The maker of the Vetrax wearable sensor has quantified how much time dogs spend doing dog things.
The behavior survey, relying on 28,000 days of sensor-generated data, found that dogs sleep an average of 10.4 hours a day — “less than the 12 to 14 hours commonly quoted,” according to Vetrax manufacturer AGL of Norcross, Georgia.
A canine lifestyle is mostly sedentary. Besides sleeping, dogs spend a lot of time — an average of nine hours a day — simply at rest.
When spurred to action, they walk an average of 68 minutes a day and spend five minutes running, AGL reported.
Vetrax-wearing dogs also scratched for 100 seconds a day and shook themselves for 39 seconds.
The numbers don’t necessarily describe all dogs.
“What is really important is to establish what is normal for an individual pet,” said Vetrax founder Marcel Sarzen. “By monitoring the results from a Vetrax sensor, pet owners and veterinary professionals can identify when a behavior is occurring at a level that’s not usual for that pet.
“If we can spot these changes at an early stage, it gives pet parents and veterinarians a great opportunity to take prompt action and achieve better clinical outcomes.”
The Vetrax sensor, app and online portal allow veterinarians to monitor their canine patients’ activity levels and help practitioners evaluate and manage treatment plans.