Don’t Walk Your Dog Day set for April 2

Created by dog trainer Niki French from Pup Talk, the day aims to show dog lovers that there are many different ways to give your dog brilliant mental and physical stimulation instead of taking them for a walk.

Pet professionals, pet brands and dog guardians/owners can show their support by sharing posts using the #dontwalkyourdogday hashtag. They can share their experiences of walks where their dog has struggled and what they like doing other than going for a traditional walk.

There are many situations when it would be helpful to know what else to do with your dog other than taking them for a walk. Here are just a few reasons to skip a walk:

A nervous, anxious, reactive dog, constant exposure to stress makes things worse.
Weather that is too hot or too cold, perhaps even dangerous for our dogs.
Over-excitable dogs that just get more excited with too much stimulation.
A dog with reduced mobility, that is ill or recovering from surgery.
A guardian/owner that is mentally or physically injured or unwell, with no one that can take their dog out for them.
A bitch in season or a pre-vaccinated new puppy.

Playing games at home is a great way to build skills our dogs need and boost our relationship with them.

Niki explained: “The #dontwalkyourdogday is about highlighting that not all dogs thrive on one or more walks a day.

“A growing number of my clients had nervous or reactive dogs and I was showing them all the amazing activities you can do at home to help dogs grow the skills they’re lacking to be happy on walks.

“Skipping some walks can help both dogs and owners alike destress. When 50% or more of walks are stressful, it’s time to do something different. Replacing walk time with playing training games at home can give the dogs the skills they’re missing to live calm and happy lives in the modern, busy world.

“My own dog is a young Collie Cross and he is noticeably calmer with fewer walks and more training games at home.

“The day is about raising awareness of all of the times when replacing a dog’s walk with another activity is a positive thing to do.”

To join in, anyone can use the #dontwalkyourdogday hashtag on social media, and you can find out more at https://go.puptalk.co.uk/awareness-day/.

Niki French is the author of Amazon #1 best seller STOP Walking Your Dog and also hosts Pup Talk The Podcast. Niki is 53 and lives in Twickenham, Middlesex with her boyfriend and Battersea rescue dog Bodie.

For more information contact Niki on info@puptalk.co.uk or tel: 07770 581882