Stop Wearing Your Dog Out: Why Balance Beats Exhaustion
What’s all this about ‘wearing our dogs out?’
What does that mean to you?
Here are some dictionary definitions of worn out:
Badly damaged and/or no longer useful because it has been used a lot.
Extremely tired; too old or damaged to use.
Someone who is worn out is extremely tired after hard work or a difficult or unpleasant experience.
Depleted of energy, strength, or enthusiasm; exhausted; fatigued.
Worn or used beyond repair.
Are these really aims we want to have for our dogs?
How about achieving a lifestyle where they are calm and content most of the time instead?
Wearing our dogs out time and time again, so we can have some peace and quiet or go out, doesn’t sound like we’re putting their needs first, or particularly good for their health.
For me, being constantly worn out would send alarm bells ringing. I don’t consider that a good place to be. It’s something I need to recover from. Not a goal or state that I aim for for my wellbeing.
It’s all about balance for our dogs (as it is for us).
Balance of mental exercise, physical exercise and rest to keep them in the best of health, calm and content. With mental exercise, or giving our dogs opportunities to use their senses, being the one that tends to get left out the most.
This is something we need to be mindful of with Bella as she gets older, as we certainly don’t want to wear her out. We want her to live a long, happy, healthy life with us.
Surely our aim is to keep our dogs in tip-top condition and give them the best lives we possibly can, rather than to wear them out?
If you’d like to achieve a calmer lifestyle with your dog, so you don’t feel like you need to make a special effort to wear them out, get in touch!
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