^{Note: This is a guest post by Kelly Marshall of Oh My Dog Supplies.}

Your dog’s physical fitness and health should be a priority. As a dog owner it is your responsibility to ensure your dog is in good health. You have to be the one to ensure that he is eating the right foods and getting the proper nutrition. It is also your job to ensure that he is getting the proper amount of exercise each day. Exercise is often misunderstood when it comes to dogs. Many people have heard things that can be misleading and that leads them to neglect their dog’s fitness needs.

Benefits of Exercise

Exercising your dog actually serves a couple of main purposes. The obvious benefit of exercise is that it helps to keep your dog fit and healthy. Exercise helps works your dogs cardiovascular system, gets his body burning calories and helps him to build muscles. There is another benefit of exercise, though, that is often overlooked.

Exercising your dog will also help keep his behavior under control. A dog that is not exercised will end up with a lot of pent of energy or he may get bored. Pent up energy or boredom often leads to behavior problems. When your dog gets proper exercise it will be more content and not have that built up energy.

Is Size Important?

Many people are led to believe that the amount of exercise should be based on the size of a dog. In some cases this may be true, but size is not the best way to decide how much energy your dog needs. The true indicator of your dog’s exercise needs is his breed and individual temperament.

Some breeds, like a Jack Russell Terrier, may not be big in size, but they have a great need for a large amount of exercise. If they do not get enough exercise then they may start to act up or gain weight easily. It is very important that you either talk to your vet or look up the recommendations for exercise based upon your dog’s breed in order to determine the amount of exercise that he needs.
One of the reasons why people may think smaller dogs need less exercise than larger dogs is that smaller dogs just do not need the large space as big breeds. A small dog can usually get the amount of exercise they need running around inside or in a small yard. A large breed dog, though, would not be able to move around and run in such a confined space, so they would need to be taken to a larger area to get exercise.

A Good General Exercise Routine

No matter what size your dog is, a good regular exercise program is important. A recommendation that is usually quite easy to follow is to take your dog for a walk every day. A walk will allow your dog to release some of its pent up energy while also allowing you to get some exercise and giving you a chance to bond with your dog. It is easy to walk your dog and almost everyone can do it without problems.

Exercising your dog is something that has to be done. You can’t leave exercise up to your dog because in most cases your dog won’t be able to get the exercise he needs on his own. Take charge of your dog’s fitness and health and start a regular dog exercise routine. Your dog will love you for it. He will feel better, look better and probably even behave better if you just ensure he is getting the exercise that he needs.

_{Thanks for the great article, Kelly. Oh My Dog Supplies is an online dog supplies store that stocks everything from dog bowls to designer dog beds.}