Dachshunds generally suffer from few health problems and like most dog breeds, can enjoy a long life, provided they are kept well-exercised, fit and fed on a healthy, balanced diet while not allowed to become overweight.
What are the Key Habits and Exercises for your dog to have a Healthy Lifestyle?
As a dachshund owner, it’s essential to have a routine of habits and exercises for your dog to keep them healthy and happy. Here we outline a few tips to help you achieve just that.
Weight: For a healthy, happy Dachshund, you need to keep them at the right weight throughout their life. Being overweight, or indeed underweight, can lead to serious health risks. It’s a good idea to get into the habit of checking a dachshund’s weight regularly. Generally speaking, a Dachshund is at an ideal weight if you can easily feel its ribs, but they are not visible.
Exercise: The amount of exercise your dog needs will change as they grow up. As young puppies (under 12 weeks old), they don’t need any formal exercise. Playing in the garden will be enough. Puppies do need lots of sleep though, so allow them to go to bed whenever they want to.
Vaccinations: The guidelines provided for administering vaccinations are non-compulsory and are often based on current scientific thinking.
They can also differ depending on where you are in the world and your dog’s environment.
The aim of any vaccination is to provide the best outcome for your dog’s welfare, providing protection against any viruses it might encounter when venturing out into the world of humans and other dogs.
It’s important to get them done while your dog is young and before it has any significant contact with the outside world. Check with your local vet for help and advice.
Once a puppy has finished its course of vaccinations, start to take it for a short walk of about 5-10 minutes every couple of days or so to help get used to traffic, other people and dogs.
The general guidance is 5 minutes of “formal” exercise per day, per month of age.
5 minutes per day per month of age is a good, easy-to-remember, guide. Over-exercising them before they are fully grown, can lead to problems. They need to mature slowly and build muscle tone.
Just because they will walk for miles doesn’t mean they should.
The 5-minute guide is for “formal” on-lead walking. It excludes the playing and running around off-lead that they will get in your garden or if allowed off-lead in a park.
When they are allowed free exercise, they will stop when they have had enough. When walking on a lead, they don’t necessarily have the same freedom of choice to stop when they want to.
