Vet Nichola Rous has shared how often dog owners should walk their pets each day, with recommendations varying by age and breed. Speaking on TikTok, where she goes by @drnicolerous.vet, she explained the amount of exercise dogs need and whether one long walk or several shorter outings is better.
Puppies and adult dogs
According to Nichola, puppies should get "five minutes of exercise per month of their life, twice a day". For example, a four-month-old puppy should have two 20-minute exercise sessions each day. She said: "This includes walks but it also include exercise in the back yard, games you're playing, things like that."
For adult dogs, the standard recommendation is 30 to 60 minutes of exercise twice daily. However, she noted that breeds such as border collies may require more outdoor time than chihuahuas.
Senior dogs and low-impact exercise
Nichola added: "Senior dogs need a similar level - 30 to 60 minutes [twice a day] but the type of exercise [you do with them] is really important for their joints." She advised focusing on low-impact exercises, considering the surface of walks, and looking into hydrotherapy.
"The exercise is so important to keep going, even if they have arthritis. We want to make sure that we're still using their brain because that's just as important as it is for humans," she said. She also encouraged owners to carry out their own breed-specific research into walking frequency.
Kennel Club and RSPCA guidance
The Kennel Club supports the advice, recommending walking dogs twice daily and stating that once a day should be an absolute minimum. A statement reads: "Every dog should have at least one walk a day, often two given that in some circumstances under veterinary advice the dog should be rested."
The statement adds: "The government recommends that we get at least 30 minutes of exercise each day and this is something that everybody can achieve - and go beyond - on a daily dog walk. The amount of exercise your dog needs will vary according to its breed, but every dog should have at least one walk a day, often two."
The RSPCA also offers guidance on keeping dogs safe during walks. Owners should clean up after their dog, keep them within sight, use a lead when needed, take rubbish home, make themselves visible at night, stick to the Countryside Code, and ensure the dog is microchipped and wears an ID tag.
Owners should not walk dogs during the hottest part of the day, let them eat unfamiliar items, stray from marked paths, ignore signs of discomfort, or assume every area has the same lead rules. Open Access Land, for example, requires dogs to be on leads if farmed animals are present and during March and July to protect ground-nesting birds.
