We’ve all seen them, and perhaps we’ve also been them: the person who multitasks while walking their dog. Sometimes we do it ourselves. More often than not, this means catching up on work emails or the latest news on your smart phone while walking your pup.
After all, Fido is taking his time sniffing this particular spot, so why not send your coworker a text asking if they want coffee?
Yes, we are all incredibly busy people. But is it really necessary for any of us to be on our phone while walking our dogs?
No. In fact, it’s quite dangerous. Here are five reasons why you should un-glue your eyes from the phone screen on your dog walks.
Do you use your phone while you walk your dog? Are you going to break the habit? Let us know why or why not in the comments.
Reasons To Stop Looking At Your Phone While Walking Your Dog
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You Need To Be Aware Of Your Surroundings
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Even when you're not with your dog, it's common sense to be aware of your surroundings while walking around in public. Nothing is more embarrassing or annoying than bumping into someone or stepping in a big wad of dog poop while on one of your daily walks.
Paying too much attention to your phone while you're walking instead of your surroundings is also a safety hazard.
People have completely ignored the light and walked into traffic when they were distracted by their smart phones.
Don't put yourself or your dog in that kind of danger. Put the phone in your pocket or leave it at home.
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Your Dog Could Pick Up Something Dangerous
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If you're busy catching up on your favorite Twitter comedian's latest rant, you're probably going to be too distracted to notice Fido getting into that discarded fast food bag or getting too close and personal with another dog's feces.
Discarded food items can be toxic and full of bacteria, or they can have dangerous things like bones that could break into shards and hurt your dog. Animal waste can harbor parasites and spread diseases.
Save yourself the trouble of an emergency vet visit due to ingesting dangerous or poisonous items by leaving the Twitter check for your work break.
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Your Dog Could Get Into An Avoidable Fight
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Your dog may not be leash aggressive, but other dogs on your daily dog walk path could be.
Keeping yourself 100 percent in the moment will help avoid altercations that your pup could have with other dogs or unsuspecting children who run up without permission to pet your dog.
Is checking to see if your assistant responded to the email you sent ten minutes ago worth a potential lawsuit? Highly unlikely.
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Your Dog May Be Telling You Something
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You won't notice your dog panting a little too heavily or limping on one paw if you are playing Yahtzee with your boo on your smart phone.
On hotter days or longer walks, this is especially important. You wouldn't want your dog to be severely dehydrated or, even worse, suffer from heat stroke on a warm summer walk.
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Your Dog Appreciates Your Attention
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We all lead busy, hectic lives. It can be easy to get caught up in it all and not give our dogs the one-on-one attention they need and deserve.
There's almost nothing that can't wait the 15 minutes to walk your dog so you can spend some uninterrupted, quality time with your pup. Leave the phone at home the next time you take your dog for a walk if you need to.
Trust me, they will appreciate it.
