A dog lover asked fellow owners for advice on dealing with their 17-year-old pooch, who loves long walks in nature, but doesn’t understand have the energy or mobility of a puppy
Owning a dog or any other kind of pet can be an incredibly rewarding experience. But, just like people, dogs have different needs as they age, and caring for an older pooch is very different to having a puppy.
Most dogs will have less energy as they get older, and may begin to experience mobility problems. While a younger pup might come home from a long walk still full of beans, an older dog may be ready for a lie down after 10 minutes in the park.
One social media user asked fellow dog lovers for advice on dealing with their 17-year-old schnauzer-beagle mix, who loves long walks in nature, but doesn’t understand they don’t have the energy or mobility of a puppy.
In the post titled “Elderly dog doesn’t understand his limitations”, they said: “He’s definitely slowed down in terms of speed and stamina, but he doesn’t seem to know it.
“He still starts out at a fast trot and will wear himself out after 15 minutes or so. A couple of years ago, I bought a dog stroller so we could still take long walks together, but I could put him in to rest when he got tired.
“The problem is, he’ll only rest for like three minutes before he starts fussing to get out and walk again. Even when he’s in there, he’s standing up half the time.
“It’s not that the stroller really bothers him; he seems to appreciate it when he’s really tired, he just has FOMO (fear of missing out) I guess.
“He gets so wiped out after these walks and I can tell he’s a bit sore after as well.”
One Reddit user replied: “You may need to meet your dog where he is. I would probably trade the hikes for a mellow nature walk, shorter park loops, or places where you can maybe post up on a blanket and let him sniff around the area and come back to rest.
“If he keeps over-exerting himself to the point of causing pain, you need to stop giving him the opportunity to do so. The stroller was a good idea but if he’s not going to use it as intended, then it’s not a good fit.”
The original poster replied: “I just hate taking something away from him that makes him happy. He gets all excited and animated every day at the time when we usually go. I wish I could turn back the clock for him and get 17 more years!”
According to PetMD, the average life expectancy for a schnauzer is between 13 and 16 years, while beagles tend to live between 10 and 15 years, so this owner’s dog is already beating the odds.
Another user commented: “He doesn’t understand his limitations, so you have to. He isn’t capable of thinking ‘This will hurt later, so I should rest in my stroller’.
“Take him out for shorter trips. There’s not really a trick here, just don’t give him the opportunity to overdo it even if he’s really happy in the moment.”
