Is it safe to walk my dog when the AQI is bad?
Updated By PetymFacts checked against official sources on
Quick answer
When the AQI is Poor, Very Poor or Severe, keep your dog's outings to short toilet breaks and skip running, fetch and long walks until the air improves. Cornell's vet school advises limiting outdoor time to bathroom breaks in poor air, keeping windows shut and giving puzzle feeders indoors. Flat-faced, old, young and heart or lung patients need most care.
No study sets a safe AQI number for dogs, so this follows the human health advice in India's AQI and the vet guidance. If your dog coughs, gags or breathes fast at rest, call your vet.
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What do India's AQI categories mean?
India's National Air Quality Index, launched on 17 October 2014, rates air from 0 to 500 using eight pollutants, including PM2.5 and PM10. The health lines are written for people.
- Good (0 to 50)
- Minimal impact. Arthapedia, Indian Economic Service, Government of India
- Satisfactory (51 to 100)
- May cause minor breathing discomfort to sensitive people. Arthapedia, Indian Economic Service, Government of India
- Moderately polluted (101 to 200)
- May cause breathing discomfort to people with lung disease such as asthma, and discomfort to people with heart disease, children and older adults. Arthapedia, Indian Economic Service, Government of India
- Poor (201 to 300)
- May cause breathing discomfort to people on prolonged exposure, and discomfort to people with heart disease. Arthapedia, Indian Economic Service, Government of India
- Very poor (301 to 400)
- May cause respiratory illness on prolonged exposure, more so in people with lung and heart disease. Arthapedia, Indian Economic Service, Government of India
- Severe (401 to 500)
- May affect even healthy people, and seriously affect those with lung or heart disease. Effects may be felt even during light physical activity. Arthapedia, Indian Economic Service, Government of India
How long should I walk my dog at each AQI level?
Petym’s working from the official rules, no government publishes a total.
Petym's working from the AQI health statements and Cornell's advice, for a healthy adult dog. There is no dog-specific threshold in the research, so use this as a cautious guide and shorten it for a high-risk dog.
| Walks | Play and exercise | |
|---|---|---|
| Good or Satisfactory Arthapedia, Indian Economic Service, Government of India | Normal walks | Normal |
| Moderately polluted Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Riney Canine Health Center | Normal for most dogs; shorter for flat-faced, old, young or unwell dogs | Avoid hard running for high-risk dogs |
| Poor Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Riney Canine Health Center | Shorter walks, away from traffic | No running, cycling alongside or long fetch |
| Very poor Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Riney Canine Health Center | Toilet breaks only | Indoor games and puzzle feeders |
| Severe Arthapedia, Indian Economic Service, Government of India | Brief toilet breaks only | Indoors only; even light activity counts for people |
Check your city's AQI before you go. It changes through the day and by area.
Does air pollution harm dogs?
The research is limited, but it points the same way as for people.
A 2025 study of more than seven million UK veterinary visits found that rises in fine particulate matter (PM2.5) were associated with significant increases in vet visits for both dogs and cats. Earlier, a 2002 study of street dogs in a heavily polluted part of Mexico City found inflammation and damage in the nose, airways and brain compared with dogs from a less polluted city.
Indoor air matters too. A 2018 study at a veterinary hospital in Taiwan found that dogs with respiratory disease were more often exposed to incense burning at home than healthy dogs (30% against 13%). Household PM2.5 was not different between sick and healthy dogs, but it was higher in cats with respiratory disease. In Indian homes, agarbattis, dhoop and mosquito coils add smoke to rooms where pets sleep.
Cornell's Riney Canine Health Center says poor air can irritate a dog's throat, nose and eyes, and names flat-faced breeds such as Bulldogs and Pugs, older and very young animals, and dogs with heart disease, asthma or other heart and lung conditions as more sensitive.
How do I protect my dog on smog days?
Do
- Keep windows and doors closed while the AQI is bad, and use an air purifier or filter indoors if you have one. Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Riney Canine Health Center
- Limit outdoor time to toilet breaks, and walk away from main roads and construction where you can. Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Riney Canine Health Center
- Swap the walk for long-lasting chews, puzzle feeders, sniff games and short training sessions indoors. Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Riney Canine Health Center
- Burn less incense and fewer coils in the rooms where your pet spends its time. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine (2018)study
Don’t
- Do not take your dog running, cycling or on a long hike until the air has improved. Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Riney Canine Health Center
- Do not assume an indoor dog is safe from smoke: indoor sources also matter. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine (2018)study
- Do not give any cough medicine or inhaler meant for people. Only a vet decides treatment. Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Riney Canine Health Center
When should I call the vet?
If Coughing, gagging, or watery, irritated eyes and nose after time outside
Keep your dog indoors with windows shut, and call your vet if it does not settle or you are worried. Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Riney Canine Health Center
If Breathing fast at rest, or laboured breathing
Call your vet now. In a flat-faced dog or one with heart or lung disease, go straight in. Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Riney Canine Health Center
If Blue or grey gums, collapse, or struggling to breathe
An emergency: go to the nearest vet immediately. RSPCA (England and Wales)
How do I plan walks through the smog season?
The AQI was created to give the public air quality information in a form that is easy to understand, so use it like a weather forecast: check your city's reading before the morning and evening walk, because it changes through the day and from one area to the next. On a run of bad days, a fixed routine of short toilet breaks plus indoor play keeps a dog settled better than one long walk on the first clear morning.
Diwali night adds firecracker smoke to the noise that frightens many dogs. Walk early in the evening, before the crackers start, and keep your dog indoors with windows shut afterwards. Petym's Diwali and winter guides cover the rest of the season, including heaters and cold-wave days.
Going away soon? Tell us your dates.
A checked local sitter feeds, walks and keeps your pet company at home, follows your care sheet to the letter and sends a photo every day. Petym is opening city by city: send your dates and we will tell you when a sitter can take them.
- Meet your sitter first, free
- PAN-checked, first-aid trained
- A photo every day
- Pay through Petym, never cash
Questions owners ask
Should I stop walking my dog in Delhi pollution?
- Not stop entirely, but cut back. On Poor days keep walks short and away from traffic; on Very Poor and Severe days keep outings to toilet breaks and do exercise indoors. Cornell's vet school advises limiting outdoor time to bathroom breaks and avoiding running until the air improves.
Do dogs need masks for pollution?
- None of the veterinary sources we checked recommends masks for dogs, and a mask can interfere with panting, which is how dogs cool down. Cutting the time outdoors, avoiding exercise in bad air and keeping indoor air clean are the measures the vet guidance names.
Can air pollution make my dog cough?
- Yes. Cornell's Riney Canine Health Center says poor air can irritate the throat, nose and eyes and lists coughing and gagging among the signs. A cough can also mean kennel cough, heart disease or other illness, so call your vet if it lasts or your dog breathes fast at rest.
Are some dogs more at risk from smog?
- Yes: flat-faced breeds such as Pugs and Bulldogs, older and very young dogs, and dogs with heart disease, asthma or other lung conditions. Keep their outings shortest on bad days and watch their breathing. Flat-faced cats such as Persians share the short airways.
Does an air purifier help pets?
- Cornell suggests using air purifiers or filters indoors during poor air quality, together with keeping windows and doors shut. Keep the purifier where your pet rests, and cut indoor smoke from incense and coils, which a 2018 study linked with respiratory disease in dogs.
Keep reading
- Winter pet care in north IndiaCold, smog and the season's other risks.
- Diwali, firecrackers and pets
- Signs your pet needs a vet now
- Pet care during festival travel
- PugA flat-faced breed that needs extra care in bad air.
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Sources
Each source was opened and read on the date shown. How Petym checks its sources
- Arthapedia, Indian Economic Service, Government of India: National Air Quality Index (opens in a new tab)
- Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine, Riney Canine Health Center: Dog safety during poor air quality alerts or wildfire smoke (opens in a new tab)
- RSPCA (England and Wales): First aid for your dog (opens in a new tab)
- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2025), Jarvis S, Deschenes O, Jha A, Radford AD: The impact of air pollution on petcare utilization (abstract read in the University of Liverpool repository) (opens in a new tab)
- Toxicologic Pathology (2002): Air pollution and brain damage: dogs in Southwest Metropolitan Mexico City (abstract read) (opens in a new tab)
- Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine (2018): Association between indoor air pollution and respiratory disease in companion dogs and cats (abstract read) (opens in a new tab)