If you want to help your dog lose body fat, become the Optimal Dog, and live the longest and happiest life her genes will allow, there are two fundamental strategies that you can use: (1) diet and (2) exercise. Obviously, these strategies aren’t mutually-exclusive. Meaning that you don’t have to just pursue one option or […]
This article was written by Chris Redenbach CDBC, CBCC-KA, a certified dog behavior consultant and owner of the Balanced Dog, a canine training service based in Atlanta, Georgia. To learn more about Coach Chris, please visit our “Contributing Authors” page. Obesity and Heartbreak My mother loved her dog intensely. I gave Eco, a Bouvier des Flandres, to […]
Perhaps you’ve heard a little Mexican-American fella with a meticulously coiffed goatee and rollerblades tell you that the three fundaments of successfully managing unwanted canine behaviors are “exercise, discipline, and affection — in that order.” Well, if you’re reading this blog, chances are that you’re a bit more skeptical than the average bear. If you’re […]
In addition to the tremendous physical benefits that exercise provides your dog and the psychological benefits that YOU will enjoy from providing care to your loving companion, there’s another reason you should feel compelled to provide your dog with daily exercise: She is psychologically hard-wired to enjoy it.
Early this morning an article appeared in the New York Times, extolling the benefits of high-intensity interval training in light of new scientific findings suggesting that short, high-intensity interval workouts may boost cardiovascular fitness just as effectively as longer, more traditional cardio workouts. The studies upon which the NYT commentary is based can be found […]
We prove what we want to prove, and the real difficulty is to know what we want to prove. – Emile Auguste Chartier Is today the first time you’ve thought that your dog would be happier and healthier if she lost some weight? Probably not. If you’ve read this blog before (somewhat unlikely) or if […]
This essay is a continuation of our exploration of the value of canine exercise. In Part One, we discussed the health and welfare benefits of exercise for both you and your dog. Now we turn our attention to pet owners and examine the degree to which, in light of those benefits, they should feel compelled to […]
Is it so intuitive that dogs need (or even want) exercise? We don’t worry ourselves with seeing to it that our pet fish swim laps every morning. Pastured animals don’t run laps around their fields. And, to casual observers, many dogs seem perfectly content to lounge lazily on a couch all day. Even if we […]