Walking Dog Good For You And Fido

DETROIT (WWJ) - Walking your dog is good for you.  New research out today from Michigan State University shows people who owned and walked their dogs were 34 percent more likely to meet federal benchmarks on physical activity. 

Epidemiologist Mathew Reeves says the study showed people who walked their dogs generally walked about an hour longer per week than people who owned dogs but did not walk them. 

"Walking is the most accessible form of physical activity available to people," Reeves said. "What we wanted to know was if dog owners who walked their dogs were getting more physical activity or if the dog-walking was simply a substitute for other forms of activity."

Other findings showed middle-age people have the least amount of time to walk their dogs, younger and older people get the most physical activity benefit and larger breed dogs, those more than 45 pounds, were walked for a longer duration than smaller dogs.

The study appears in the current issue of the Journal of Physical Activity and Health.