Front Matter

Chapter 10 Conditioning and Retraining the Canine Athlete 247

steeper hills (Figure  10.28) is an excellent

way to target the pelvic limbs for strength­

ening. When the hills are very steep, it is

a good idea to come down the hill more

slowly to avoid concussion on the thoracic

limbs.

Pulling weights. The pelvic limbs can also be

strengthened by having a dog pull weights or

pull a sled over snow or a wheeled cart over

the ground (Figure 10.29).

Timing of strength training

After a muscle is fatigued, its overworked fibers

need time to rest and rebuild themselves before

they can be productively stressed again. The

failure to allow for adequate rest between

strength‐training sessions can lead to muscular

injuries and diminished results (Zatsiorsky &

Kraemer, 2006). One way to deal with this is to

use split training. This involves fully exhausting

individual muscle groups during a workout,

then allowing several days for the muscle to

fully recover. Muscles are worked roughly twice

per week and allowed roughly 72 hours to

recover (Zatsiorsky & Kraemer, 2006). Recovery

of certain muscle groups is usually achieved on

days while training other groups. For example,

a client can train thoracic limb exercises on

Figure 10.27 Plyometrics involves repeated exertion of maximal force in a short period of time. In this image the dog is
landing from a jump then immediately taking off again. Source: Courtesy of Amanda Joudrey‐LeBlanc.

Figure 10.28 Dog running up a steep hill targets the
pelvic limbs for strengthening. Having a dog retrieve an
object while running up progressively steeper hills is
another way to accomplish this. Source: Photo courtesy
of Nicole Chun.

Figure 10.29 Weight‐pulling predominantly strengthens

the pelvic limbs. This game can be played by dogs of all

sizes. Source: Photo by Debbie Maicach.