It’s certainly been a while! Things have been so hectic around here that I had absolutely no time to write any updates. By “hectic” I mean quitting-my-job-and-starting-my-own-web-consulting-business hectic.

Here’s an update on where Keeda and I are at with our dog fitness:

Keeda’s now been living with us at our rental for a few months. She previously lived with family as the agent did not allow dogs. My mom overfed her greatly and no amount of exercise I gave her each week when I came to visit would successfully make her lose weight – each time she started getting skinnier, my mom would feed her more!

Keeda’s gone from a diet of dry kibble in the morning and 4 Legs at night (too much of each) to one of a chicken neck in the morning and a B.A.R.F. patty at night (She goes nuts the rabbit patties). Over the past few months she’s lost weight, going from 19.6kg to 16.2kg and she is now officially not overweight!

I have to admit I’ve been slacking on exercise for myself, which means she’s been slacking a bit as well. It’s been cold and rainy and I couldn’t force myself to go for runs, so we’ve just been taking walks and visiting the regional park for Keeda to run around every weekend. Now that it’s starting to get a bit warmer it’s time to get the ol’ running shoes out of the closet again. I think the best way for us to stick to a regime is to have a schedule. I’ll ramp it up gradually. Starting next week, we will do the following:

Monday: walk
Tuesday: bike ride
Wednesday: walk
Thursday: run
Friday: walk
Saturday/Sunday: regional park

I apologise to everyone who’s submitted directory listings – I now have the time to go through them and will gradually be sifting through and getting back to you.

I’ll post some before and after photos of Keeda soon.

Keeda did very well – she heeled perfectly, got along with other dogs, sniffed, and just had a great time. We finished the 5km distance in no time and then it was time to check out the various booths and tents that the Million Paws Walk sponsors and RSPCA set up. There were so many great stalls set up. Keeda and I browsed and attended a dog behaviour seminar at the Vetwest booth. I was wearing my 1 Fit Mutt shirt and got quite a few questions about what it is I do and about the site.

In the end we strolled over to the stage and found that there was a dog show contest happening, with the presenters announcing different categories for people to enter their dogs. We got there toward the end and I entered Keeda in the Weirdest Looking Dog category just because I wanted to go up there and parade around with all the other entrants . Entry cost $2 and that was my last bit of cash so unfortunately it meant I missed out on the next category – best trick. If we’d known that one was coming up I’m sure we would’ve won, Keeda has some great tricks up her sleeve .

Anyway, overall it was a great day, although I’m not happy with the online registration costing $15 at first, but when I went to register online this Friday the price jumped up to $20! I did read that registration would be $20 on the day, but Friday was not the day of the walk and it just seemed like a bit of an underhanded tactic.

I’ll be drawing the winners of the two dog books from those who contributed to the RSPCA through the 1 Fit Mutt fundraising page at the beginning of next week, so keep your eyes peeled and thank you so much to everyone who’s contributed.

Check out some photos from the 2010 Perth Million Paws Walk below:

Peas

I sometimes freeze green peas in little plastic pouches to use for training new tricks. They’re a great source of iron and contain virtually no fat. Keeda loves them.

Raw Whole Eggs

Keeda gets one whole raw egg per week as a treat, shell and all. Eggs are a great source of protein and help to keep Keeda’s coat nice and shiny. Of course, everything in moderation – I wouldn’t recommend feeding more than one raw egg per week, but I know some who would disagree. It’s always best to speak to a dog nutritionist if you’re unsure.

Sardines

I’ve recently been hearing about the benefits of sardines for dogs on dog forums, from a local vet nurse, and other sources. I started giving Keeda one tin of sardines in springwater per week. They make for a tasty treat and are meant to be great for the coat.

Carrots

Carrots can be a great treat for your dog. Many dogs love munching on carrots – it can give puppies something to chew on while teething and help to keep a dog’s teeth clean.

In fact, most vegetables can be fed to your dog as part of a meal or as treats. Be sure to talk to your vet if you’re unsure of whether or not something is safe for your dog to eat, or Google it (although remember to take everything on the internet with a grain of salt and do your research via various sources).

Set up plastic cones in a row and get your dog to weave through them. Or do the same with vertical poles, like they do in dog agility. As your dog gets more and more flexible and gets better at weaving through the cones, place them closer together to make it more challenging.

Jumps

Make some jumps out of PVC pipe and teach your dog to go over them. I wouldn’t recommend doing this until your dog is at least 1 year old (or sometimes even older, depending on the breed). If you have a puppy, you can put pipe or bits of wood onto the ground and get your pup to step over them.

Crawl

Get your dog to crawl under instead of over a jump. See how low it can go!

Balance ball

Get a balance ball for your dog (the kind that sits flat on the ground with a spherical upper side). Teach your dog to stand on it. It’ll improve their balance and strengthen their legs.

Walking across a plank

Teach your dog to walk across a plank. When your dog is still a puppy you can teach them by getting a solid wooden bar and placing it on the ground like you might do with a jump (except it’ll probably need to be a bit wider). Teach your dog to walk across the bar. As your dog gets older, you can raise the bar and teach your dog to jump up or down to walk across the plank.

These are just some dog exercise ideas to mix things up a bit. Sometimes a dog exercise routine can get boring for you and your dog – trying new things can rekindle your interest.

SUPER FIT FIDO CLUB UNLEASHES NEW FITNESS PROGRAM FOR CANINE COUCH POTATOES

NEW YORK, NY, April 14, 2010 – Obesity is reaching epidemic proportions among the human population, and our four-legged friends are right next to us on the fat couch. Super Fit Fido Club™ (SFFC), a new canine fitness program, is offering New York City dogs a great workout in a fun, energetic setting, using controlled exercises that are easy for dogs, and their owners, to follow.

SFFC Founder Gail Miller Bisher designed the program using the same principles seen in the world of competitive dog sports fitness training, canine sports medicine and veterinary physical therapy/rehabilitation. The training curriculum was developed to help dogs lose weight, improve overall heart health, flexibility, increase endurance and provide mental stimulation. Proper physical conditioning is a key component to achieving a Healthy Canine Lifestyle™.

“Super Fit Fido Club was created to encourage dog lovers to help their pets live longer, healthier and happier lives through fun, low-impact canine fitness programs,” said SFFC founder Gail Miller Bisher. “The choices we make directly affect the quality of life our dogs enjoy. If we choose to get our dogs the exercise they need to stay healthy, their quality of life improves exponentially.”

With 77 million canine pets in the U.S. today, 45 percent are suffering from being overweight or obese. The consequences of leading such an unhealthy, sedentary lifestyle are the same as they are for humans, ranging from lack of energy to more serious complications such as shorter life expectancy and debilitating and costly health issues, including arthritis, heart disease, respiratory problems and diabetes.

Bisher, a skilled dog trainer and handler with more than 30 years of experience has seen firsthand the benefits to having a healthy dog. “I’ve physically conditioned top winning dogs my entire life. It only seemed natural to use that passion and knowledge to help other owners give their pets the best gift of all – a longer, healthier life,” Bisher added.

Super Fit Fido Club currently offers two classes, depending on your dog’s level of fitness:

Fit Fundamentals is the beginner class, which includes low-impact, medium-energy exercises to safely start your dog on a path toward a healthier body type.

Super Fit is for intermediate dogs with at least a moderate level of fitness. The emphasis is on maintaining fitness and stimulating your dog’s mind and body in a fun, participatory group workout.

Classes being Tuesday, May 4, 2010, and will be held Tuesday-Saturday each week. Early morning and evening classes are offered to accommodate working dog owners and to ensure the safety of class participants. Dogs should be at least 6 months of age and generally under 7 years of age or in good physical condition. Dogs do not need special training to enjoy and benefit from Super Fit Fido Club, only a willingness and commitment towards getting healthy. SFFC strongly recommends dogs be examined by their veterinarians before beginning any physical regimen.

To learn more about Super Fit Fido Club or to register for classes, please visit www.superfitfidoclub.com.

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Super Fit Fido Club was established in 2009 with classes beginning in 2010. SFFC has developed fitness programs and classes that teach dog owners how to become their dog’s personal trainer for life. The mission is to help dogs live longer, healthier lives by recognizing the importance of regular exercise and fitness training. SFFC is a sole proprietorship and is headquartered in New York, NY.

The c25k has a couple of pretty decent increments in running time and because dogs can’t tell us how they’re feeling, we’ve broken those steps down to make it easier for them, based on my veterinary experience and Francis’s running experience. It will take 12 weeks instead of 9 weeks. It’s a safe and effective program that we have proven does work well with dogs. We’ve got a forum set up with topics for people to ask questions about health, behaviour and any other aspect of their dog’s wellbeing.

– Audrey

The Pooch to 5K website has a blog with lots of great information about running with your dog and other dog related research which can prove to be interesting to any dog owner.

By perhaps working with other running dog owners, and establishing a code of conduct and a doggie presence in the running world, dogs may be welcome at more runs [in Australia].

– Audrey

The Pooch to 5K training program is available for download at www.poochto5k.com now (yes, it’s free), and there are three different versions – formatted by metric distance, imperial distance, and time. You can also check out the Pooch to 5K Facebook page for updates.

Do you often take your dogs into new environments?

This also goes for dogs. Dogs who are mentally so engrossed in what they’re doing may not even realize that they’re hurt until after the activity. The same holds true for the opposite – a dog may look absolutely and utterly exhausted while you’re out doing some sort of activity with it, but as soon as it sees something it’s more interested in (like another dog, for example), it will suddenly feel all better and race full speed ahead at the object of its desire.

Knowing that your dog may not acknowledge pain or an injury if it’s so single-mindedly focused on whatever it’s doing means that you need to make sure you watch your dog closely during exercise. If your dog falls, twists its paw, or if anything that you think could have hurt it happens, examine your dog before continuing. Your dog might be hurt without even realizing it.

If you’re finding that your dog acts more tired during your exercise sessions and “magically” recovers when it sees another dog or something else that it’s very interested in, work on making your sessions more interesting and enjoyable. If your dog is just as excited about your run, bike ride, agility session, or whatever it is that you’re doing as it is about the things that would normally catch her attention it might be able to mentally last longer during your session.

Keep in mind that just because your dog can suddenly find more energy to do things it’s more interested in, this does not mean that you can push your dog further during your exercise sessions. You might think “Well, she looks tired, but I know she’s really not”. No – if your dog looks like it has reached its limit, you don’t push it past its breaking point. You will need to work on increasing your dog’s endurance and making your sessions more mentally enjoyable and stimulating for your dog.