Fitness & Training

Running, swimming, jumping, and walking  all  develop physical fitness,  but you can  also be  creative with these exercises to  develop your  dog  even further. Running  together is great,  but   having   your  dog run  behind a bicycle will  enable   you to do far longer  distances with your  dog,  distances much farther than you could   possibly run.

Always ensure that your dog has been taught to run alongside or behind your bicycle, and exercise where it is safe. Steve Parish, who has Coonhounds, and was the winner of the 1994 and 1995 National Championships is adamant that no running exercises can substitute for hunting the dogs through the swamps of Georgia, something he does three nights a week. "Once they can take the heat, humidity, marsh, water, and undergrowth of Georgia, everything else is easy," he told me with a smile.

One exercise which is very useful for retrieving dogs whose owners do not want to run or ride, is developing the dog's memory for a retrieve. Drop a dummy or a ball and walk a short distance away with the dog, turn around, and send the dog for the retrieve. Once the dog has brought back the retrieve, he has walked the same distance as yourself, plus run twice that distance. By building up the memory it is easy to develop a memory retrieve of half a mile or even more. When walking downhill the dog will run the first half mile up hill.

I once lived close to the beach, and the sand and sea were great ways of developing muscle and fitness. Memory retrieves along the beach and among the dunes quickly built up the tone of the legs and stomach muscles.

Another great way of getting a dog to use speed and body movement is to knock tennis balls with a tennis racket down a slight hill, sending the dog the moment the ball bounces on the ground. The racket allows you to hit the ball further than you could throw it, the bouncing ball encourages the dog to run faster, and the side to side movement of the ball as it bounces and rolls down the hill leaves a trail, which the dog then has to follow. Different muscles are employed running downhill versus uphill, and the movement of the ball encourages the dog to move his body from side to side thus improving balance and coordination.

Swimming is an excellent way of starting a fitness program as the water supports the body and muscles, making the stress and impact on them much less. For dogs that retrieve, water retrieves can be used to entice the dog to swim; for those that do not retrieve, encourage them to follow a rowing boat or take them for a swim in a swimming pool. Some trainers will attach a floatation device that drags behind their dog as he swims, creating a resistance that requires more effort to move forward.

In training, be creative and innovate. Agility training through having your dog run between upright poles can develop body movement in spaniels and coursing dogs. Jumping and walking along planks helps develop coordination and muscle for retrievers. Terriers would benefit by pushing through the tunnels and weaving the poles. There is no need to develop an agility course, teach your dog to jump over fences and low walls, go under low objects or through pipes, weave in between fence posts and walk along the top of walls. Spaniel trainer Gary Breitbarth trains his dogs to hunt using a quartering pattern around barrels which helps develop their body action and balance in sharp turns.

Much of what you do during formal training and actual work can increase the fitness of your dog. But there is no doubt that specialized exercise can improve coordination, movement, and balance; control weight; bring out the required muscular physique; reduce stress; and build confidence and a feeling of well-being in the dog. It can help your dog develop a sense of purpose and determination. Any exercise training program, however, must be progressive, starting at a very easy level and gradually building to optimum fitness.

In exercise and play (a great fun way of creating fitness) always remember that you do not want to change any of the well-trained habits you have worked hard at creating. Play and exercise can form part of training, but even when it is not a formal part, you should still be in charge of the game; you should still be the focus of the dog's activity or be able to gain the dog's focus anytime you wish.