# "Lazy" Exercise Ideas - mpoo



## tortoise (Feb 5, 2012)

I do not have a treadmill. And I think the gym would have a fit if I put him on one.  He IS trained to walk on a treadmill, however.


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## LizIsLame (Jul 2, 2012)

I've been wondering the same thing. I'm not used to high energy dogs (my last dog was a basset hound, that's about as low energy as you can get.) so when it was raining she really didn't mind not going out. And where I live, it rains pretty much constantly from December - February.


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

We have had pretty non-stop rain here for the last six weks. One game my dogs love, and which really helps to settle them, is a variation on Hunt the Thimble for tiny treats. It works best in a very untidy room (Hurrah!) - I have a load of empty cardboard boxes waiting to go to the dump, and have spread them around the floor, some empty, some with other boxes inside. Then I toss a handful of very small treats so that as many fall into the boxes as possible, and the treasure hunt begins. 

Are you able to throw a toy for him? Fetch would be a good game, as he could bring it back to your hand. We also play running up and down stairs (the dogs, not me!), but that does require you to be out of bed.


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## tortoise (Feb 5, 2012)

He's 9 months old, not quite old enough to play on stairs yet. But I will put a fetch toy under my pillow before I forget. I think I can throw something down the hall from in bed, and he does retreive.


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## Lily's-Mom (May 31, 2012)

My last dog didn't go out in bad weather either (thank goodness for pee pads) and needed no exercise, so having Lily is a drastic change for me too. On these very hot days we have had here, Lily and I have been playing a lot of fetch indoors. If you can play fetch, that will give hime some exercise. To keep him busy, although not exercise, a treat ball or kong or some of the puzzle games available would keep him from being bored.


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## fluffy buffy (May 17, 2012)

I found your information helpful as I have a nine months old standard , I have mobility issues so I need to try to find other ways of exercising her.
Managed a walk down to the river last week and she enjoyed it so much.
I know she needs more exercise so any ideas would be great.


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## Bunny (Jun 14, 2012)

We do a lot of indoor fetch, too. I have some long room-to-room spaces, so she can really get going. Cookie needs a lot more exercise than my Westie did. It's been a big adjustment having this higher energy dog (she didn't seem that way at the shelter!), but it's been good for me because it makes me get out and walk her every morning. She'd probably like 10 walks a day, but it's too darn hot around here after about 8am, and it doesn't cool off at night, either.

I was hoping my son - the one who begged so hard for a dog - would be more active with her, but that hasn't worked out as well as I'd like. She is _very_ strongly attached to me (I don't know why; it's been that way from the start) and won't even go to the bathroom for my husband or son when they take her out. She just lies down on the patio! LOL If I take her out, she goes right in the grass to do her business. Boo.

I try to throw her toy on something she has to jump onto, as well, since she likes jumping so much and I don't care if she's on the furniture. I can do this while I'm being lazy watching tv. LOL


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## Bunny (Jun 14, 2012)

Oops, I forgot to mention a couple of other things we do (active for her, not for me!). She loves to chase a laser pointer dot. Also, my son has these things called Hex Bugs. There are several different types, and they are small (~2") plastic bug-like things that scoot around (best on hard surfaces, not carpeting). 

Cookie likes to bat stuff around with her paws like a cat, and it's hilarious to watch her jumping at those Hex Bugs. 

Shop All - HEXBUG


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## Ladywolfe (Jan 11, 2012)

Only one word of caution with the laser idea. We had a huge doberman that we unthinkingly played with a flashlight when he was a puppy. Later in life, he went crazy over any light play across the floor. And, a doberman rescue worker told me about a doberman that tore an entire house apart because he was used to playing with a light, and light was shining through window blinds all over the house when the owners were gone.

I don't know, but there might be things that could be similar to the laser in every day life.


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## tortoise (Feb 5, 2012)

Ladywolfe said:


> Only one word of caution with the laser idea. We had a huge doberman that we unthinkingly played with a flashlight when he was a puppy. Later in life, he went crazy over any light play across the floor. And, a doberman rescue worker told me about a doberman that tore an entire house apart because he was used to playing with a light, and light was shining through window blinds all over the house when the owners were gone.
> 
> I don't know, but there might be things that could be similar to the laser in every day life.


Yes, some dogs get neurotic about all moving lights, car headlights, reflections, etc. It's not worth the risk, IMO


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## Bunny (Jun 14, 2012)

Wow. I guess Cookie is just really chill. She loves to chase the light, but she totally ignores any other kind of light. I've even tried playing with her with the flashlight, but she ignores it. She also pays zero attention to thunder and lightning, which we've had a lot of lately.

She's a mpoo, so she doesn't knock stuff over or run out of room when she runs inside. Just chasing the light (or me!) around the kitchen is plenty of running for her.


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## Sawyersmomma (May 28, 2012)

I know you said you don't have one... but I JUST trained Sawyer to use the treadmill and love it!
Get a used one, only like $200, and totally worth it. You just sit there with the leash in hand while they do all the work. 
It doesn't have to be a new expensive one, especially if she's already trained!
It's cheaper than new grooming equipment, and I imagine should last a lot longer


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## Arcticfox (Dec 12, 2011)

Do you have treat dispensing toys? I love our tricky treats ball, and feed most of her meals from it. I assume someone else feeds the dogs if you can't get out of bed, it's only mildly more effort to load up the ball than it is to scoop it onto a bowl, especially if you can find some sort of funnel. My spoo has fun nosing it all over the apartment. It spills out lots of kibble at a time at first, then only a piece every couple of minutes as it gets empty so she spends about 20 - 30 min on every meal trying to get that last piece out.


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## tortoise (Feb 5, 2012)

Arcticfox said:


> Do you have treat dispensing toys? I love our tricky treats ball, and feed most of her meals from it. I assume someone else feeds the dogs if you can't get out of bed, it's only mildly more effort to load up the ball than it is to scoop it onto a bowl, especially if you can find some sort of funnel. My spoo has fun nosing it all over the apartment. It spills out lots of kibble at a time at first, then only a piece every couple of minutes as it gets empty so she spends about 20 - 30 min on every meal trying to get that last piece out.


My mpoo is ODDLY uninterested in treat dispensing puzzle toys. But you did give me a good idea!!!! (thank you!) I can teach him to press a button (maybe the radio button on my alarm clock?) to have me throw a treat down the hallway for him to find - and race to get it before my fiance's dog gets it!  Sounds entertaining for me!


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## Arcticfox (Dec 12, 2011)

That does sound entertaining! You should get one of those large "That Was EASY" buttons from staples! It would be hilarious.


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## FozziesMom (Jun 23, 2010)

Fozzie was an incredibly active puppy, at one point in his youth he needed four (!!!!) hours a day of hard running to actually be able to settle down. 

HEre are some ideas, some of which I'm sure may have been mentioned:

1. Fetch, as long as you can stand it. til his tongue is lolling to one side. you will have to teach an "all done" command because they'll literally do it til they drop once they get going. 

2. Doggie Day care: take them somewhere where they can get socialized. this was lifesaving when he was a pup, especially on rainy days. 

3. Obedience work: sometimes it's not the body, it's the mind. 20 minutes of trick training, teaching things like long stays, etc. (right after a good fetch session) settles the mind as well.

4. Consider a really low impact sport like nosework/scent work where you hide objects and he finds them. Fozz really loved nosework class a LOT. 

5. Train them to crate. Fozzie, when wound up, can be placed in crate, covered, and will calm himself down in < 30 minutes. then he can be allowed out and will settle down. 

6. don't hesitate to leash him to furniture if he's going to get into something, while he's a puppy. better to do that than have him reinforce bad behaviors. 

7. Hire a dog walker to come and take him for a walk.


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## FozziesMom (Jun 23, 2010)

one more thing: the weighted vest worries me. I wouldn't want your sweet companion to have knee and hip problems from wearing the vest too much. I trust you worked with your vet on the exact amount he should have, right?


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## tortoise (Feb 5, 2012)

FozziesMom said:


> one more thing: the weighted vest worries me. I wouldn't want your sweet companion to have knee and hip problems from wearing the vest too much. I trust you worked with your vet on the exact amount he should have, right?


Yes. I worry and obcess over it and he says "I still don't think it's enough."  It's not so much about the weight as it is about the dog's conditioning / fitness. 

My dog hasn't worn a weighted vest or his back pack in a while so I'll have to greatly reduce the weight when I start using it again and build it back up gradually.

We have a new lazy exercise! He loves to jump! I made an agility jump. We do the retrieve over a jump exercise. Yeah, can't do it from bed, but all I have to do is stand there and throw the dumbbell.


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## KristaLynn (Mar 22, 2012)

One of my clickers (got it at a show) has a pointer that come out of. You can use it to teach the dog "touch" and then to follow and touch the pointer where ever you put it or to get them to touch objects or follow the pointer for complex trick training. It boggled my mind the things I was going to teach Jewel with it but she wasn't interested as usual. But if you were stuck in bed you would just need to move an arm to use it.


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