More problems, more exercise...more problems?

​Longer walks. More fetch. Cycling. More dog park trips.

A common response, or rather, remedy, to behavior problems is more exercise. More intensity. More, well, GO!

I'm all for exercising dogs, but here's the question to ask: can you keep up? Really? For how long? If you're a marathon runner, maybe your answers are a bit skewed. But for the rest of us, our dogs will very often be more athletic than we are. They can run longer, faster, and more often. They can chase balls longer than we can throw them. And all that "more"? It's likely increasing their endurance and habituating them to intense physical activity. Meaning you'll need...yep, you guessed it. More!

So, if you find yourself taking the "tire them out" approach but still struggling, let's try taking the concept of "more" and putting our own spin on it.

How about more...

Structure?
Duration work?
Relaxation?
​Patience at thresholds?
Controlled, slow, movement on walks and in the house?
Accountability?

By adding more of all the above, you'll shift gears from focusing solely on your dog's body to focusing heavily on their mind. And believe me, working your dog's brain can yield a far more pooped pooch then hours of running.

To be clear, you should 100% exercise your dog daily, but balancing physical exercise with mental work may just be the ticket to a calmer more peaceful dog.