6 minute read
Basic exercises for your dog
from DQ Magazine Issue 3B
by hqmagazine
BASIC EXERCISES FOR YOUR DOG - Part Three
Text | Bianca Rootman
I hope everyone has been having lots of successful and fun attempts at some of the exercises discussed in the previous two articles.
We would love to hear from you and see some pictures or videos of you trying the exercises at home.
If you post pictures please tagDQ Magazine and Animal Health and Hydro on social media.
@animal_health_solutions @dogquarterlymag
In Part Three, we’ll be discussing the walk. The walk, like the stand, is a ‘simple’ exercise that is often overlooked. It is definitely one of those daily actions that many of us take for granted, but if we think about the elderly or someone who is injured or compromised, and how difficult and exhausting they can find walking from point A to point B, we can see that the walk is not a simple gait. The walk is the only gait where your companion is forced to take weight on each leg individually. When the walk is slow and controlled, there are three paws on the ground at every phase of the walk, so cheating or avoiding weight bearing on a particular leg becomes very difficult.
Before challenging your companion, we first need to establish his current walking ability and fitness level. Do you take your companion for walks on a daily basis or only once a week? how far you walk, or how long you walk for? Is your companion completely exhausted afterawrds, are they visible tired but don’t seem sore or stiff, or do they behave as if they haven’t even gone on a walk? Taking note of these few factors will give you a baseline for challenging and progressing your walks. While looking at this baseline, you may also identify abnormalities.
The first common abnormality, which is often believed to be a cute quirk, is what we call the waddle. I’m sure you can all picture a dog walking in front of you waddling their bums side to side; there are many videos out there of this because, admittedly, it looks very cute. Yet, although it is cute, it is not right. Dogs who walk like that are not flexing through their hips and are actually using their backs to pull each hind limb forward by swinging half of their bodes from side to side. One can imagine the kind of strain that places on their backs. Another relatively obvious abnormality is crabbing. This is when your dog’s wheel alignment seems a bit off and they walk like a crab, not quite straight, but not quite skew. This too indicates a compensatory gait that can often be linked to an underlying condition or abnormality. The third, not so obvious abnormality, is pacing. This is when the dog moves like a camel, so the left fore limb and left hind limb will move together, and the right fore limb and right hind limb move together. This is often considered to be an energy saving gait that is displayed when the dog is fatigued, but it can also be an indication of an underlying condition or weakness, especially when the dog regularly paces. The other really obvious abnormalities one may pick up are limping, dragging of one or more paws, or tripping. These are all serious issues and should be checked out by a professional before you embark on any of theses exercises.
In terms of these exercises below, please just remember remember that not every exercise will be appropriate for your companion, and asking your companion to perform an exercise when they are weak or compromised could lead to injury, so please consult with your veterinarian or veterinary physiotherapist should you have any concerns, or notice that your companion is having any difficulty in performing the exercises. Waddle Walk
The first simple way to change up your walk would be to add inclines, declines, and different surfaces. When your companion has to walk up or down a hill, they need to engage different muscles in their bodies in order to power up, or brace down the incline/decline. Allowing your companion to navigate appropriate terrain encourages your companion to be aware of his/her body by making them think about their next paw placement, and the different textures feel different under their paws, which stimulates the proprioceptive neural pathways.
The second way in which you could challenge your companion is by varying the pace at which he/she walks. Often times, your companion will struggle to walk slowly. When we slow our companions down, they can no longer use momentum to propel themselves forward, so they are forced to use each limb individually. This is when one can really pick up a problem, or when a problem becomes more visible. Asking your companion to walk a bit faster than normal is a nice way to challenge them too. You’ll need to find that sweet spot of asking for just enough, but not so much that they break into a trot.
The third way to change up the walk is to add some obstacles that your companion will need to step over, and some obstacles to weave through. At home, one can use poles or broom sticks placed in a row on the floor, and ask you companion to walk down the line, stepping over each pole. Your dog may knock a few of the obstacles if they are not picking up their feet or legs properly. If out on a walk, you could find some tree roots of low branches and perform the same exercise. For the weave portion, one can simply take six objects, cones, or something that they are not able to step over, put them in a row and ask your companion to slowly weave through those. When out on a walk, one could weave through the lines on a road, or simply replicate the movement out in the field. These are nice exercises to work on body awareness and flexibility. If your companion struggles with, or is unable to do the exercises, please do not force the issue as they can both be hard exercises for a compromised dog.
FINAL THOUGHTS These are some easy ways to challenge your companion whilst out on a walk, or even whilst walking around the garden. The walk is such an important and beneficial gait, and it is a relatively simple way to keep your companion, and yourself, mobile so please practice every chance you get!
Don’t forget to watch out for the last part of this series in the next edition of your favourite doggy magazine, DQ. In it, I’ll be discussing some other fun exercises to try with your companion.
ANIMAL HEALTH AND HYDRO RYNFIELD 154 President Brand Str, Rynfield, Benoni
ANIMAL HEALTH AND HYDRO PRETORIA EAST 218 Mark St, Grootfontein County Estates, Pretoria East, Grootfontein Country Estates
