Do dogs get walked less in winter

[disneyspendingmoney]

This is my first winter with dogs and I find walking them to be a bit of a chore. But I've noticed a lot less dogs out and about, I initially out this down to it being dark most of the time when I'm out with mine or us my dog walking routine a bit excessive.
6am I take them for 20min toilet walk, then at 7:40 I walk them and dc2 to school, drop dc2 off at 8 and walk them till 8:30, then go to work. 1pm I pop home and give them a 20min toilet walk. DC1 gives them a 20min toilet walk at 4, then at 6:30 I take them out until 8. Then at about 10:45 give them a 45min bedtime walk.

I've started to notice that there are hardly any dogs out and about, I've encountered none this evening, which is quite good really as ddog2 seems to wind other dogs up.

Is there something I don't know about winter dog walking?

My dog wouldn't get that in summer! Why all the toilet walks? Do you not have a garden? Mine gets one 45ish mine walk a day most days unless we go out somewhere nice to walk then it's longer. I do probably take him out for longer in summer.

If the weather it terrible then I often don't walk my dog. This is because he is walked plenty in the week at daycare and I have a big garden where we can exercise and not get muddy and can dash out to avoid the worst of the weather. I also find mental stimulation just as effective to tire my dog than a walk.

I don't walk my dog in the dark as he hates it and is very skittish. In fact he tries to hide behind my legs a lot of the time if I try.

Mine gets 2 walks a day , generally an hour in the morning never earlier than 9:30 and 30/40 minutes in the afternoon which is always in daylight so the time varies with the seasons . The only exceptions to the schedule are if we are out with him for the day somewhere or if it’s very hot when he goes out much earlier and makes do with one walk

What dog breed do you have as that sounds like a lot in the day? Would they miss the walks if you reduced some? A couple of walks is usually ample- one morning, one evening. If you really felt like it a afternoon walk. But I don’t think you need to be spending the amount of hours walking that you’re doing.

I do agree though, I think with darker nights people just walk earlier in the evening.

And on the walking I tend to do one off lead walk in the day with an occasional second on lead walk. However, often the second walk doesn't happen and we do training instead or other games.

That's a lot of walks! I'm not criticising btw, your dogs are very fortunate.

I try to walk mine twice a day but it's not always possible. They always have a minimum of one hour and get put out in the garden several times a day, but just sit at the door wanting to be back in their bed. Fair enough!

First I don't have a garden, second they are my X's dogs, who can't take them because she lives in a HMO and has lead me be to believe I'm being cruel by not walking them enough. as to all the toilet walks, that's what my ex said they needed. She made herself out to be an expert on dogs.

It now may also explain why when I say walkies they go and hide under the sofa, I was always under the impression, you showed a dog it's lead it would go bouncing towards the door. Not these two.

I’m sorry that your ex has made you feel guilty about the walking. But honestly less sometimes is more, they’d probably be happy with your morning walk, and an evening walk, and let out for the toilet. If they want more they’ll tell you.

When I would look after my brothers dog I would walk her 3 times a day and that’s as she would literally sit and stare at me until i said would she like a walk.. She wasn’t walked everyday by him or his partner though so that’s probably why.

Definitely. Even if it's the same number of walks, the length may be dramatically reduced in bad weather. Noone enjoys wet, cold walks in our house. Even the dogs.

I think it depends on the dog and owner. Mine gets the same walks in winter as in summer (about 2 x 1 hour). It's just in winter we both get a lot muddier!

That is a lot of walking op. What breed are they? I appreciate you don't have a garden, but your loo walks are quite long. I had my first dog in a flat, and, apart from one long walk a day (yorkie) her loo breaks were about 5 minutes. She soon realised that a quick trip out (often with me in my pyjamas) meant she had to hurry up and go to the loo. I think you could quite easily drop the 6.30 to 8 walk, and just replace with a pee trip.
My current dog gets about 45 mins in the am, and about 30 in the pm. (toy poodle) plus, in warm weather, access to a garden all day.
The other thing about so many walks is you must be covering the same ground many times, which must be boring for your dogs. Do you take them somewhere else to walk, perhaps in the car, on your days off? Dogs love variety. If they are not keen to walk, perhaps they know the form and find it unstimulating.

That's a lot of walking even without a garden.

Ours gets:

• Morning walk between my first cup of coffee and my breakfast.
• Out in the garden at lunchtime for a wee.
• Afternoon/evening walk anytime between 4pm and 7pm
• Out in the garden for a wee before bed.

Walks are at least 30mins but could be up to an hour. In the cold, dark weather it could be two 30min walks. In summer it could be two 45-60 minute walks (pub optional on a Friday evening).

In your case, substitute a quick walk around the block for the wees in the garden. Drop the 6am walk and make the late evening walk 5-10mins (until they wee).

I would say yes, purely because of the amount of dog poo! I've got a theory that the feckless, who don't pick up, are also lazy so don't go out as much in the winter.

Our Goldie gets ( weekdays)
Garden wee at 7 am
20 minute walk at 9.30
20 minutes at 2.30
30 minutes at 6
10 minutes for a wee at 9pm
He’s kind of fixed into that timetable now so at 6 he tends to come and sit looking at you pointedly
He doesn’t care about the weather so we can’t either!

aquila , good for you there seems to be more poo than ever round here I think people use the dark as an excuse to not pick up .

What breed is he?

My dachshund hates the rain so we could swap a walk with training and games. But I appreciate not all breeds could do this.

Poo bags, what's the deal with this. Yesterday I walked past this bush that's accumulating a crap tonne bags tied to it. What's the point? The wind shreds them and the shit falls on the ground. Someone goes to the trouble of picking it up, bagging it and tying it to a bush? What's the sense in that, the shit bin is only about a 10 min walk from the bush.

disneyspendingmoney I can only assume it's because some people don't like to walk with the bag and pretend that they will come back for it but don't. I have a dickybag I put my poo bags in so my hands are free whilst I walk.

They are 10kg Spitz types. This now may account for why they hide under the sofa when I get their leads out.

Even in summer I have gloves with me to poo bag, in winter it's easier, cos I have them on. They don't poo that much anyway, the vet says they are in excellent condition, cos I was worried they were constipated. Do dogs poo less in winter?

Mine definitely gets less in the Winter. When its dark and cold in the evening I just don't have the motivation to walk for the 2 hours.
He gets a 30 min walk before work, (ideally a short walk midday) and then 2hour walk in the Summer evening, 1hr 15 walk in Winter evenings.
In the Summer we go for more walks and days out at weekends.

Your routine could be a bit much, I would suggest slightly reducing it and perhaps giving them mental stimulation in the form of a treat game, lickimat, kongs, snuffle mats etc

Do they need the 6am toilet walk? Can they hold until you take them out at 7.40 instead?
Rather than the toilet sessions being walks, can you just let them sniff around for as long as they want, rather than walking them on?

Maybe reducing the length of the big walks and giving them a kong when they get back to exercise their mind?

Dogs should definitely enjoy walks. If they hide when you get the leads out, can you postpone that walk?

Definitely less walks in the winter. My dog goes out for about an hour most days, on my day off in the week and on weekends this is often a long, wellie walk with a coffee shop! These walks can be a few hours or more. If it's raining she will dig her heels in and be happier on the sofa, she will refuse to go out even for a quick wee in the cold weather!

Mine get the same walks in winter - hour and a half off lead every day tbh I prefer the winter walks, this summer with the mega heat I had to get up at 5am to walk them I hated that - exercise is a basic daily requirement for all dogs and as important as food and water.

They also get training, brain work eg agility and scentwork and a lot of down time

OP cut out the 10.45pm walk and just give them a 5 min wee and poo break and then bed

Yurgh to abandoned poo bags !

I agree that there might be a lot of negligent owners; but also I think you may not see as many dog owners when you walk on winter evenings because those who have the choice of when to walk, tend to do it during daylight hours.

I know I do anyway! My daschunds get three walks a day. (And I thought we were doing quite well until I saw your regime op!) They happily walk for miles and miles though (except in the rain like yours LittleLongDog! )

Ours go out

• in garden at 6.30 am for quick pee

-at 8 am for 30 mins -at 12.30 for 40 mins -at 7pm for 40 mins -last per run in garden around 9.30/10 pm

But in bad weather in winter, the 12.30 walk gets moved to 2.30pm and doubled in length. They still go out at 7pm but only for 20/ 30 mins.

Why would you walk your less any less in winter than summer. They still need the exercise. You walking routine certaonly seems excessive though.

Mine get an hour and a half around 10am (already been for a wee in the garden). Usually a wee in the garden at 5ish. And then a 30 minute walk at 10pm.

One good walk (an hour maybe) and short toilet walks are plenty for most dogs.
For the toilet ones, literally, out to the nearest patch of grass and home again, trust your own instincts and listen to what the dogs are telling you!