## Retrieverlover (Feb 8, 2010)

Do they have a pedometer for dogs yet because Nitro and Bueller walk around 10miles when they play together


----------



## Muddypaws (Apr 20, 2009)

We don't walk daily but we are trying to get better. I do run them around a backyard and they must clock several miles playing fetch.

Our normal walk is about 1.91 miles (thank you mm03gn) but we take longer walks often. Darby is such a pleasure to walk but Kirby..... bounces like a nut and if she sees a squirrel it's all over. 

So it's 50/50, if Kirby walked better I would go more often and if I go more often she would walk better. Also, I am not to the point that I can walk them together so 1 - 2 mile walk for them is a 4 mile walk for me and the knees, feet and back just aren't up to that these days.


----------



## Karen2 (Jan 5, 2009)

The pedometer thing is great, our normal short walk is 1.31 miles. The long should be double that at least (still need to plot).
We had cut back her walking because of her limp, yesterday she did ok on the short route, but this morning she had a pretty good head bob going the last stretch.
We maybe will do the short walk every other day and the mini walk(3/4 mile) opposite days for a bit.
Karen


----------



## LibertyME (Jan 6, 2007)

THANKS!!!
1.4 miles per day....plus extra off leash running and biking.



mm03gn said:


> I just found this cool thing: *Google Map Pedometer
> 
> *I mapped our usual route and we walk 1.82 miles most days...


----------



## Debles (Sep 6, 2007)

All I can say is LOL!!! I can barely walk a block with my disabilities. Our goldens get their exercise from retrieving. Thank God they all love it and live to retrieve. can already tell Sasha is the same way.
My husband can walk them though. : )


----------



## spruce (Mar 13, 2008)

2-5 "formal" (on leash, paved trail) miles/day. 

this walking is really for me, dogs gets lots of exercise/play at home. 
Recently my back was a problem & cure is walking, walking, walking...dogs love it when my back's out.


----------



## Dallas Gold (Dec 22, 2007)

If you have a smart phone that has GPS there is a very cool FREE app that will track your miles, give you a map (drawing and satellite) and give you speed, avg speed and calories burned. I love it--Google *Sporty Pal* and go to their website. I've used this app since Januray and it is fabulous! 

I am a confirmed walker, not only for my health/sanity but for the dog! Depending on the heat/humidity, the dog gets on average a 3 mile walk in the a.m. and a 1 mile walk in the evening. I put him inside and finish my walk in the morning for a 4 mile a.m. walk--great destressor and perfect way to start the day (after coffee). Lately I'm walking a dog at a local pet orphanage a mile a day so I'm getting between 5 and 6 miles per day. I'm working off the pounds I gained from our vacation month and we ate out too much.


----------



## seamas2008 (May 25, 2009)

Seamas walks me approx 2 miles to the pub daily and we stumble home. So that's 2 miles there and 2.4 the way back.

:wavey:


----------



## hat trick (Jan 22, 2009)

I use to walk my boy Fletcher about 8 miles broken down in 2 walks 4 days a week and 1 1/2 miles 3 days a week. Unfortunately he has developed laryngeal paralysis and I was only able to walk him around the block this summer due to the humidity. Now that the weather has cooled off we're able to walk about 3/4 of a mile but much slower than we used to. Taking my dog for a walk is my most favorite thing to do. Nothing like having my dog by my side and feeling that worn leather leash in my hand.


----------



## Katie and Paddy's Mum (Mar 31, 2010)

mm03gn said:


> I just found this cool thing: *Google Map Pedometer*
> 
> I mapped our usual route and we walk 1.82 miles most days...


 
Thanks Melissa for this tool...it is one of the coolest things. Ever.

I really used to have no idea how far we walked on a daily basis, as most of the time we are off-path and following trails. Using this tool, I was able to plot our daily route and get a really accurate picture of how far we go daily.

Barring any extreme weather (high heat or super cold windchills) our daily walks with Katie work out to be approximately 6 miles daily (or 9.65km). Katie is off-leash 90% of the time, and with all her running back and forth she must do close to double at least. This is usually divided into 3 main walks, and one before bed pee-run. 

On the weekend, she gets walked further than that, as usually my husband and I try to do special routes just to make it more fun for her.

As for whether I enjoy it, it is honestly my favourite time of the day. Katie literally comes alive outside ... she is at her happiest, so seeing her in her element like that brings me so much joy. We go in the rain, the snow, the wind and all -- we just dress accordingly (at least I do!). The only walk that is really express is her before bed pee. That is usually quick and done with purpose ... otherwise, we are just outside for the pure pleasure of being outside!

Kim


----------



## jwemt81 (Aug 20, 2008)

Tucker usually goes running with me, so he often gets a 4-5 mile run about 4 or 5 days a week. Ty is too young to run with me, so he gets about a 2 mile walk each day, plus we do lots of hiking.


----------



## nixietink (Apr 3, 2008)

seamas2008 said:


> Seamas walks me approx 2 miles to the pub daily and we stumble home. So that's 2 miles there and 2.4 the way back.
> 
> :wavey:


LOL!!! LOVE it!


----------



## jackie_hubert (Jun 2, 2010)

That's a cool tool. Looks like we walk about 3 miles a day broken down into two walks. About 1/4 of that is off leash each time. Some days we'll do it in one shot. Can't wait till he's old enough to go running with us.


----------



## hollyk (Feb 21, 2009)

mm03gn said:


> I just found this cool thing: *Google Map Pedometer
> 
> *I mapped our usual route and we walk 1.82 miles most days...


How cool is this. I Love it. Thanks.


----------



## lgnutah (Feb 26, 2007)

The other day I was in a little shop on the street where I often walk Brooks. The woman asked if I had lost Brooks earlier in the week and I said No, why? and she said because a man had driven up to their shop with a male Golden in his car and was asking if anyone knew who the dog belonged to. They thought it was Brooks (but they didn't know my name) and they said they told the man, Oh, the lady who owns this dog will be so upset because she is so devoted to him. We see her walking him every day, no matter whether it is raining, hot or cold.
But I was thinking how lucky I am to have Brooks so I can get out every day and walk, no matter the weather. I mean, I probably wouldn't get my umbrella and walk in a rainstorm if I didn't have Brooks, would I?
Or if I did, people wouldn't call me devoted, they'd call me demented!


----------



## Alfie's Girl (May 6, 2010)

lgnutah said:


> The other day I was in a little shop on the street where I often walk Brooks. The woman asked if I had lost Brooks earlier in the week and I said No, why? and she said because a man had driven up to their shop with a male Golden in his car and was asking if anyone knew who the dog belonged to. They thought it was Brooks (but they didn't know my name) and they said they told the man, Oh, the lady who owns this dog will be so upset because she is so devoted to him. We see her walking him every day, no matter whether it is raining, hot or cold.
> But I was thinking how lucky I am to have Brooks so I can get out every day and walk, no matter the weather. I mean, I probably wouldn't get my umbrella and walk in a rainstorm if I didn't have Brooks, would I?
> Or if I did, people wouldn't call me devoted, they'd call me demented!


Aww, I know what you mean. Alfie got me up at just gone 7 and the first thing I did is stumble downstairs, put on my coat and boots and took him for a walk! Didnt want to get up and go out in the cold - but I'd do it for him!  By the time I get back I'm wide awake and calm and ready to go!


----------



## Dallas Gold (Dec 22, 2007)

lgnutah said:


> The other day I was in a little shop on the street where I often walk Brooks. The woman asked if I had lost Brooks earlier in the week and I said No, why? and she said because a man had driven up to their shop with a male Golden in his car and was asking if anyone knew who the dog belonged to. They thought it was Brooks (but they didn't know my name) and they said they told the man, Oh, the lady who owns this dog will be so upset because she is so devoted to him. We see her walking him every day, no matter whether it is raining, hot or cold.
> But I was thinking how lucky I am to have Brooks so I can get out every day and walk, no matter the weather. I mean, I probably wouldn't get my umbrella and walk in a rainstorm if I didn't have Brooks, would I?
> Or if I did, people wouldn't call me devoted, they'd call me demented!


Something similar happened to me. I walk my dogs so much and people think they recognize them. Several years ago there was a family with a Golden resembling Toby that got out quite often (kids, unlocked gate.....). The neighbors were constantly calling telling me they spotted Toby along one of the side streets. I had a heck of a time convincing them the dog wasn't my Toby! I told DH if we ever were able to get the dog into our house I'd dognap it but I guess I couldn't walk it like our others! 

After we lost Barkley we had so many people in the neighborhoods we walk stop and ask us about our older Golden. We even had a man driving by stop early one morning and ask about him. 

I'm sure the neighbors sometimes think we are nuts when it is pouring outside and we are out there in our rain slicks, big water resistant hats walking the dog.


----------



## jackie_hubert (Jun 2, 2010)

Dallas Gold said:


> I'm sure the neighbors sometimes think we are nuts when it is pouring outside and we are out there in our rain slicks, big water resistant hats walking the dog.


When it's pouring here (what 60% of the time?) all the ********s come out with their dogs. I have a green one-size-fits-all rainsuit that I wear and rainboots (takes like 15 minutes to get geared up). My husband calls me the swamp monster when I wear it and refuses to be seen with me. Cars have been known to honk at me. lol. Cosmo looooooves the rain and gets crazy zoomies running through the tall wet grass in the fields.


----------



## Chelseanr (Oct 3, 2010)

Apparently I walk Rowan about 3 miles a day, 1.5 of that is a structured on leash walk in the morning, then at night I take him down to the school field and walk 3-4 laps around it (its huge!). I was puking all last night and i still took the booger out for his morning walk, the guilt kills me otherwise lol.


----------



## Merlins mom (Jun 20, 2007)

jackie_hubert said:


> When it's pouring here (what 60% of the time?) all the ********s come out with their dogs. I have a green one-size-fits-all rainsuit that I wear and rainboots (takes like 15 minutes to get geared up). My husband calls me the swamp monster when I wear it and refuses to be seen with me. Cars have been known to honk at me. lol. Cosmo looooooves the rain and gets crazy zoomies running through the tall wet grass in the fields.


This just cracks me up!!! I think we need a picture of you in your swamp monster suit!!


----------



## jackie_hubert (Jun 2, 2010)

lol. The forum bleaped out a word that was totally not a bad word...but could be taken that way in some contexts: H-A-R-D-C-O-R-E-S.


----------

