April 06, 2011
Lately, my dog has been unable to keep up with me on walks. Why do you think he might be doing this?
Full Question:
Hello,Our family has a nice 3 year old collie?/husky?/mix dog named Brody that we adopted from the Denver Dumb Friends League. He is very athletic and has learned simple commands such as sit, stay, etc. He?s pretty good about coming when called, especially if he thinks there is any chance food might be food involved.
I walk him every day and he eagerly trots out ahead, leading the way. My issue is running with him, which I do 3 or 4 days a week. Lately, he has begun hanging back behind me as far as the leash will allow. I am 49, so I don?t run very fast any more, but Brody is even slower. I can?t seem to get him to go fast enough, even for my pace. It?s almost to the point where I have to pull to keep him moving. Needless to say that gets old fast.
I?d appreciate any ideas.
Thanks,
Charlie
Cindy's Answer:
The first thing I would recommend is to get the dog to a competent vet and have him examined and possibly xrayed for orthopedic issues. When a dog is reluctant to do a structured activity like jogging my suspicion is always that the dog may be in some discomfort.
Forced running can be hard on any dog with even a slight structural or medical issue (i.e. hip or elbow problems, arthritis, old injury, sore feet).
If he checks out medically ok, try using food to reward him for keeping up with you.
Cindy Rhodes
Forced running can be hard on any dog with even a slight structural or medical issue (i.e. hip or elbow problems, arthritis, old injury, sore feet).
If he checks out medically ok, try using food to reward him for keeping up with you.
Cindy Rhodes
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