Petlife logo

9 Things You Need for a Care-Free Doggy Walk

#Dogs

By Meghan McKennaPublished 5 years ago 5 min read
Like

Dog walking should be a walk in the park, but sometimes it's not the case. Therefore, these are the items I always have to make sure our walks are fun and care-free.

1. A designated walking bag

Dog-walking bags are easy to find on Amazon and they are reasonably priced with most being around the £10 mark.

There are a few reasons why they are really worthwhile:

  1. They have a poo bag dispenser which dispenses one bag at a time, so no more struggle to hold a dog and separate multiple bags from each other.
  2. Most of them can hold all necessities including a water bottle, phone, keys, collapsible bowl, and more.
  3. If you are a multi-carer household for your dog all of the necessities are in one bag for whoever is walking the dog to just pick up and go.
  4. They are cute as anything.

2. Biodegradable poop bags and hand sanitiser

An obvious one, but a necessity on a walk.

Most bags are biodegradable, but it's always good to double check as they are better for the environment.

I tend to buy bags in bulk online. This way you are always sure you are getting the best deals on bags and you know you will have enough bags to last a while.

Hand sanitizer isn't something a lot of people think to bring, but I would not leave without it. I don't mind picking up poo, but I hate to spend the rest of the walk desperate to get in and wash my hands. Having hand sanitizer changes this because most get rid of any germs and dirt on your hands.

3. Treats

Most people don't take treats with them on a walk unless they are still training their dog, however I always try to make sure I have something with me to give my dog if I need to.

Most of the time I might use a treat to get my dogs attention if we are passing near a cat and I don't want her to pull towards it, or if I think she has been particularly good when crossing the road or interacting with another dog.

I usually bring small training treats or a few cocktail sausages (above) cut into three pieces so they last longer. And as a container I either use a freezer bag or a small plastic container which was previously used to hold little sweets.

4. Collapsible bowl and water

As I have a husky I always try to keep water with me in case she overheats on a walk. Quite often she might have a drink from it, sometimes she likes to dip her paws in it. (It's cute on walks, but not very cute when she does it with her water bowl in the house.)

I own a collapsible bowl like the one pictured above with the two bowls. Not only is this good on walks because it fits in my bag and it also has a D-clip, but it also is really good for if we go camping to put her food and water in.

5. A water bottle with an "X" cut nozzle

An example of a bottle with this top is Lucozade sport. Due to the design being an airtight "X" cut, when the bottle is squeezed water comes out pressurised. This is good for a couple of scenarios:

  1. If your dog's poo is a little soft and leaves a mark you can use the water to spray it down.
  2. If your dog's feet get mucky you can use the water to give a quick burst of water to the paws, and then use a flannel or towel to clean them off (another thing I sometimes bring with me if it is raining or we are going to the beach, but not a necessity).

6. Toys

Most dogs love nothing more than a bit of tug'o'war or fetch, so it's always good to bring a toy to be able to have a little play at a park on a walk.

My dog isn't a massive toy fan and we struggle to get her to play. But we discovered she likes to chase and chew sticks. So we always bring a rubber "stick" design toy with us to play with at the park.

7. A long lead

For most people having a dog on a retractable lead is absolutely fine. But with big dogs who pull a lot it's not always an option.

We adopted our dog and the last owner explained that she had once broken a retractable lead as she is a strong dog when she wants to be. Therefore, we have two leads for her. One is a lead that is about two metres long which we walk her on, and the other one is much longer. We tend to use the long lead at the park or at the beach, this is helpful as our dog isn't very good with her recall so we always need to keep her on a lead.

To carry the long lead I usually wrap it into big circles and put it over one shoulder and across my body.

Above you can see a picture of our dog Mikka enjoying her long lead at the beach.

8. House keys on a lanyard

Having keys on a lanyard is a must for walking my dog as it means when I get back to the house I am not rummaging around my bag to find the keys to get in, while still holding the dog.

Having the keys around my neck means we get in easily and I am not likely to lose them if they fall out of my bag or pockets when pulling out a poo bag or my phone.

9. A phone on full charge

This is a necessity for in case of emergency if you need to get in touch with someone.

But if you didn't have your phone, how else would you capture cute walking moments like the one we got of Mikka on a sunny day at the park?

dog
Like

About the Creator

Meghan McKenna

Instagram - @megroisin (Follow me! I have a cute dog!)

Reader insights

Be the first to share your insights about this piece.

How does it work?

Add your insights

Comments

There are no comments for this story

Be the first to respond and start the conversation.

Sign in to comment

    Find us on social media

    Miscellaneous links

    • Explore
    • Contact
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms of Use
    • Support

    © 2024 Creatd, Inc. All Rights Reserved.