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Did you know? One human year doesn't actually equal seven dog years
Dog Years
The one-year-equals-seven-years calculation is an oversimplification.
Dogs mature at a different rate, with the first year being equivalent to multiple human years.
The rate of aging then varies depending on the breed, size, and other factors.
For instance, small dogs tend to live longer than large dogs.
Frequently Asked Questions
Please reach us at nikita@thedoghouse.au if you cannot find an answer to your question.
Your dog's breed, fur, size, age, health status, and other factors will affect how much it should walk. Some dog breeds are physically not able to walk as much as others, so it's important to know what your dog needs and can tolerate. As a basic rule of thumb, a daily walk of 20-30 minutes is a good starting point to assess how much walking your dog can do.
Working and sporting breeds of dogs are bred to be very active, so daily walks are a must for German shepherds, Belgian malinois, collies, Labrador retrievers, and other athletic breeds. These dogs may require an hour or two of brisk walking or hiking each day. Breeds that aren't bred to work or compete, such as English bulldogs, pomeranians, chihuahuas, and shih tzus, don't need to walk nearly as much. These breeds are often content just being house dogs and may not need to be walked at all. Dogs with dense fur or short legs may have a hard time taking long walks. Movement and breathing may be more difficult with these dogs so walks should be kept to 20 minutes or so if the weather is mild. Warmer temperatures will cause a dog to become overheated more quickly, so some summer days may not allow for a walk at all but cooler weather may allow for short jaunts. On the other hand, for dogs with short fur that can normally withstand long walks, extreme cold temperatures will limit the amount of time that they should spent outside. Finally, age and disease may play a role in how much walking your dog can and should do. Older dogs may not be able to exercise as long as younger dogs and various diseases, like arthritis, heart disease, and obesity can greatly limit the length of your walks. Sometimes 10 minutes is all these dogs can handle at a time.
When you take your dog for a walk, you're providing more than just exercise to help manage its weight.
Some of the benefits of walking your dog include:
- Maintaining joint health Providing mental stimulation
- Building muscle Helping with weight loss or preventing obesity
- Releasing excess energy Regulating the digestive system
- Increasing oxygen flow through the body
- Reducing boredom Providing fresh air
- Providing sunlight and vitamin D1
- Providing socialising opportunities for your dog
- Offering potential earthing/grounding benefits
It is not recommended to leave food down for a dog for psychological reasons. Instinct tells a dog the pack leader decides when it is time to eat. Leaving the food down all of the time allows the dog to decide. If humans allow dogs to believe they are pack leader it causes various behavioral issues and sometimes it simply confuses the dog. A confused dog is not a happy dog. When a dog is not 100% clear about the order of the pack it does not feel secure. Therefore if you display leadership with some things and not with others, the dog will never be 100% sure.Besides that, I personally do not know another way to feed two different dogs two different types of food unless you make a scheduled feeding time. Big dog eats in this corner, little dog eats in that corner. Your Havanese may decide not to eat the first couple of meals because he is not used to a schedule, however when a dog gets hungry enough, he will eat.
It actually sounds like the dog sees herself as alpha over both of you, especially you. If the dog is all over you and overjoyed when you walk in, that is not showing you respect, it is claiming you. Remember, dogs give pack leaders space and space is respect. This would make perfect sense, as when you met the dog she was in a weak state of mind, "terribly scared and nervous." You, at that time, gave the dog affection and the dog saw you as weaker than herself and she became your leader at that moment. When a dog is upset she needs a stronger-minded being to bring her out of it, and if you share affection to a dog at that time the dog will read your energy as weakness. Instead of being her leader, you empowered her to take over. This is where the issues all began, from day one, and this is why she gets aggressive towards strangers. She is empowered over humans. This aggression will lead to biting if you do not let the dog know you and all other humans are boss over her. You are actually sending the dog mixed signals. When you scold the dog and the dog walks away with her head down, that is the dog respecting you as alpha. To a dog, putting her ears slightly back as she slinks her head down, giving you space (walking away) is submission and respect. However when you go back to the dog and "make peace" as you call it, you are, in the dog’s eyes, submitting to HER. That is very confusing to a dog. Only humans make peace as you describe. Dogs give space and respect. When a dog approaches with her ears perked standing very proud that is alpha behavior. When a dog approaches a human slinked down making herself smaller with her head lowered that is submitting. From what you describe the dog would like you to be alpha because she gives in to you so easily. The dog does not want to be alpha. But if the dog senses weak humans around her, she thinks she NEEDS to be alpha in order to "save her pack." To answer your question, yes, you can be alpha even if you only see her once in a while. I would be consistent, however, and encourage your aunt to be a pack leader as well as you communicating to the dog who is boss. It is very stressful for a dog to think she NEEDS to take care of all of the humans around her, or to be unsure where her place is. This is no way for a dog to live.
Yes it is. It's a huge deal. In the dog world the leader leads the way. I realize it is inconvenient for the humans, however if we are going to live with dogs and expect them to behave as we wish then we need to understand how to communicate with them. Dogs develop behaviour issues because we humans send all the wrong signals. A dog needs to be 100% sure the humans are able to take over the role as leader and keep their pack safe. By allowing the dog in front you are telling him that you wish him to be that leader. Read more about how to properly walk a dog so he does not get tangled up in your legs during the walk yet is still healing on lead.
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