Your dog needs regular exercise to stay healthy. Exercise helps prevent obesity. It also ensures your dog’s muscles and bones will stay strong and flexible. Regular walks provide exercise while providing time to socialize and bond with you. If you want to make the walks more intense, increase the distance and the pace. However, your dog may resist walking or try to keep the pace very slow. Walk your dog when he is alert and energetic but not overly excited. Start your regular walk but go just a little faster. Call your dog and praise him to keep moving. Keep walking since it could be hard to get him going again. Your dog knows his regular route so try another, longer walk for extra distance. Loops work especially well since your dog will need to walk the rest of the way home from the halfway point. For more information, contact your professional animal hospital Roanoke VA.