Why 'Walking your own dog' is the best New Year resolution

Despite great intentions, 80% of us give up on  New Year’s resolutions by the second Friday in January, its known as ‘quitters’ day’!

Whether it’s to kickstart more healthy eating, lose some excess pounds, take up running, yoga or just practice mindfulness, it appears us human’s give up!

Dogs don’t make New Year resolutions. Dogs depend on us to make so many choices for them, from what they eat, whether they wear a collar or a harness, to where they sleep.

What if we turn the tables and let our dogs inspire New Year resolutions, taking the lead from how your dog just gets a lot of things right.

I’d guess that all ‘Fidos’ would suggest we all drink more water -preferably filtered and fresh. Keeping us hydrated naturally helps our metabolic function, bearing in mind our body chemistry is 70% water, just like a dog’s.

Our dogs can inspire us to see the world from a different perspective. We can only imagine why a muddy leaf is so interesting to our dogs, but maybe we could be interested to appreciate another’s point of view.

For me there’s nothing more fun than playing a great game of tug with your dog. Apart from being hugely bonding, it’s a way of working through frustration, it builds confidence and it’s a mutual serotonin boost and stress buster.

Reducing stress for you and your dog isn’t only about exercise. Activate your dog’s grey matter with fun puzzle games, or tap into their huge olfaction to encourage mental and physical dexterity, in the same way as we might learn a new language.

Dogs know when to rest and that’s something we could also aspire to in the New Year. Rest and restore to help manage stress and anxiety.

Interestingly dog owners smile more than non-dog owners, which promotes wellbeing. Similarly, another study suggests that dog owners often live longer. More science concurs that stroking a dog will reduce your blood pressure, and the flow of the love hormone Oxytocin.

Another resolution could be to ‘be more mindful / in the moment’. Dogs do this naturally, they do have memory, and episodic memory, but they won’t be mulling over what happened yesterday or what’s happening tomorrow.

I think our dogs can guide us, balance us, and become an antidote to technology overload, providing we take the time to tune into our ‘best friends’.

Through January, it’s ‘Walk Your Dog Month’, an initiative to highlight the health benefits to both dogs and their owners. Apart from a chance to get outdoors, a commitment to walk your dog builds routine, responsibility and the chance to train and have fun with your dog.

 With 54% of owners engaging a dog walker at least three times a week, many of us are missing out on what’s free canine therapy! Let’s ‘paws’ for thought this New Year.