[HerculesMomma]

Naw, not totally confused, but maybe a bit perplexed :D I thought there would be some kind of guidelines similar to exercise for people - you know, 30 minutes a day at least 3 times a week etc. I didn't know it varied so much depending on the dog!

Hercules can seem to stand our walks no problem - usually they're anywhere from 20 minutes to 45 minutes. But I've been slacking a bit with the walks in the last two weeks and was thinking he could stand to loose a few pounds. So I was curious if I was neglecting him too much in the exercise department. We are only going for walks maybe 3 or 4 times a week, where prior to that if it wasn't everyday, I would do it every other day and then sometimes twice a day.

Bottom line, I got him fattened up pretty quick when I was feeding him beef and rice for his parasite (maybe I was feeding him too much too). With his kibble his weight has been holding steady but after he weighed in last week and looking at him I think he's at his fat max and could use to slim down a bit. I've already started to cut back on his kibble some, and I think on OB class night I will really limit his dinner. I was just curious how the exercise might play into it all. I guess until I get him down a bit on his weight I'll try and keep his activity level up and see if he's reponsive to that.

Thanks all! Oh, and I was curious about your scooter Rott-Wiley. I thought I read a message thread that you got a scooter so you could get back out there with your pooch - have you found that difficult to manage or has it been pretty easy to adjust to? I wouldn't do that with Hercules right now because he needs to learn some more leash manners I think, but with a bad disc in my back I can only handle low impact exercise - sounds like a scooter would be an interesting alternative to step up the pace a bit :)