As a pet owner, it is a part of your responsibility to set a perfect and ideal daily schedule for your pet. You would wonder why is it required at all? Or what would happen even if you have no set Daily Routine? In this blog, we have described and tried to answer every query that you might have about the perfect daily schedule for your dog.
In fact, you are probably here because you want to set a schedule for your pet so that both you and the pet can build a healthy lifestyle and not just that, but also a healthy bond. It is important for you to know that there is no fixed perfect routine for dogs, it is totally up to you and how you want to schedule things for the day.
Before making a perfect schedule for your pet, you must know what you should include in the whole day as far as your pet is concerned. It is also essential for you to know how your pet wants things to be. You should never try to impose your rules on your pet.
So Read On, to Make a Perfect Daily Schedule for Your Pet.
1. Play Time
Of Course, this had to be the first on the list. Who doesn’t know dogs’ love for playing? Everyone knows, that if there is a dog, there is definitely a lot of ‘playing’ involved. But playing is not just like dogs, it also has a lot of benefits.
You might have observed that when your pet plays, it is happy and content, not just physically but also mentally. This is because playing is an activity that stimulates good hormone flow in the body of dogs. Now playing is definitely such a wide term.
You can play with your dog in innumerous ways- you can get it toys or probably find him some other dog to play with within the neighborhood, or some kid who loves dogs in the neighborhood, or if you are free, you become his playing buddy!
If you are too engrossed in your work, you can always look for alternatives like puppy sitters who would stop by and take your puppy for a walk or probably some exercise.
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Always remember, if your dog has exhausted itself during the day, and used up its energy, it would definitely have a good sleep at night. So, playing is always a win-win for dogs!
2. Sleep
- Resting is as important as being active in a dog’s daily routine. The right amount of sleep is really essential for your dog, as it is for humans in general.
- The number of sleep hours varies from breed to breed, so you should definitely check out the number of hours your pet should ideally sleep. However, if we talk about it generally, dogs usually need sleep of 16 to 18 hours a day on average.
- You would wonder, this time period is so much more than what humans need! Well, that’s true. But, dogs wake up more frequently than humans do. The duration for which they sleep is also largely dependent on the environment they are living in.
- Suppose, there is a very active environment around them, they are likely to have fewer sleep hours. Similarly, if a dog is working with police, it will likely have fewer sleep hours as compared to a dog who is a pet at someone’s home.
- There are a lot of factors determining the amount of sleep that dogs require. However, it cannot be denied that sleep is a very essential component of a dog’s daily schedule.
3. Water
- All of us know the importance of staying hydrated. Just like humans, dogs also need to be hydrated at all times in order to make their bodies function in a smooth manner. To make sure of this, you should take care of the accessibility of water for your dog.
- You should ensure that your dog can reach out to his water bowl whenever he feels thirsty or dehydrated. In addition to that, you should ensure that the water in the bowl is regularly changed and is not stale or dirty.
- Regular cleaning of the water bowl is also very important. In a nutshell, it is very important for you to ensure that drinking enough water at regular intervals is a part of your dog’s schedule so that it stays hydrated.
4. Food
Nutrition is very important for the well-being of your dog. It provides energy to the dog’s body to perform basic survival functions and daily physical activities.
To ensure that your dog is getting sufficient nutrition, you should be very particular about its food schedule of it. If you observe, dogs generally like to eat only once or twice a day.
However, this is not a hard and fast rule and may vary from dog to dog depending on its breed, size, routine, etc. Smaller dogs are more likely to not eat their meal in one go. They keep completing their meals at regular intervals.
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However, that’s usually not the case with dogs that are large in size. Similarly, young puppies should be fed more frequently when compared to adult dogs, because they are in their growing stage.
Also, please be very particular about what you feed your dog. Always consult a veterinary doctor before fixing your pet’s food schedule.
5. Excreting
Since the dog is consuming food, it should also get enough chances to excrete the waste. Usually, adult dogs need to urinate and defecate at an interval of every 8 hours. But it again varies from dog to dog.
The urine controlling capacity of various dogs also varies and cannot be defined. This is something that you should observe as a pet parent. Puppies on the other hand need to be taken out more often.
Since they are not trained, you have to make sure they urinate at the right time and only at the right place. Excreting the waste is very essential for the dogs as this is the way they throw out the toxic substances from their body.
6. Comfort Time
- Who doesn’t need a ‘me-time’ in their comfort space? We love that and so do our dogs. Dogs usually like to spend a few comfortable hours in their comfort place. This is usually a place that is neither too warm nor too cold.
- This is an indoor place in most cases, however, some dogs might be more comfortable outdoors. It is a pet parent’s responsibility to give your dog a safe and comfortable place to rest in.
- Especially for extremely cold or hot days, ensure that your dog is taking a rest in a place with a decent temperature. If this place is out, ensure that there is no harm that can be caused to the dog at that place. So yes, the ‘me-time’ is very dear to the dogs too, like it is to us.
7. Quality Time with You
Believe it or not, you are your dogs’ favorite person in the entire world. Dogs love to spend time with their pet parents.
It is true that you might be busy at work all day but you should definitely try to spare some time for your furball. Even if that is a little, believe us, it would bring a huge difference in the pet’s temperament.
It is the same feeling we get when our loved ones give us attention. It is very easy for you to do that! You could just watch television with your pet or probably brush its fur and you are done! It is that simple, so go spend some quality time with your lovely pet?
So these are the major things that you should definitely include in your pet’s schedule regardless of what timings you set.
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As we mentioned before, there is no perfect or fixed schedule that would be termed as ‘healthy’ for pets. But still, based on studies and observations, dog experts have devised an ideal daily schedule for dogs.
You can stick to this schedule or make changes according to your lifestyle. Always remember, things change from dog to dog, so you will have to observe your dog, and its lifestyle, every now and then to get a fixed schedule.
Find Below an Ideal Daily Schedule for Your Pet!
1. 7:00 AM to 7:30 AM
- One should always try to begin their day on a fresh and positive note. It is advised to take your dog for a morning walk every day. It would not just benefit your dog, but also you.
- A brisk walk is always a good idea. Anyway, it is also a chance for your dog to freshen up, urinate and defecate in the morning itself. While you are out for a walk, it would be a great idea to play outdoors with your dog for some time.
- Physical activity is very important for dogs, so yes, it would be of great help. Fetching or any other random game works. You can also have a conversation with your pet, and try to interact with it.
- Morning time is also the time when you should inspect your dog’s body- Haircoat, eyes, skin, etc. Keeping a regular check is always a good idea. If you notice something unusual, you can always pay a visit to the vet.
2. 7:30 AM to 8:00 AM
After you and your dog come back from the morning stroll, both of you will be exhausted. This is the right time to feed your dog since it needs energy.
Since the dog will be thirsty, you should also give it some water to drink. Please make sure that the bowls in which you are feeding the dog are washed and clean. Also, try to feed only fresh food to the dog. Stale food can prove to be hazardous for the dog’s body.
3. 8:00 AM to 9:00 AM
- After the dogs are done having food and water, they usually prefer to take a rest for some time.
- Most of the dogs would usually go and rest on their couch or probably even take a nap at this time. So, it is their rest time! However, on the contrary, there might be some dogs who would again like to go out after they are done with food.
- We understand that it is not feasible for you to take your pet out time and again. In these cases, you can hire a pet helper or probably request some other member of the family to take the dog out.
- As we said before, all the dogs are different and so are their routines! So, you will have to observe what your dog likes doing at what time and only schedule things accordingly.
4. 9:00 AM to 12 PM
It is the lazy midday time for the dogs. What your dog does at this time totally depends on what its environment is. If you are around and staying at home, it would probably lie down near you or try to grab your attention.
If you are busy with household chores, it would follow you everywhere (that’s what they always do). and if you are someone who leaves home at 9 for work, you would probably spend this time resting or taking a nap. So, it is totally dependent on what you are doing. What you do, decides what your pet will do during its leisure hours.
5. 12 PM to 1 PM
After a lot of rest and taking a nap, the dogs usually want some activity. So they would probably want to play with someone or if not, they would just roam around the house.
We totally get it, taking the dog out time and again is not practical. But if the dog helper can do it, it would be great. Else, you can just let your pet roam around inside the house or probably the backyard if there is any.
6. 1 PM to 5 PM
It is again the resting time like 9 AM to 12 PM. The dogs usually tend to do the same stuff in these two time periods. It’s their leisure time and you cannot force them to do something at that time or fix a schedule.
They would sleep if they are sleepy and roam around, and observe you doing things if they want to be active. They will be their own masters here, haha, their own pet parents.
7. 5 PM to 7:30 PM
This is dinner and playtime! Usually, by this time, the pet parents reach home. Even your dogs are all done with taking naps and rest. You will find the dogs very excited and pumped at this time.
They would welcome you with a wagging tail. They expect you to spend time with them after a long day. And we are sure, you would love to do that too! Again, whenever you are serving food and dinner, ensure that the utensils and bowls are clean and the food being served is fresh.
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Make sure you keep a check on what and how much your dog is eating. It is also very essential for you to make sure that the dog exercises and burns out whatever it is consuming, else it may add up to extra fat in its body which can be a cause of many different diseases. Prevention is better than cure! So yes! This is playtime! Enjoy with your furball!
8. 7:30 PM to 11 PM
- This is the ‘post-show’ time. After you have enjoyed and played with your pet enough, you will also be tired after a long day. So, this would be a rather quiet time.
- This time is a very good time for you to observe your pet’s body, brush its hair and take care of it. You should look for any odd changes like rashes that might appear on the dog’s skin or if the hair is becoming very dry.
- Try to observe these for a couple of days before you consult a vet. It is always better to keep a check before the problems become complicated.
- Apart from this, you can even just chill out with your pet, probably watch TV or simply lie on the couch with it. It is the super chill hour! Enjoy and embrace the peace!
9. Bedtime
- There are many dogs who would like to go out for another walk at night. They see it as an opportunity to digest what they consume and excrete before they go to sleep at night. However, it may not be the case with many other dogs. And as we say, different dogs, different things. After all of this is done, make the dog practice going to sleep.
- If you have a puppy, it will initially be tough to tell your pup to go to bed in time. However, with time and practice, the dogs usually understand and sleep in time on their own. So yes, this is how their day ends.
- But don’t you feel even a little relaxed! There’s a new day tomorrow. Try to follow the same schedule cycle every day. Fixing a schedule is good for your pet, essentially because the food time, exercise time, and bedtime gets defined.
- We have mentioned quite a few times that technically, there is no ‘ideal’ daily schedule. Like in the case of humans, we have different lifestyles, different things to do, and hence, different schedules.
- The case is quite similar to dogs. Different dogs have different behaviors and different likings, and dislikings. And these are the things that determine what it would do in a day. So, it is very natural for the schedule to be different for different dogs.
- All you have to do is observe your dog enough, you will automatically set your schedule and your dog’s schedule along with it. It might seem a complicated task at first, but trust us, eventually, it becomes very smooth and easy.
Happy Pet Parenting!
