Do you think dogs get bored if they do the same walk everyday?

[FiveHoursSleep]

I've always assumed they do, so try and walk mine in a different place every day of the week.
But I've noticed a lot of people seem to do the same walk everyday and today was speaking to a friend who does this and asked if she didn't worry about her dog getting bored.
She looked at me as if I was mad, and said Of course not, it's a dog!
Maybe I am mad? What do you you think?
BTW I get bored if I walk in the same place 2 days in a row, so it's possible this is more my problem than my dogs' problem!

[SpicyPear]

I don't think you are mad. It's more stimulating for dogs to have varied walks. My pup is visbly exhausted after a trip somewhere new. Victoria Stilwell definitely advises varying walks.

[DeepRedBetty]

I certainly try to use several different walks, I think they do find it more stimulating, and even more importantly, I'd die of boredom if I looked at the same view every single day!

[higgle]

Mine likes doing the same walk every day, although we do change it a bit and he gets longer more varied walks at weekends. He likes to sniff in his special places, work out whether other dogs have pissed on them and meet his special friends who do the same circuit

[Onlyaphase]

Yes, they do get bored. At least, one of mine does - the more intelligent of the two gets bored if he does the same walk all the time, and starts playing up. The thick one, not so much.

If I do different circular walks each day, on a rotation of about 4 or 5 walks, he is perfectly behaved. If I do the same walk for a few days his behaviour noticeably deteriorates. He also prefers walks with lots of other dogs around. So, no, I don't think you're mad.

[needastrongone]

Oh god yes I am sure they do!

Only have a puppy, but initially, the garden was The Best Thing Ever. He hated his walks at first. Whined liked mad.

Now, the garden is still great and he is happy to play there but, having had two days of walking with my friend and her dogs, through a couple of fields etc, he realises what fun Outside is!!

I would hate the same route, why wouldn't they?

[peeriebear]

My dog is quite old and, if truth be told, not at all smart. He likes having the same walk, he gets to smell all the smells he left the day before! When we get to the jitty leading to the fields from the street he gets very excited and whines to be allowed to run off. Silly old sod :)

[ChickensHaveNoEyebrows]

I think they could. I take the dog on the school run but try and vary our route a bit.

[Floralnomad]

I think it depends what the walk entails . When I'm doing an on lead walk in the morning / night we vary the route all the time but when we go out at lunch for the off lead hour we invariably go to the same place and he doesn't get bored with that! I'm in a difficult position though because I can only let him off in certain places ( this field/beaches) as he chases wildlife / livestock and hence I can only let him off where I know he is safe .

[littlewhitebag]

I like to vary the walks with my pup. Off lead on the golf course round different parts or beaches and on lead walks around town. Sometimes i take her to different parks too. It's more fun that way for us both.

[digerd]

Dogs are not so much interested in the views but more so the smells.
In my area there is a popular dog walk along the banks of the river, and as narrow, they are often off the lead. There is another walk on the opposite side of the small side road, where I see people walking there dogs several times a day. The smells are always changing, as there are many dogs.

[Allinonebucket]

I have never thought about this, but I imagine there will be different things to smell on the same walk each time, but then in a new place, there will be an even wider variety of smells!

[oneforthemoney]

Not my dog. She gets ridiculously excited by everything no matter where she goes.

She is a springer, though and very into sniffing and generally enthusiastic about everything.

She doesnt do the same route every single dsy, but there is a particular walk that is easier for me to manage with the buggy, which we tend to do in the week.

[TwoFacedCows]

my dogs have 4-5 different 2-6 mile walks that we do on a regular rotation, so that they dont get bored!

The also get to come on days out with us to the beach etc. they love new places!

[Bowlersarm]

I think they do get bored. Term time I walk my dogs with various friends with various dogs on various walks. They come back knackered! In holiday time I just walk my dogs locally on the footpaths near to us day in day out. Then they bug me all day. They are definitely more stimulated on the variety of walks in term time and sleep all day. The local walk they do day after day means they are much less settled for the day and much morE demanding on me!

[Whippoorwhill]

Truthfully I don't know if my dogs would prefer the same walk every day because I'd get bored with it. :)

They have always seemed excited by new places and more excited by familiar places if a couple of days have gone by. Well, all except Pupiranha, because she is the most ridiculously timid dog ever and outside is scary. New places for her are terrifying! With her we have to walk the new place with Old Dog first a couple of times and then she can just about cope with going there by herself. Lord knows what we are going to do when Old Dog dies. She's got cancer and a heart condition so it's only a matter of time.

[KiwiJude]

Our boxer loves going for walks anywhere and does not seem to mind if we go the same route a couple of days in a row. We don't go far as he is getting on and runs out of puff pretty quickly these days, and he loves to stop and sniff here, there and everywhere so it can take us a long time to go not very far sometimes. I liken his sniffing etc to reading the daily paper - there are places he absolutely has to stop and spend ages sniffing, which I guess is a bit like me turning to the funnies or the crossword first.

[mrsjay]

My dog goes on 2 different walks with dds dd1 takes him 1 way dd2 takes him another and dh likes to mix it up yesterday was a long walk and he was knackered when he got back, dd2 so I am not sure he always seems to pull towards dd2 walk though so maybe he likes the routine ?

I dont walk him

[PeriPathetic]

I don't know! I'm pretty sure mine gets bored, BUT also has a touch of OCD sowe can only turn left out of the gate If I try to vary the day by going right, she digs her heels in and will. not. budge.

[mrsjay]

my dog does that peri and dd2 usually takes him when she gets in from school yesterday dh took him before that they were away for hours, but still when dd came in at 4 he was pacing and doing his cmon them are we going so i think they are creatures of habit sometimes,

[iseenodust]

Ours likes a bit of variety and goes nutty with excitment in the garden if you tell him he's going in the car. He also knows the work seaside!

[iseenodust]

doh - word not work. Work for me though getting him to come back on a beach.

[Katizzle]

I think they still enjoy it but I think they do get more excited when they get to see ESPECIALLY smell something new. =)

[LynetteScavo]

I think some dogs would get bored, like some people.

Some dogs would like the familiarity.

Like people all dogs are different.

[DiamondInTheRuff]

I think it depends on the song and depends on the walk, but yes, on the whole, it's good to vary things.

Our girl is very nervy so if I have to walk her alone we go to the little woodland nearby. She needs that familiarity of somewhere she knows well. When we're walking both of our dogs we go all over the place exploring. Unfortunately they have very different exercise needs so sometimes we need to walk separately (girl is 7YO and has arthritis, boy is 12 months and, well, bonkers!).

They're always exhausted when they've been somewhere new though, I love seeing them sprawled in their beds, snoring away.

I am at the OCD dogs!