The Importance of letting your dog sniff on walks
Do you feel like your dog drags you around on his walks because he wants to sniff? Does it feel strange to you and leave you wondering whether you should let your dog stop and enjoy sniffing on walks or whether you should direct them back to your power walk? We’re happy to report that letting dogs enjoy sniffing on walks is perfectly okay and also has so many benefits!ā£
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Sniffing on Walks is Mentally Enriching
It helps to stimulate their mind and provide mental enrichment. Dogs have an incredible sense of smell thanks to their 200 million scent receptors, and they get a lot of pleasure from using it to explore their surroundings. šš½Their noses are like our eyes- they get a ton of juicy information and see the world through scent. ā£
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Letting dogs sniff reduces stress!
Sniffing helps to keep a dogās mind and body active, which can help to prevent boredom and destructive behavior and reduce stress. There was even a study published in Applied Animal Behavior Science that determined āthat allowing dogs to spent more time using their olfaction through a regular nosework activity makes them more optimistic. By allowing dogs more āforagingā time, their welfare is improved.ā How neat is that!
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As professional dog walkers, we ask our pet parents to tell us what kind of walk they want for their dog so we can focus on that. Some doggies are apartment dwellers and donāt get the chance to sniff backyard goodies, so letting them enjoy more sniffing walks are fun for them! ā£
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Quicker-paced walks are also important, but if youāre the kind of person who pulls their dogs away from sniffing too long, you should consider scheduling in sniffaris for your dogs when youāre in less of a hurry (or hire us to do it for you!).
A founding member of the Equipaws family, Frankie can mostly be found working behind the scenes, helping co-create online branding, managing several social media accounts, designing brand collateral, writing copy, and managing events. She also fills in for pet sitters and dog walkers when needed in Palmetto Bay, Pinecrest, and South Miami. Her own small pack consists of Boots the Shih Tzu mix and Nutmeg the Chiweenie.
