According to researchers, walking the pet gives the average dog owner far more exercise than someone with a gym membership, as exercising the pet twice a day for 24-minutes each time totals to 5-hours and 38-minutes per week. And, by taking the dog out for 3-long walks each week adds another 2-hours and 33-minutes to the total.

In comparison, gym goers on average spend just 1-hour and 20-minutes per week exercising at the gym or going for a stroll or jog, with 47% of those who do not own a pet admitting they do absolutely no exercise, whatsoever.

A spokesperson for Bob Martin pet health care experts, while going to the gym is more like a chore, dog-walking is far more enjoyable, with a couple of short walks adding up to more time then people spend in the gym. Not only that, while gym-goers exercise inside an air-conditioned gym, walking the dog racks up the miles, even as one enjoys the fresh air and admires the countryside.

Of the 5,000-people who participated in the study and of which 3,000 were owners of dogs, 57% said walking the dog was their main form of exercise, with over three quarters preferring taking their dog for a walk than going to the gym. A whopping 86% said walking their dog was an enjoyable form of exercise, with only 22% sometimes seeing it as a chore.

In comparison, only 16% enjoyed exercising in the gym, with 70% considering it a chore.

The survey also revealed that having to walk the dog actually encourages regular exercise, as 60% of pet owners saying, even when time was precious, the dog was always taken for a walk.

On the other hand, 46% of gym goers admitted, more often than not they found other things to do to get out of exercising.

As the focus increases on leading an active healthy lifestyle, with the government recommending 30-minutes of moderate cardio vascular exercise 3-5 times per week, it is encouraging to see that having a dog for a pet exceeds this target, even as one enjoys the exercise.