Building muscle or muscle tone
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Wasn't sure where to put this one. What is the best way for me to develop Zoni's muscles around her front assembly without overdeveloping it? Would just lots of walking do or would I need to run her, or a combo? I was having Zoni evaluated by a breeder this weekend and she mentioned that I need to strengthen up Zoni's front a bit. Definitely don't want her to bulk up but she needs more muscle tone, I guess.
Thanks!
Clay -
One of the questions I ask is how old is she??
If she s old enough to go jogging then that can help her. But I suggest jogging on uneven surfaces. It will help to build that up. Also if you can get her to do jumping exercises. Pulling also helps to build up the chest muscles actually, and if you could get her a good 3 point harness and bike with her on flat surfaces and let her pull on the bike. I do this quite often with my basenji. we bike all the time and he loves it. He actually gets quite upset with me on days if we don't go biking
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She's old enough, about a 1 1/2 years. Whatever I do right now, I just have to time it during the right time of day because I don't want her to get overheated.
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Walking uphill will also build up muscle tone in the front but do be careful not to over muscle her. A 'loaded' front is not attractive.
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And you can always use a treadmill, if you have one…. dogs work well on the human kind...
Swimming is good too.... and no, I am not kidding....But good substained excerise is the best
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Do b's who lure course get over muscled?
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Do b's who lure course get over muscled?
No, but then usually is it a "weekend" sport.. so it is not like they do it every day….
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She's old enough, about a 1 1/2 years. Whatever I do right now, I just have to time it during the right time of day because I don't want her to get overheated.
Morning exercise is always best for that then. Though I don't know your daily routine, if you can adapt it to getting up earlier to "work out" with her in the morning. Morning work outs are always better on human and dog bodies over all.
Walking uphill will also build up muscle tone in the front but do be careful not to over muscle her. A 'loaded' front is not attractive.
Very true, to add to that, Nemo if you have a hilly area that you could walk/jog/run/bike with her this could balance her out. Her I have areas that have slight inclines that helped me and my boy to build up to the biking with the hills. I personally cannot jog/run due to shoulder & bike injury that is why we bike.
And you can always use a treadmill, if you have one…. dogs work well on the human kind...
Swimming is good too.... and no, I am not kidding....But good substained excerise is the best
Agreed that treadmills are a good source of work out for a dog you can adjust a incline for them; and since they are inside it can do it at anytime.
Swimming is wonderful too, if you can find a hydrotherapy for dogs place near you they have dog pools that you can get in the pool with your dog. Many say that basenjis don't like water, but they will adapt if given positive experiences and often if the owners do the events with them.
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Road walking and off lead running! :D
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Walking UP hill work won't train the front as effectively..unless B's are the worlds only beings that walk by pulling with their front legs. Up hill would put more pressure on their hind legs.
Going DOWN hill would be more effective in working the front legs since they are forced to "break/slow" the downward motion.
But of course, to go down, you have to up first. ;)
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You could try a flirt pole too :)
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What is a 'flirt pole' please?
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NerdyDogOwner - I suppose it depends what you mean by hills. Mine are constantly climbing up steep banks (some almost upright) and certainly do pull themselves up with the front legs as well as pushing with the hind legs! We do live in a very hilly part of the UK.
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What is a 'flirt pole' please?
Another term could be a lure whip. Basically a stick with something dangling from it like a plastic bag or a piece of fur or something for the dog to chase.
Zoni runs around the yard probably at least a good hour or so each day in between playing with Nemo and chasing birds and running around the borders of the fence constantly. But I probably need to walk her for a bit each day and unfortunately not a lot of hills around here, it's pretty flat and mostly used to be farmland. I have a treadmill and I got her to walk on in for a few minutes but haven't tried anything sustained. Definitely an option for the winter.
Thanks for all of the suggestions!
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Another term could be a lure whip. Basically a stick with something dangling from it like a plastic bag or a piece of fur or something for the dog to chase.
Zoni runs around the yard probably at least a good hour or so each day in between playing with Nemo and chasing birds and running around the borders of the fence constantly. But I probably need to walk her for a bit each day and unfortunately not a lot of hills around here, it's pretty flat and mostly used to be farmland. I have a treadmill and I got her to walk on in for a few minutes but haven't tried anything sustained. Definitely an option for the winter.
Thanks for all of the suggestions!
And for the summer, spring, and fall…...
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Another term could be a lure whip. Basically a stick with something dangling from it like a plastic bag or a piece of fur or something for the dog to chase.
yup exactly
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Thank you for the explanation. The flirt pole sounds like great fun!
