The Most Active Dogs in the UK

Dogs in Edinburgh are most exercised in the UK, according to research from UK dog website BorrowMyDoggy.

A recent survey, interviewing thousands of dog owners across the main UK cities found that 45 per cent of dogs in Edinburgh receive at least one hour and a half of exercise every day – well ahead of Brighton, the second “most active” city, where only 33 per cent of dog owners said the same. London comes sixth with 25 per cent, and Leeds is at the very bottom – with only 3 per cent of dog owners exercising their dog one hour and a half or more each day.

The lack of exercise, however, doesn’t necessarily mean pets are overweight: bear in mind that different breeds make do with different amounts of exercise. So Leeds, despite having the least active dogs, is actually fifth in the list of cities where dog owners consider their dog to be overweight. Newcastle is the UK city with most overweight dog – at least according to their owners. London is at the sixth place with 25 per cent.

Rikke Rosenlund, founder of BorrowMyDoggy, said, “We find increasing volumes of members joining to ensure their dogs are well exercised. As dog obesity rates continue to rise across the UK, exercise has never been more important to a dog’s health and well-being. Understandably, they are your best friend, but letting them spend time with other dogs or humans is vital to their well being and if they get more exercise, you’ll definitely have a healthier happier dog, who will love you even more.”

Socialisation is the key to have a happy and friendly dog, and that is where Leeds leaps to an impressive first place: all owners from Leeds interviewed said that their dog is used to socialise with other dogs and people aside from themselves, and 55 per cent even said that they do so more than five times a month. At the last position in this list we find Sheffield, with 23 per cent.

DOG EXERCISE

% of dog owners in each city who give their dogs at least 1 ½ hours of exercise per day. The list is ranked from most to least exercise:

1. Edinburgh - 45%
2. Brighton - 33%
3. Nottingham 28%
4. Newcastle 27%
5. Glasgow 26%
6. London 25%
7. Sheffield 20%
8. Liverpool 18%
9. Bristol 16%
10. Birmingham 16%
11. Manchester 14%
12. Leeds 3%

DOG WEIGHT

% of dog owners in each city who consider their dog overweight. The list is ranked from most to least overweight:

1. Newcastle - 21%
2. Birmingham - 18%
3. Sheffield - 17%
4. Manchester - 16%
5. Leeds - 16%
6. Nottingham - 13%
7. Glasgow - 11%
8. Edinburgh - 11%
9. London - 11%
10. Brighton - 10%
11. Bristol - 10%
12. Liverpool - 3%

DOG SOCIALISATION

% of dogs in each city who spend zero time socialising with people besides their owners. The list is ranked from most to least socialised dogs.

Socialisation is clearly important for Leeds’ dog owners. In fact, more than half of dogs in Leeds (55%) socialise with people besides their owners at least five times per month.

1. Leeds - 0%
2. Nottingham - 3%
3. Brighton - 3%
4. Bristol - 5%
5. London - 8%
6. Glasgow - 8%
7. Newcastle - 9%
8. Edinburgh - 11%
9. Liverpool -13%
10. Birmingham - 13%
11. Manchester - 14%
12. Sheffield - 23%