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Q: what are some good suggestions to exercising my dog in the winter?
I have a 1 year old Boxer Mix that just starts "zooming" around my apartment.
Because I don't have a yard for her to run in,she doesn't get enough exercise.
What can I do?
A: The cold weather seems to hinder the people more than their pets. Everyone gets the cooped up winter blues. Instead of looking at the cold wintry weather as a bad thing, start making that snow work for not only your pet, but you as well. It takes more energy to walk through the snow. So while your dog is burning his excess energy you get to burn calories at the same.
The 840 and most canal paths are always kept clear or just go for a walk near by. Take your dog for a mile walk and "allow" your dog to walk in front of you setting the pace. The longer stride you take to keep up, the more calories you burn. Be courteous and responsible if you see another person or pet on the path by calling your dog back to your side and once they have passed, allow your dog ahead of you again. Just because your dog is ahead of you, doesn't mean he's the leader.
Remember, the key word here is that you ALLOWED him there in the first place. Make sure that if the weather is extremely cold, if you have a short haired breed, such as the Boxer,Doberman,Weimeriner,Min PIn,Boston Terrier,Bulldog, Etc. to put a coat or sweater on the dog to maintain his current body temperature. Apply a small amount of Vaseline or bag balm to all dogs paws to protect the pads from de-icing agents.
If you have a "snow" breed dog, such as a Husky, Malamute, Greater Swiss Mountain, Burmese Mountain Dog or St Bernard, try Weight Pulling.
Maybe you have wood from the shed that needs to be brought to the fireplace. Using a harness, a long line and a sled encourage the dog to pull the sled with a small amount of weight on it. BE CAREFUL NOT TO OVERWEIGHT YOUR DOG. Start off with a small amount of weight using a few pieces of wood,
a 5 - 10 pound bag of snow, sand or rock salt.
Use the kids on a sled ( SUPERVISED ONLY) What ever you use, have fun with it. Encourage the dog and don't get discouraged if your dog doesn't do it right from the start.
Kids are bored? Take them away from the XBox and Nintendo DS and encourage them to bond and spend some time with the dog. Make snowballs and toss them TO, NOT AT the dog to go fetch. SUPERVISED ONLY. This is a great way to also cure the "kids blues too" and have some great laughs.
If outside and cold weather really is not your thing, consider a treadmill for your dog. Do not force the dog up to walk on it, this is something that you will need to introduce to your dog and will take time and patience to get him comfortable on. Best advice on this one is to contact a trainer to help you with first time introductions to the treadmill. Once your dog gets the hang of it, you will see your dog walking toward it looking back at you to say : "hurry up, turn it on"
Agility is another form of great physical exercise. Create an obstacle course throughout your house if the area is big enough, and encourage your dog to follow you through, under, around and over items. If you do not have the space to do so, check with local trainers to see if they offer this type of activity.
Try hide and seek. This will encourage your dogs mind as well as physical exercise. Using a treat or a toy, put it in sight first, and encourage the dog to go get it. Each time, move it to another area until eventually the item is out of sight. Then walk with your dog and encourage them to find it. Every time the dog locates the item, make sure you are petting and praising GOOD BOY/GIRL .You are encouraging the dog to use his nose,mind and still creating physical exercise.
Obedience train your dog. Giving on leash commands exercises the mind and body. Here at Complete Canine, we do something called "Puppy Push-Ups" just before we work our dogs. By giving the dog a series of Sit and Down commands at 5 second intervals warms the dogs muscles up before entering into heavy activity as well as keeps them focused on us. However, you can do this as an activity alone.
Freestyle is another form of physical activity. Some refer to this as " Dancing with your dog" This activity is a series of commands and movements choreographed to music. It's a fun all positive way to learn and exercise for both you and your dog.
The possibilities are endless to cure the winter blues. The key is: getting yourself motivated enough to do it. The dog will simply just follow your lead.
As always ,have a trainer check your dog temperament before trying some of these techniques such as the treadmill, weight pulling or agility. Not every dog has the temperament or confidence to do these items.
A trainer can help you change the way the dog perceives these items keeping them as pleasurable experiences for you and your dog.
This article was published January 25, 2009 in the Sunday Sentinel
