Yorkshire Terrier Exercise Requirements & Tips
Overview
When it comes to keeping your Yorkshire Terrier vibrant, healthy, and happy, understanding their unique exercise needs is paramount. This breed, known for its spirited personality and compact size, thrives on a balanced mix of activity that supports their physical and mental well-being.
In this comprehensive article, we dive into the world of Yorkshire Terrier exercise requirements, shedding light on the myriad benefits of regular exercise for this particular breed. From pinpointing exactly how much activity your Yorkie needs to stay fit, to offering practical walking tips, innovative cardio options, and more, we've got you covered.
Let's dive in, to craft the perfect exercise regimen for your Yorkshire Terrier, ensuring they lead a balanced, joyful life by your side.
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Benefits of Exercise for Yorkshire Terriers
Regular exercise for your Yorkshire Terrier offers a multitude of benefits, including:
- Enhancing muscle tone, which supports good posture and strengthens muscles around the hips and knees.
- Boosting cardiovascular health to lower the risk of heart disease.
- Keeping the metabolism functioning efficiently.
- Stimulating appetite for healthy eating habits.
- Releasing pent-up energy, leading to a more well-behaved pet, less likely to engage in destructive behaviors at home.
- Engaging a dog's senses such as hearing, smell, and sight, which contributes to their emotional satisfaction.
- Exposing your dog to various stimuli, helping them become less reactive, for example, reducing barking at other dogs.
- Encouraging socialization with other dogs and people, crucial for a dog's behavioral development.
- Improving sleep quality, ensuring your dog rests well after a day of activity.
How Much Exercise a Yorkie Needs
The amount of exercise a Yorkshire Terrier needs depends on their age, energy level, and interest in activities to burn off pent-up energy. Meeting these exercise needs is important to prevent issues from restlessness and to ensure their short-term and long-term health.
Requirements by age are:
- Puppies: A minimum of two walks per day, lasting a minimum of 20 minutes. Note #1: Puppies should have their full rounds of puppy vaccinations before being taken out in public; exercise outside in the yard is okay if it is free of wildlife or other animals and any feces of other animals has been cleaned. Note #2: Puppies should be walked but not over-exercised; strenuous activity before the age of 10 months can affect growth plates (more ahead).
- Adults: Two to three walks per day, at a brisk pace, lasting a minimum of 20 minutes, plus a daily cardio session.
- Seniors: One to two walks per day, at a slow to moderate pace, lasting a minimum of 20 minutes. Cardio sessions can be provided based on a senior's level of interest.
Specific to Yorkie Puppies: Limit Strenuous Exercise Before the 10-month Mark
It's important not to push a dog of any age beyond their physical limits, but special care should be taken with puppies aged between 8 weeks and 10 months. During this critical period of rapid development, overly strenuous exercise can negatively impact their growth plates (soft areas at the ends of bones where cells divide to enable bone growth as the puppy grows into its adult size). Once a puppy finishes growing, these plates harden.
Overburdening a puppy with too much exercise can damage these plates, potentially causing limbs to develop incorrectly or end up unnaturally short. It's essential to understand that regular walks and playtime are not considered excessive and are healthy. However, extended periods of intense running or pushing a puppy to continue activity beyond their capacity should be avoided.
Walking Tips
Walking is one of the best types of exercise for dogs, the little Yorkshire Terrier included, for many reasons. Having a route from point A to point B gives you both an attainable goal, it can be done no matter the weather (with proper gear and barring extreme weather events), you have complete control over the length and pace, you do not need any supplies other than a harness and leash (more ahead) and you can generally offer this exercise close to home.
To make the most of walks, here are some helpful tips:
#1 With two walks per day, aim for a morning and evening walk.
#2 Bring your Yorkie to their designated bathroom area before a walk, to reinforce housebreaking rules.
#3 Keep your Yorkie in a heeling position, to your left and no further ahead than the extension of your foot. By doing so, you reinforce that you are the leader and maintain control over the pace.
#4 Go at a pace that is brisk but not overtaxing for your Yorkie. Your little guy or gal should be trotting with vigor.
#5 Always have your Yorkie on a harness, never a collar. This breed is prone to tracheal collapse and the use of a collar is a trigger for this. Something like the EcoBark Step-in Harness is easy to put on and keeps a Yorkie safe.
#6 If your Yorkie barks too much at triggers along the way, keep walking (slowly) and ignore the barking. The harness will allow you to keep your Yorkie moving along without adding stress to the neck. Offer a training treat as soon as the barking ceases, even if this is because you have walked out of sight from the trigger.
#7 If things seem a bit boring, keep walks fun and challenging by exploring different neighborhoods, incorporating gentle agility exercises like navigating around trees or signs and/or varying the pace with quick sprints or slow strolls. Introduce socialization moments with other small dogs, and use natural landscapes for mild climbing or walking on varied surfaces to stimulate your Yorkie's senses.
#8 Keep the final walk of the day at least two hours before your Yorkie's bedtime, as exercise right before bed can interfere with falling asleep.
Cardio Sessions: Ways to Offer Exercise and Fun
For the purpose of meeting exercise requirements, cardio sessions should offered daily, but are often kept shorter and a bit more intense than walks. All Yorkies, other than those having health issues that would prevent running or jumping, will benefit from this type of exercise. Let's look at some ways that you can incorporate cardio exercise into your Yorkshire Terrier's routine.
#1 Free Running
Many Yorkies possess a natural zest for life, often expressing it through exuberant running. When given the chance in a park or open field, they revel in the freedom to sprint and explore. However, supervision is crucial to ensure their safety.
In spaces not securely enclosed for off-leash play, an adjustable leash like the
FLEXI Classic Retractable Leash becomes an invaluable tool. It offers the flexibility to extend for moments of freedom, yet allows for quick control to bring your Yorkie close when necessary. And, as always, opt for a harness instead of a collar to prevent any strain on the windpipe (as explained in Step #5 of 'Walking Tips').
#2 Fetch
This is an activity that should not be dismissed. Engaging your Yorkie in a game of fetch not only taps into their natural instincts but can turn playtime into a joyous and educational experience. Using balls like the Midlee Extra-Small Tennis Balls, which are ideally sized for a Yorkshire Terrier's small mouth, can elevate the fun, making it easier and more exciting for your little guy or gal to participate.
This activity serves as an ideal platform to introduce and reinforce command words like 'Fetch' or 'Get' and 'Return.' As your Yorkie dashes after their ball, their agility and speed are put to the test, providing them with a healthy dose of exercise. Meanwhile, the act of retrieving and returning the ball on command strengthens their understanding of your instructions, enhancing communication between the two of you.
#3 Frisbee
Most of us have seen professional dog disc events, when usually large breed dogs leap high into the air, catching a Frisbee with ease. Your Yorkie wants to join into the fun too. There are some great options for toys that are meant to soar through the air for a small dog to catch. The Chuckit Paraflight Flying Disc Dog Toy is one of them, designed to glide and give a dog time to position themselves under it.
Teaching your Yorkie to run after a toy, time it just right and then catch it mid-air can be a lot of fun for both of you and certainly a way to get their dose of daily cardio. You can train your Yorkie to drop a catch-toy on command. When first training for this, hold a small treat and offer a trade. Use the command word of 'Drop' or 'Give' and once your Yorkie offers it to you, reward them with the small treat and lots of praise.
#4 Agility
You don't need to aim for the agility competition podium to enjoy the perks of agility training with your Yorkie. Caution is advised with young dogs to avoid high jumps that could strain developing joints, but constructing a homemade obstacle course can offer a world of fun and fitness. Utilizing household items or affordable equipment, you can easily create a stimulating environment for your Yorkshire Terrier in your backyard or living room.
Start with simple agility exercises like teaching your dog to jump through a hoop held at a Yorkie-friendly height, using training treats as motivation. Gradually introduce more complex tasks, such as weaving through a series of cones or poles, to improve their coordination and obedience.
These agility activities provide excellent physical and mental stimulation for a Yorkie, enhancing their overall well-being while strengthening your bond through teamwork and shared achievements. Adjust the course's difficulty as your little guy or gal grows more confident, ensuring a fun and safe environment for them to learn and play.
#5 Hide & Seek (Indoor exercise)
Begin the game by having your dog sit and attentively watch you as you strategically place tiny treats around your home. These small treats are crucial to keep the game diet-friendly. Scatter them across diverse locations (under cushions, behind shoes, or on low shelves) to spark your Yorkie's curiosity and sense of adventure.
When you're ready to begin, use a specific command word like "Go!" or "Find" to signal the start of the hunt. This not only can excite a dog to get started, but also helps reinforce their understanding of commands through a fun and rewarding activity. As your Yorkie scampers from spot to spot, sniffing out the hidden treasures, they're not just enjoying a tasty reward; they're also getting mental stimulation from the challenge of the search and physical exercise as they move around the house.
To keep the game interesting and challenging, change up the hiding spots each time you play. This can help ensure your Yorkie remains engaged and eager to participate.
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