How Much Exercise Does Your Pet Need?

Guest post written by Tammy Ng – Owner of Fetch! Pet Care of NW San Gabriel Valley. Fetch! is a national provider of pet sitting services.

Even more than people, our pets (especially dogs) need regular exercise.  According to a major publication, over 40% of pets in the US are overweight?  As a Pasadena pet sitter, I’ve seen it all too often.  Due to our busy schedules, many of us don’t spend enough time with our pets.  So how do we make it up to them?  We feed them extra treats.

In order to get to the root of the problem.  We need to understand just how much diet and exercise our pets need.  Below are several links to help you out.

For cat owners, according to The Pet Center, “the main reason for feline obesity (as well as obesity in other mammals) is the consumption of too much food. Deny it all you want but it is a fact.”  To read more about cat obesity and what to do, click here

For dog owners, in addition to a normal diet, you need to understand how much exercise your dog needs.  This link, should help you determine the exercise requirements for your breed of dog.  Once you understand your requirements, use this link to figure out how to meet those requirements.

My personal advice is to make sure you take your dog on daily dog walks for a minimum of 30 minutes.  It’d be even better if you could head over to the Arcadia or Pasadena dog park.  Or sign up for something like the agility course offered at the Pasadena shelter.  If you are unable to do it yourself, I highly suggest hiring a dog walker to help you out.  The benefits to you and your dog far outweigh the cost.