Alone as in unwalked with contained bladder.
And currently at 14.5 weeks old, that's approximately 5 hours.
And at some point (I assume) she'll be working on her first 48 with you. I'm curious, as there is always the possibility that I will cave in to the pressure of getting a dog, what the time frame is?
Tim
p.s. during her early/easy 4K days, let me know since my kids love to hike with dogs.
There's no really straightforward answer to that. There are guidelines regarding activity level for breeds based on size that are generally oriented towards avoiding soft tissue injury. In general, the larger and the heavier build the dog will be at maturity increases the time required for growth. Pemi will probably mature to 30-34 pounds at most (approximately 15% smaller than Terra). But there is alot more to consider (I think) when raising a well rounded family dog that you also want to be able to be very active with and spend alot of time out in the public with.
A medium sized breed like an Australian Shepherd is full grown at approximately ten to twelve months. My main goal is to
slowly introduce age appropriate conditioning that will serve to strengthen, increase agility and confidence for hiking without leading to injury or early arthritis in later life. At this stage of her life, three twenty to thirty minute romps a day is more appropriate than one walk of 1 1/2 hours. That's long enough for her to get ample exercise without reaching the point of tiring or becoming nervous/stressed away from home too long. At this stage of development she is also in the Fearful/Avoidance Stage of Puppyhood (generally three to six months) where too much of anything can be detrimental. So there's that to consider, too. Its more obvious that some dogs are going through this (case in point, Terra, where EVERYTHING and EVERYONE was suspicious), whereas Pemi is more social and she gets suspicious of things like funny colored signs, statues.
Right now her life is more about training, behavior shaping, meeting new people, walking on new surfaces, playing with carefully selected adult dog playmates, going to stores, offices, and puppy class as well as leash walks about town and off leash romps in the park with flat to slightly rolling terrain, and we have found some really nice places here in Twin Mountain; eg Pondicherry, and there are all of the Randolph Mnt Club low elevation trails to redline together, too for now. Most likely at the five month old mark we will have increased our walk distance, increased elevation, and increased confidence enough to go on a hikes such as Mt Crescent, Mt Pemi, The Sugarloafs once per week. At six months, we may consider Wambuek, we will see. By next May, she will begin hiking her NH Four's but it will be a gradual process. Lucky for me I have two dogs to rotate
.
I'm no expert at any of this but I have tried to do my due dilligence when it comes to my dogs. My goal is for lifelong hiking partners who are well socialized, relaxed, and happy. Terra was backpacking the Maine AT at 7.5 months of age and although she was mature enough physically; psychologically it was too much too soon and she is more protective than I'd like. That said, she is 8 years old and has had no injuries (aside from a non hiking related toe tendon injury this spring), has never been lame after a hike, and although she is past her prime of hiking consecutive 20 mile days comfortably because of her toe; she will be hiking for many more years comfortably. So, I think I have a formula that's worked for her, and I hope to improve upon that for Pemi.
I hope this helps answer some of your questions. (sorry if its TMI, blah blah blah). And you and your kids are definitely encouraged to join us!! Pemi LOVES kids!
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