Is this the craziest excuse for not walking the dog?

[knittynoodle]

Its bad for their legs???

My friend can be very lazy at times and she said this today. Its a labrador. Poor thing. (Or maybe this is true and IABU to think shes nuts)

Dog lovers, help me out!

Does it have arthristis of some sort/problems with it's hips?

Even then I think a walk would be necessary, even if just 20mins or something.

My DMIL walks her dog about 50 yards a day, all because it got a fright from another dog when it was a puppy. It is now about 14!

I really don't understand - the encouragement to get out and about is one of my favourite things about having a dog.

It can be a bad idea to over-walk very young dogs. I don't walk mine for long anymore- he had very bad untreated breaks as a pub (rescue) and is arthritic now so he toddles around the village and no further.

For a healthy, adult dog - I can't see how it can be bad. Certainly the health implications of no exercise would be much worse than any reason I can think of.

PUP. He was never a young pub.

apologies for spelling in my post

Labs can suffer with hip dysplasia, mine does quite badly. Vets advice was not to walk him.

Hes not got any problems. She lives next to a park so its not she'd have to walk for miles to get to an open space.

Poor doggy.

Is it an elderly dog?

We have a one yr old lab and on the vet's (and fellow lab owners) advice we have followed the 5 minute rule. So a 6 month old would need 6X5=30 minutes per day and an 8 month old would need 8X5=40 minutes per day. This is to try and minimise hip problems(which labs are prone to) in later life. I don't know if it really makes a difference, but we were not happy to risk it. We were also told to avoid letting her use stairs and to not let her jump in and out of the car.

She has a walk everyday and has the other half as off lead time over the forest. So far she's in great shape.

Maybe your friend has been given the same advice.

Barring known health problems or if the dog is a puppy, in general YANBU and it sounds like a dreadful excuse.

How old is pooch?

Sorry, I didn't read the OP properly. Do you mean that your friend doesn't walk the dog at all?

I have a doodle and my vet said not to over walk him as it can bad for him on the Lab side for the hips.
He doesn't have hip dysplasia but they thought it's a good idea not to go mad with the walkies!!

Odd thing for a vet to say on the one hand, PC, given that both breeds, labs and poodles, are traditionally working dogs.

On the other hand there is so much unscrupulous breeding of all dogs, especially these doodle mixes, that the vet is probably erring on the side of caution. So many of them do not come from hip scored parents and so may well end up with problems in years to come.

I would add that i havent taken the vet's advice completely. My lab was diagnosed with severe hip dysplasia when i got him, he was 2 years old. I have always taken him for gentle on the lead walks, he is now 7 and he isnt in any pain.

I too think that vets can be a little too cautious sometimes.

If there isn't a medical reason then she is being very lazy and horrible. Can she take the dog to swim somewhere instead of walking? (If it is indeed a medical reason that is).

I know DBF. Not that I could get my hyperactive ball of fluff to calm down anyway!

We can't give our dog long walks. He'd had an operation on his knee just after we got him, so he was on restricted exercise. Now he has arthritis and breathing problems.

He still gets short walks though.

Does she not give it even short walks?

i used to have a peke, it wouldnt walk anywhere! i used to put it in the basket under the pram and take it out

I have 2 westies. One would walk until his legs fell off and the other will only walk between her food bowl and her bed.