Caleb Week One : Urban Agility (Dog Parkour) For Conditioning and Rehab

We have been focusing on rear end awareness, strength and proprioception this week.

Caleb went to outdoor parkour class Tuesday night, indoor parkour class Wednesday , and we worked on parkour exercises at home Sunday. He loves the training, and is having a lot of fun. He was a little sore and grumpy and limping slightly Thursday and was limping a little after playing with a new dog Saturday. Here are a few exercises we have worked on this week:

Four feet on a box is one of Caleb’s favorite games, so incorporating this into our sessions was an easy choice. We only did this exercise on Wednesday, and are working on standing on smaller objects. This exercise is intended to increase core strength, and entire body balance and proprioception.

Backing up onto objects:We worked on backing up onto platforms on Wednesday, and stairs on Sunday. He prefers to back up with right leg first, so we are focusing on alternating which leg goes up first. This exercise is intended to increase strength.

Four feet in objects:Similar to four feet on a box is another exercise we are working on, four feet in an objects. We also only did this exercise Wednesday. This exercise has very similar benefits as on a box, but requires more rear end awareness because he has to pick up his legs and put them in the box. It is also a good range of motion exercise.

Back feet on on wobbly objects:On Sunday we added an exercise, standing with back legs on wobbly surfaces. This week we used a pillow and a foam roller. I shaped him moving his back legs on the pillow, and stabilized the foam roller with my foot, and moved it as needed. This exercise is intended to increase fine muscle activation and proprioception (awareness of body in space).

Vet Note:Caleb continues to do well overall. He was most sore from the jumping he did at outdoor parkour on Tuesday so we will be sure to keep an eye on this. We have decided to add in GlycoFlex as a supplement to his diet to help maintain joint health. At this time, we are going to use careful activity instead of an NSAID to keep Caleb pain free, though if the limping becomes a more consistent issue, we will reconsider at that time.

Article by : Karin Coyne CPDT-KA, Abigail Curtis DVM