Want to make your dog's walks more interesting? Fed up of always walking the same routes due to the miserable weather?
Let's take a look at 3 exercises you can incorporate into your walks to make them not only more fun and interesting but also help improve your dog's fitness*.
*if your dog has an injury or OA speak to your vet/vet physio before trying any of these exercises.
Jumping straight in with my favourite exercises because it's super easy but targets the whole body…
Weaving on and off curbs- weaving on and off curbs involves either crossing the road multiple times on your walks or literally walking in an ‘s’ shape on and off a single curb. This is a great exercise for those wet, dark days where you are trying to avoid the mud! Weaving on and off curbs helps to increase how high your dogs step, known as their flight arc, and also helps to improve spinal lateral flexion, which helps to stretch the muscles in their back too.
Sit to stands- dead easy to add in at every gate, road crossing and recall. Things to look at are to ensure your dog stands back up without moving their front paws to pull them up. Sit to stands help improve your dog's back leg muscle and joint movement.
Slow lead walking- it might sound a bit boring but walking slowly ensures your dog is using all 4 legs plus it makes it easier for you to notice any changes in how your dogs walk. Slow lead walking also encourages equal muscle mass on each leg and helping to ensure all joints are working well.
All of these exercises are dead easy to add into your dog's daily walks but can make a huge difference in their fitness helping you prepare for the upcoming season.
If you want to take more of a deep dive into your dogs fitness take a look at these webinars:
Or if you’re local to West Yorkshire and want a done for you plan drop me a message at zoe@fitpetphysio.com
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