Questions about exercise needs.

I need some realistic advice on exercise needs for Staffy's. I have been researching for our next dog. We had a cocker spaniel for 13 years and loved her to pieces, but she had so many health issues and grooming needs that we decided to look at other breeds. I had never seen a Staffy in person until this past weekend. They are not a hugely popular breed here in the US and with all the misconceptions about them, I feel like I don't always get accurate info (which is why I joined this forum). I have seen people posting about the 3 or 4 hours of walks and exercise their Staffy is getting and it is a little overwhelming. We live in a neighborhood and have to drive everywhere we go. The nearest dog park is a 20 min. drive away. We have a back yard that is not huge, but big enough to run around in. We have 3 kids (5, 9 and 13), we homeschool and are home most of the time. We plan to crate train, but since we are home a lot we want our dog to stay with us and be a part of our family. We have a good bit of activity going on in the house with the kids running around, but there is a lot of down time also. So with this much info, how much structured exercise and/or walks would a Staffy need to be happy?

A general rule of thumb would be 2 x 45 min walks as a minimum ideally. I know that most and me included can't do that every day so my girl gets a good 45 - 60 min walk plus 20 mins short walk.

Of course if you can do more then an adult dog will happily do it. I find that an hour off lead at the weekends is about enough in one go though.

A house bound Staffy is likely to get frustrated, they are a medium energy dog that needs to use their body and mind equally. This is not to say don't get one but more to make you aware that they need outside stimulation.

Well done for doing some research first and I'm sure others will be able to offer further advise

I would plan on at least 1 hour a day. I miss the odd day but Ruby can't go more than a day without a good walk.

I try to take Maya to our Local fields/woods, and she gets about 30 minutes off lead, and another 30 minutes walking there and back I also like to give her a short evening walk of around 20 minutes, but that doesn`t happen all the time.

As Bug's older now she's a bit more mellow, and is happy with 1hr-1hr30 a day - off lead running and sniffing as well as lead walking. Mental stimulation is as important as physical with Staffies - if you can only offer an hour a day of exercise, ensure that you're offering interactive ways of feeding (kongs etc), small bursts of training/tricks etc throughout the day, plenty of toys to play with and chew on - a 10 minute blast on a flirt pole in the garden really tires Bug out too, and is good for training/impulse control!

I will say though, garden exercise never replaces a structured walk away from the home, so aim to get out for a walk everyday. In my experience, females have been more laid back than males, my girl will run around like a loon on walks but is really chilled in house, and sleeps a LOT.

Great you're researching! My boy gets a 40 min walk every morn without fail and around 30 min in arvo, he loves the stimulation of being out & about! In weekends he gets more.

mine gets about an hour to an hour and a half in the morning then spends the majority of the day asleep/demanding cuddles interspersed with hen/cat/squirrel chasing. Even though he's usually in a different room he needs to know there's a human around most of the time. He likes his company

Hope you get your staff, they are a great breed and i think everyone should have one

lexii wrote:Hope you get your staff, they are a great breed and i think everyone should have one

Agreed

all dogs, no matter what breed, should have at least two walks a day, three I poss.

a Stafford is an energetic breed & could become frustrated and destructive if it doesn't get enough exercise.

I'm not trying to put you off, but you have to take on board ANY dog's needs before you get it.

I am going to post this as a question rather than a statement as im really just thinking out loud and also only have my dog 2 months and im really only learning myself , from my little experience and research Staffys need to be exercised physically emotionally and mentally in equal measure , so even if your dog is getting say 2 x 1 hour walks but then is put out into a garden or pen for the rest of the day with no other mental and emotional stimulation  it wont work for the dog , from what you have said im guessing your dog should get lost of emotional and mental stimulation as your home sounds like its a busy place and Staffys thrive on the company of kids , so if walking doesn't get the priority on some days but lots of the rest i wouldn't be concerned , especially if you get lots of apropriate exercise in on the days you can , THOUGHTS FOLKS ??

Yup I tend to agree with what you say Brian. Sometimes a walk doesn't happen for many reasons (like its raining and princess paws refuses to even look out the door !) but the emotional and mental stimulation is equally important. Staffies are very human orientated and love attention.

emotonal & mental stimulation is important, but so are walks on a daily basis. walks are for socialisation as well as exercise & for getti v used to all those weird outside sights & noises