Walking the dog mindfully ???

[Metaphysical Me]

I want to start a thread about how to walk your dog mindfully, as Jon and Mick have both mentioned walking their dogs mindfully to me.

I have a dog and walk him 3 times a day. Unfortunately, I don't feel particularly mindful when I do.

In the mornings I'm often tired and not feeling quite ready to encounter the outdoors world. (So I'm sort of in "avoidance" mode and want to get back home so I can have a coffee.)

In the afternoon, we go for a long walk, often 2 hours in the park and local forest. That walk is more pleasant, but I'm so busy looking after the dog (he's off the leash and loves to go hunting, which is often a drama).

The evening walk always goes to our dog's favourite place. It's the grounds of the headquarters of a big insurance company and the regional Lotto offices. There's tons of rabbits there, to scamper after and our dog absolutely adores it there. However, technically I guess we are trespassing and there's security cameras and security guards. (Luckily we know most of the security guards by now and they seem to tolerate us.)

But I don't feel particularly mindful during these walks. They're so much work!

Any tips from fellow mindfulness-practising dog-walkers?

How do you make it a mindful experience?

P.S. Our dog is a pretty wild rascal. He is a former street-dog who we got from the shelter. He's settling in well, but will always have a wild streak.

[JonW]

I believe the trick to walking one's dog mindfully is simply to observe the dog and follow suit. Watch how curious they are about everything, how purely in the moment they are.
I wouldn't advise cocking your leg against trees though. I believe there's laws against that sort of thing. Unless you're a dog.

[piedwagtail91]

I believe the trick to walking one's dog mindfully is simply to observe the dog and follow suit. Watch how curious they are about everything, how purely in the moment they are.
I wouldn't advise cocking your leg against trees though. I believe there's laws against that sort of thing. Unless you're a dog.

yes thats about it for me too, until we get to the woods then i'm looking at the sunlight coming through the trees and all the leaves on the ground, spiders webs and then hearing the sounds,
then it's back to watching the dog walk, all the different walking styles she has, something i'd never really noticed before.
though i have to admit that when we set off from home my awareness is very much in my legs. after an hour of yoga, some pranayama and then half an hour meditation my legs aren't too happy with the sudden increase in effort

our dog is a also a rescue dog. she was my daughters but didn't like her new house so she forcibly moved in with us by refusing to go home

[Gareth]

How do you make it a mindful experience?

Try not to force it. Mindfulness should require precisely zero effort. It is simply an awareness that any human being has the capacity for. Close your eyes and listen to the sounds around you; this is mindfulness, nothing more.

This is easy for me to say of course. I've been practising for three years, so I've had time to get better at this. And that's the key thing: practice. We've spent our entire lives living in our heads; it takes time and work to change this.

[JonW]

"Close your eyes and listen to the sounds around you; this is mindfulness, nothing more."
It really is that simple. So simple that it's easy to miss. The mind loves complexity, loves trying to solve things, so it will always be looking for more, more, more.
There's just this. Moment to moment.
In the words of William Carlos Williams:
"So much depends upon a red wheelbarrow/glazed with rainwater/beside the white chickens."

[Metaphysical Me]

I believe the trick to walking one's dog mindfully is simply to observe the dog and follow suit. Watch how curious they are about everything, how purely in the moment they are.
I wouldn't advise cocking your leg against trees though. I believe there's laws against that sort of thing. Unless you're a dog.

Haha, I love this! Yes, watching the dog even more "intensely" is a very good idea.

I guess because he's a former street-dog (who lived in a town in the remote forests of the Carpathian Mountains), I don't get to do much eye-closing and listening during our walk. I'm always looking out for bicyclists, as he thinks these are excellent hunting objects and tries to pull them off their bikes, or has a barking fit at them, so they almost fall off their bikes from being startled.

Which is also why our walks are very intensive "training sessions" on how to behave more calmly and steadily on the leash and in the city.

Then there's all the rabbit hunting that goes on - every front yard, every hedgerow, every bush is animatedly checked for rabbits (our city is famous for it's wild rabbit population) - and I do try to prevent a) the dog running after them, onto the street or b) the dog flushing the rabbits out if a car is going past, so the rabbit won't be run over.

Then there's all the peeing and pooing issues. We live in a really prissy, snooty city and people here almost have a stroke if a dog pees against ANYTHING. And god forbid he does a poo. Even if you're standing there, with the plastic bad ALREADY IN HAND, people are liable to have a fit and a yell. So, there's the task of constantly watching out that the dog pees on the "right" things.

Then there's the traffic. There's quite a lot of traffic to watch here, as the streets are so narrow and lots of cyclists.

So, these walks are not really all that relaxing... Should I be being mindful of the stress, hecticness and chaos, do you think??

(I mean, I don't want to make these walks sound like they're plain awful, cos they're not, but they're also not really the "close your eyes and listen" type of walks...?)

Anyway, you get the picture why I ask... We've previously had quiet dogs too, whom you could go on lovely long strolls on the beach with (where we used to live) and no problems there, being mindful. It's not like I don't get the "being in the moment, looking and listening thing". My question is just: how do you do it in challenging conditions? And personally, I don't really like mindfulness in "the city" much - being mindful of cars, traffic noise, smog etc... great... (not!)

[Gareth]

Closing your eyes and listening to the sounds around you isn't the only way you can be mindful. That was just meant to illustrate the simplicity of the practice.

You can be mindful of the passer-by telling you off for the dog pooing on the grass. Or you can be mindful of chasing the dog to prevent it from downing a cyclist. Mindfulness is just paying attention to what is happening in this moment; whatever that is.

I honestly think you are trying to think about mindfulness too much. That is completely understandable. I did the same as I was beginning my mindfulness journey. The most important thing here is to keep practising, and slowly but surely some of these things will become clearer to you.

I wish you well.

[Metaphysical Me]

You can be mindful of the passer-by telling you off for the dog pooing on the grass. Or you can be mindful of chasing the dog to prevent it from downing a cyclist.

Seriously? Are you mindful 24/7? I know I'm not. Does nothing throw you out of your mindfulness practice? Are there not situations you find challenging for it? Are you mindful, for example, while having a fight with your spouse?

Just asking to clarify, because I know I certainly struggle in "difficult" situations... And it can be a huge effort to "get back on track" with being mindful.

[Metaphysical Me]

As an example, I am quite a grumpy person in the mornings. Never have been a morning person, and possibly never will be.

So, the morning walk is: me, sleepy, slightly grumpy, with an incorrigible, full of mega-mischievious energy 2 year old dog on the leash, being yelled at by rude, tense passersby worried about lawns or the pavement - in that sleepy, grumpy state, I'm more likely to have a livid slanging match with said passerby than having a Dalai-Lama-like benevolent smile on my calm, peaceful face, while meditating on the bizarre vagaries of fellow humans and the universe in general.

[Metaphysical Me]

P.S. Gareth, I don't overthink mindfulness because I'm new to it. I just love thinking. And I prefer posting here in the "beginners' section" because I prefer the energy and atmosphere of "beginners mind". I don't feel as comfortable posting in the "experienced practitioners' section".