After my analysis of my dogs behaviour comments from all of you (thanks), we have been trying to get our girl more running time. This was easy on the weekend, but not as easy on a workday.
Yesterday, was a dog walker day, and the one day this week, Lee was alone all day. I was very nervous that she may be destructive. In the morning before I left for work, I went out into the backyard and did everything I could think of to get her to run and play. I threw the ball, but it was me who ended up playing fetch alone. Lee looked at me for a few minutes, standing in the rain, running after her ball, turned around and went back inside. She doesn't love the rain, and would much rather spend her time inside.
What are the odds that she will spend her day laying quietly and being good? Fingers crossed!
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| Lee, chil-axing on a rainy day. |
My fingers are crossed! I can't wait til you go home now.
ReplyDeleteOn rainy or cold days, you can always play indoor fetch. Connected rooms, a long hallway, carpeted stairs, whatever. You don't need a lot of room. Just make sure she can stop before she hits a wall or furniture.
ReplyDeleteI have a friend with a small yard; her dogs main conditioning program involves hundreds of fetches per day up the stairs to the second floor.
You also want to make sure her nails are short. Some dogs are really bad about snagging and breaking them on carpet.
Think about adding obstacles to jump over to make her work harder (a pile of pillows, boxes, etc). Almost like an indoor Agility course.
Believe it or not, a good, intense game of indoor fetch is about as much work as full-out running in a big yard. I believe it has something to do with the short distance acceleration and stopping working a different set of muscles. Whatever the reason, it keeps us sane through the winter when it's too cold, too dark, or the yard is iced over.
I will have to try it. We do have a hall and stairs that would be safe to play in. My husband keeps trying to play in the living room, but I just picture the ball going through the TV!
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