Who warms up and/or stretches their dogs out before training? What types of things do you do?

I have always tried to walk my dog around and then do some tugging and short fetch sessions with a toy to get her muscles warmed up. Last year I taught Raine to do figure 8's through my legs, just as a fun thing to do in the house.

Raine warm up

My agility instructor recommended I incorporate this into my warm up so I have been doing just that. It really brings her drive up too!

Oh yes, I definitely warm my pup up before training.

I let him out into the yard, where there are entire populations of squirrels, chipmunks, birds, crows (picking away at the leftover bones lol) and the occasional cat.

Pup runs madly around, chasing all the critters away.

Not only does this warm him up, but it also clears my yard of the local wildlife so that we can train in peace.

It's a dual-purpose warm-up if you will

Great trick with Raine!
It must be delightful to work such a focused and eager-to-please dog!

I walk my dog a bit first, but just to get him settled. Some recent studies on human athletes suggest warming up / stretching doesn't prevent injuries. That's because injuries occur when muscles/tendons are used well beyond the normal range of motion (i.e. put in extreme positions or made to react in extreme ways), and warming/stretching doesn't do anything to prevent that. I do, however, think there is great value, for humans as well as dogs and horses, in warming up as a way to prepare mentally.

p.s. I'm also teaching my pup to do figure-8s between my leg. It's quite amusing, because I'm 5'3" and my dog is almost 26". "Crawl" and "head down" are a lot easier on me!

 Quote: anitagard

p.s. I'm also teaching my pup to do figure-8s between my leg. It's quite amusing, because I'm 5'3" and my dog is almost 26". "Crawl" and "head down" are a lot easier on me!

LOL

Anita, do you mind sharing how you are teaching the figure 8? Looks like a good thing for them to know!

First, you get a short dog and a tall handler...

Pretty easy. Have the dog sit/stand in front of you. Have a treat in your right hand. Lift your right leg and reach under it with your right hand. Say "osm" (that's Czech for "eight" - be sure to pronounce it properly) and lure the dog under your leg then back in front of you in a counter-clockwise circle. As the dog gets back to the starting position, switch the treat to your left hand, lift your left leg (be sure to put your right leg down first) and again lure the dog under your leg and back in front in a clockwise circle. Give the treat. In the beginning, I broke it into 2 sections - giving a treat at the end of each circle rather than waiting till the end of the figure eight. Then when he went both ways I put them together.

I'm not sure how useful it is, but it's great entertainment for my Schutzhund club. And, we've had to take a break from regular training for the last 3-4 weeks while my boy got through a bout with Pano. I taught him this and other fun stuff in the house. When we finally went back to class a couple of nights ago, his attention was phenomenally better. I think he really enjoyed learning silly tricks and it seems to have made him focus on me much better.

 Quote: anitagard

First, you get a short dog and a tall handler...

Say "osm" (that's Czech for "eight" - be sure to pronounce it properly...)

...lift your left leg (be sure to put your right leg down first) and again lure the dog under your leg...

Anita, that was hilarious!!