calories burned walking the dog?

There's an entry in the activities list for "walking the dog" which I have been using because I assumed that, by walking the dog, the entry is taking into account the fact that you're not JUST walking, but rather being towed up hill and down dale by ten pounds of super-energetic puppy.

Anyway, today I walked the dog for an hour (148 cal burned) and also at lunch went on a 20 minute walk because it was warm, I wanted ice-cream, I figured I may as well walk with it. I logged THAT as "walking for pleasure"...and noticed that THAT burns 173 calories per hour! What gives? What kind of dog-walking does this site think people are doing? :p Or is "walking for pleasure" not just a leisurely stroll, but a power-walk? Now I'm confused :p

Walking the dog?

Walk to tree. Wait.

Walk a bit until dog decides to sniff something. Wait.

-)

Walking MY dog? Be pulled along at 100mph by something that weighs ten pounds dripping wet...just when you think he's tired out a dog barks ahead and off he sprints..!

@ Zeke2

lol, you must not be the owner of a dog if you think that is all that is involved in walking a dog!!, lolol

My dog takes ME for the walk, he has soo much energy that it's practically impossible to keep him on the lead once we hit the open ground. :-)

I think it depends on the dog.  Mine have a back yard, so when we go for a walk it is either a fast walk or a run. 

But, my parents have a schnauzer that has to go on a leash, and what he does is exactly like zeke describes. 

I wondered about that too.  I have a 94 pound lab and walking him takes a whole lot more effort than "walking for pleasure". 

I did a bit of scouting around, some timing, and some looking at street maps (to determine distance) and am now logging walking the dog as the 4mph/level surface option. That's more like it. My puppy just won't let me go slowly - at the start he's positively straining on the lead, bounding along! And even after walking for an hour and a half, if he sees another dog ahead, he's back to the racing. Where does he get the energy from?! It's a pity I can't take him off the lead often and let him run - the footy oval at the end of our street doesn't have fences, and he's still too young to come when called if he sees something more interesting than me.

If you want a great way to track your distance, try www.runningmap.com or www.mapmyrun.com.  :)

Thanks but not being American, I'm not sure those'll work...I'll see!

When I walk with my dog I have to muscle my way through it or he will carry me off or decide to stop randomly, so if I walk my dog I chart the activity on here as walking while carrying an object.  I think that's a good equivalent. 

PS on this site they must assume that you are walking a chihuahua.  Or that your dog is actually obedient.  Pshaw!!! ;)

I would recomment investing in a Heart Rate Monitor that calculates calories. I bought a Polar F4 at Target for $80 after taxes. I realized I burn a little more than twice what the site tells me. It really depends on how fit you are and your weight, height etc.

Walking a schnauzer on a leash....Sprint to the tree (choking himself on leash), sniff, lift leg, change mind, sniff some more, walk around in a circle, lift leg, peeeeeeeeeeeeeee, scratch feet & blow dirt and grass all over my feet, Sprint to then next tree, etc, etc, etc, until about 20 minutes later then he poops, then he slows down, then we walk for 20 more minutes.  This goes on 3-4 times a day depending on who knows what.  My hubby gets the early a.m. walk and I get the rest.  What I have started doing is instead of being pulled along, I run with him when he wants to run, and while he is doing his pee dance to the doggie gods, I jog in place, then we run to the next tree, etc, etc, etc, by the time he is ready to slow down, so am I.  I count it as "walking the dog", better to err on the low side of cal expenditure.

Yeah we have a young 85 pound black lab.  He is not quite a year old yet and I had to stop walking him because he pulled like a horse.  I tried the harness thing and that did not seem to bother him at all.  We got a shock coller but he did not seem to care about that either.  He takes me for a ride that is for sure.  I am trying to find a way to walk him because he needs it, and eventually I would like to run with him, but until I can get him to walk "nice" and not pull me, I just dont know what to do...

my dogs are my weight loss buddies -  i have 6 - yes 6 jack russell terriers - they cheer me on EVERY night when i get home from work - yes - they insist that i get my exercise - they won't even listen no matter what my excuse for not wanting to walk - rain - snow and darkness are not an issue for them - and thanks to this web-site and their insistence that we walk i have lost 45 pounds since april!!!!!!!  i have a sneaky suspision that they are helping me burn more than the 148 calories per hour - sometimes we chase a rabbit or a deer - or play in the creek- and on one occasion recently we ran from a skunk!!!!

maddogkt, have you and your dog been to obedience training?

I have a 4 month old puppy, and I have started RUNNING her... I have to, otherwise she is just not tired at the end of the day and she wants to play and I want to sleep.  It has been working so far, plus she is in great shape! 

maddogkt, before my mini schnauzer, I had two very big german shepherds.  The ONLY things that helped the pulling were obedience training & a "pinch" collar (the one with "teeth").  My trainer actually talked me into trying one and it worked miracles after the first day or two.  It is harmless, but pinches the sh-- out of them.  They learn really quick not to pull.  After a few months I could walk them individually without the pinch collar, but never together...still had to use the pinches when they were together.  One word of advice if you try it - get it "fitted" by a trainer or other dog professional. You will want to have it too loose which actually makes it pinch more.  It needs to fit snug.

well... try 4 cals for every min of walking the dog ;)

No we have not seen a trainer yet.  But our neighbor is a big dog trainer of his own and has help a little.

My dog is pretty well trained and doesn't stop unless I do.  When we walk its a really fast pace for 30 min.  I mapquested the route and it was just over 2 miles.  That means that I walk at about a 4mph pace which burns 426 calories per hour.