Welcome to this week’s FitDog Friday Blog Hop where SlimDoggy and his blogger friends share ideas, stories, and photos on dog fitness and health.
An Important Question
Today we want to ask (and possibly answer) a simple, yet important question: “How do I know if my dog is fit & healthy?” I thought of this question while on a run this week as my mind was contemplating the many different types of fitness disciplines that are available to us humans. We have so many choices and different types of fitness choices, how can we know if we are fit when compared to other athletes? Is a long distance runner more fit than a sprinter? Is a sprinter more fit than a gymnast? Is a weight lifter more fit than a swimmer?
It occurred to me that a similar line of thinking also applies to our dogs. SlimDoggy Jack is definitely fit! He can run with me at a rather fast pace for 3, 4 and 5 miles at a time. He wears his K9FitVest and does intervals with me. He does pilates moves for his core. And he goes for a walk 1-2 times per day as well. We also know several agility and working dogs that are even more active (and younger 
) than Jack. But does this mean that our neighbor’s Boston Terrier, Elmo, who walks for 30-60 minutes a day, every day, is NOT fit?
Five signs your dog is fit
You see, it is not really fair to compare Jack with Elmo. First of all, Elmo is a few years older than Jack. Secondly, Elmo is much smaller than
Jack doing his kettle bell routine
Jack (and his short legs really aren’t met for long runs!). But yes, Elmo is a pretty fit dog. How do I know? Well there are some pretty clear signs that you can see with the naked eye to give you an idea. Here are 5 signs that your dog is fit – even if they aren’t ‘SlimDoggy Jack” fit.
- Your dog can comfortably finish the workout (whatever it may be) without undue stress or fatigue (e.g. collapsing or taking long rest breaks).
- Your dog’s exercise does not impact their ability to do other normal dog things during the rest of the day. While they may take a post-workout nap, they remain energetic throughout the day and are up for a game of fetch or tug or whatever else they may like.
- Your dog exhibits what we call ‘happy behavior’ which is a general appearance of being happy, satisfied, and curious. This signal can be amplified with high intensity exercise due to the runner’s high effect that dogs get.
- Their muscle tone is well defined and their waist is visible and tapered.
- Their coat is full, thick and shiny and they have a healthy appetite.
At SlimDoggy, believe me, we are not fitness snobs. There is no one perfect answer for the ‘right’ kind of fitness activity. Every person and every dog has different tastes. Each of our dogs should have their own criteria for being fit based on their breed, age, and health and injury history. Align your dog’s fitness goals with their unique circumstances to ensure that you are improving, and not harming, their overall health.
Now drop and give me 20!
What about you? Is your dog fit? How do you tell? What is their favorite exercise activity? Leave us a note in the comments.
Please enjoy our FitDog Friday Blog Hop brought to you by SlimDoggy and our co-hosts Peggy’s Pet Place and To Dog With Love. Join the Hop or just enjoy the links below – lots of fun fitness tips and advice!
We have some extra special giveaways this week for Bloggers who link up to our Blog Hop, but we are also offering prizes for our readers too, just enter a comment on any of our FitDog Friday Blog Hop Hosts sites. Read about our special giveaway raffle here. NEW prizes this week!