Overview
- Canine behaviour specialist Paula O’Sullivan urges owners to try a 20-minute “sniffari,” which she says delivers exercise comparable to an hour-long walk.
- She cites physiology to explain the payoff, saying dogs may reach about 150 breaths per minute when sniffing versus roughly 30 at rest, 60 when walking and 90 when running.
- O’Sullivan describes sniffing as strongly dopamine-activating and notes dogs’ powerful olfactory capacity, with around 300 million scent receptors.
- Her guidance is to let the dog’s nose lead for focused sniffing, which can be especially useful for puppies, elderly or injured dogs, or when owners are short on time.
- The dog charity Baypath echoes that 15–20 minutes of sniffing can equal about an hour’s walk, while advice notes dogs may sniff more in new places or after rain and some may sniff less if they feel anxious.