KEEPING OUR CANINE ATHLETES FIT

 There is good reason to keep our canine athletes fit. I have heard it said that our dogs do not need to be kept very fit for just a 30 minute sprint around the ring – their cardiovascular system would have to be in very poor condition indeed, if they could not manage that. But there is a lot more to it than just not being puffed out after a short run around the ring.

 Our dog’s bones and joints support the dog’s weight, and when a dog jumps it puts a lot more stress and strain on those joints. If the joints had to absorb all this force in the instant of landing we would see a lot of damage to the cartilage that lines the joints and we would often see tears in the ligaments that hold these bones together.  Muscles are living tissue that helps to support our dogs weight. They act as very effective shock absorbers, reducing and spreading out the load on the bones and joints. Obviously, if we have good healthy muscles then they act as more effective shock absorbers.

 Even with a quick run around the ring, over a few jumps, if the muscles are not helping to protect the joints, we will have very small amounts of low grade damage to our dogs’ joints. We will see little micro tears in the ligaments that hold the joints together, and minor joint instabilities will develop. Even though we do not ever see any lameness, over time these micro tears add up to degenerative joint disease in older age. And we do not want to see our dogs hobbling around in their old age, if we can prevent it.

 There are lots of ways to keep our dogs fit, and thankfully for us, most are pretty pleasant for us to partake in, with our dogs. When you speak to a human athlete keeping fit, you seem to conjure up a picture of pounding pavements or monotonously swimming laps in a pool. But I can think of better ways than that. In fact, monotonous road work – for example jogging beside a bike – is not a good idea for building up fitness and muscle condition. The repetitive concussion on the joints can also lead to low grade, long term damage, and if you want to take the dog out for this type of exercise it is better to ride or jog on grassed surfaces. What is best, and a far more pleasant way to exercise ourselves is a walk in the bush, along the beach or just a walk in the park.

 The preferred way to keep a dog fit for agility is lots of free running – but not just wandering around a park and sniffing at a few trees. We like to see active running, perhaps dogs chasing each other and, if possible, exploring through areas of uneven ground where they learn to shift their balance and adjust their stride. Mind you, if your dog is not used to that sort of exercise then don’t start with a full hour of bush walking (handler walking and dogs running) but rather build up the level of fitness gradually.

Swimming is also excellent exercise for our dogs, but more to maintain muscle condition, rather than to build it up. The fact that it is non weight bearing means it is excellent exercise for a dog with an injury, or returning from injury. But not all dogs use their hind quarters well when they are swimming, so it may not maintain hind leg strength. If your dog does not swim, or you need to do more muscle building in a dog coming back from injury, then walk the dog through shoulder depth water where the dog has to push against the water. The dog has to push harder against the resistance of the water, and there is the advantage that the water supports some of the dog’s weight, and the sand, that gives a little underfoot, is less concussive on the joints.

Running on sand is also an excellent way to build healthy muscle. I like to sit my dogs at one end of a beach, walk down the beach then call them. They race each other and having to push on the soft sand means they have to work a lot harder to keep up speed.

 I guess I have it a little easier than most to keep my dogs fit. My dogs do not need any encouragement to run, and I have my own 5 acres to run them. But I still need to work on it. Although the dogs do often hare around the back yard chasing each other, I still need to make sure they get that all out sprint training. I like to see them go out for a good half an hour run. They usually race around for 15 to 20 minutes, then continue at a steadier pace. This is the point I like to do some sprint training – put them on a sit stay then play a ready-set-go game, making them take off at full speed – pushing their endurance when they are already a little tired. Like our game at the back gate, before I let them out into the back paddock.

 

I like to take them swimming once or twice a week – this is fairly easy with a large dam in the back paddock, but when I lived in suburbia I would take a regular trip down to the local doggy swimming hole. I think they probably did more swimming then, because the sessions went for longer (Pittwater is a bigger swimming pool than our dam!)

 My dogs are kept lean – I like to see their last few ribs showing when standing comfortably – mind you, that is on a German Shorthaired Pointer – I would hate to see ribs showing on a dog with thicker hair!! On a pet dog, I like to be able to feel the last couple ribs. On an athlete, like our agility dogs, I like to be able to feel several ribs – not actually sticking out, but you should be able to feel them when you run your fingers down their chest, without having to press down to hard..

 The last consideration to prevent injury for our canine athletes (and ourselves) is to make sure we warm up and cool down before we race around the agility field. We may only be out there for 30 to 60 seconds, but we can put a lot of stress and strain on those muscles and joints with some of those sudden sharp turns. After a brief walk (and chance for the dog to go to the toilet) I like to stretch my dogs’ muscles including the muscles to twist sideways – placing their legs in my chest and drawing their front legs forward. I stretching the turning muscles by having them do figure 8’s around my legs and lots of spins. The spins also act to get my dogs’ attention on me. I do a couple of stretches myself, then we both do a couple of quick jogs at the side of the ring. If there is a warm up jump we do a couple of tight turns or we do some more spins before we go in the ring. I confess that I do not pay as much attention to cool down, other than walking the dog back to the trailer, but I certainly make sure they do not chill on a cold day.

 Hope this helps
Le Hammer BVSc