Exercise For Young Puppies

The Importance of Age-Appropriate Exercise For Puppies

 “A Tired Puppy is a Good Puppy”, but exercise that’s not appropriate for a puppy’s age and development can cause significant and irreversible damage. A simple sprain in an adult dog could leave a puppy with a misshapen or shortened limb.

Appropriate Exercise for Puppies under 18 Months

  • No Repetitive Exercise

    Avoid repetitive exercises like jogging or long hikes. Most of your puppy’s exercise should be in the form of free-play, exploring and roaming. Short walks that allow him to rest and flop down when showing any fatigue.

  • Choose Puppy Playmates Wisely

    Supervised play with a gentle playmate of similar size and strength or an older do who shows restraint is great exercise. Sometimes a gentle Giant is a better playmate than a rambunctious small dog.

  • Soft Landings

    Keep puppies from jumping off of anything higher than their elbows like benches, sofas and beds. Use padded steps and/or cushioned beds below the sofa once thy are old enoug to be invited up on it.

  • Avoid Stairs

    Stairs are not good for young hips. Studies have found that puppies who climbed flights of stairs daily before they were 3 months old had an increased risk of developing hip dysplasia. Flights of stairs can strain any puppy’s joints so carry them up or down until they are at least 6 months of age. One or two not too-steep non-slip stairs are safe and good for coordination.

  • Keep playtime grounded

    Keep all play with toys on the ground. Roll balls instead of throwing them. Drag a toy on the floor and never hold any toy above a puppy’s head to make them jump for it. This is unsafe for their joints and neck and encourages future bad habits. 15 minutes of mental exercise will also tire out your puppy. Use puzzle toys or hide kibble under a ball in a muffin tin. Or spnd 15 minutes teaching a new trick.

  • Self-directed exercise on gentle hills

    Encourage long-leash, self-directed exercise on gently rolling hills and varied, moderately soft ground and different surfaces. Especially important for puppies under 3 months of age to decrease the risk of developing hip dysplasia in the future.

Understanding Puppy Growth Plates

It is important to understand the concept of “growth plates". These are the soft area at the ends of the long bones in puppies and young dogs. They contain cells that allow the bones to become longer until the end of puberty.

Growth plates are gradually thinning as the puppy approaches puberty at which time hormonal changes signal the growth plates to close. In puppies this process is usually complete at the time of sexual maturity or around 18 months of age. Once the growth plates calcify, they become a stable and inactive part of the bone known as an epiphyseal line.

Until the growth plates close, they are very soft and vulnerable to injury.

Most of this growth will take place between 4 to 8 months of age but caution is still needed until they reach maximum bone density.

This is an X-ray of a 2 week old puppy. It clearly shows how far the bones  have to grow before they become a proper joint! 

Too much repetitive exercise or training during this time can cause injury. A dog’s bones are held together with muscles, tendons and ligaments - soft tissue. In an adult dog, a joint experiencing stress (over rotating, bending the wrong way, twisting etc.) would result in a soft tissue injury or sprain. In a young puppy however, the same stress injury could result in the soft tissue pulling apart the growth plate. Unlike a sprain, this type of injury may not heal in time for the puppy to mature correctly. This can result in a misshapen or shortened limb, creating an incorrect joint angle. Possibly making the puppy even more prone to injuries growing up.

50% off all fractures occur in puppies under 1 year of age.

Puppies bones and joints are designed for short runs, not lengthy walks. Puppies naturally exercise in small bursts of activity so work with their natural play ability and leave the endurance training for when they are all grown up.

The Role of Early Spay/Neuter on Your Puppy’s Joints

While we are on the subject of protecting puppies joints it is important to understand the role of early spay/neuter also.

Puppies growth plates calcify and become stable after sexual maturity. The bones of puppies spayed and neutered before puberty continue to grow. This can result in dogs with longer limbs, lighter bone structure, narrow chests and/or narrow skulls. These altered body proportions of certain bones aren’t just a cosmetic issue but may result in stress on ligaments and contribute to future injuries as well.

Published studies have found those spayed or neutered before 5-1/2 months of age were more likely to develop hip dysplasia.

Please read our recommendations and information on age appropriate desexing.