Garak von Heksterhorst owned by Leslie Greenson
One thing I often forget, and I'm sure others too, is that our dogs need rest. Sometimes we get so excited about the progress our dog is making that we forget to stop and give them a break. Then, next thing you know, you are set back because your dog is injured or physically burned out.
After a strenuous training or exercise session, think about whether your dog may be sore from their efforts. If you think yes, they worked very hard, give them time to rest and recover. The Extreme Canine help keep the inflammation and discomfort at bay and help them recover quickly. The body, however, needs time to heal. So always keep in mind, give them appropriate rest, because they will go until they cannot go anymore. That's their heart and drive pushing them! When you have a dog that puts self preservation second to their work, we, as their handlers, have to be their voice of reason and good sense.
Do you have a dog that fits in any of those categories? If so, protecting their bodies from joint damage and inflammation is so important. Just buying your average joint supplement that's made for the average pet is better than nothing, but these high activity dogs need more.
Extreme Canine® supplements are specifically formulated with powerful extracts and herbs to fight system inflammation, support healthy system detoxification, and improve the body's ability to handle stress. These powerful formulas are intended to keep dogs healthy longer and performing at their best.
The natural ingredients in Extreme Canine® supplements:
Extreme Canine® provides joint support plus a full dose of probiotics and additional dietary nutritional supplementation.
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Feeding Changes
Dogs exposed to and working in high heat use more energy as their system tries to cool. A problem arises because the hot environments also many times cause decreased appetite. For these dogs, it is very important to provide them with nutrient and calorie dense diets so their nutritional needs are met without consuming large amounts of food. Naturally, cool water should also be made continuously available.
Electrolytes. Do dogs need them?
A common misconception is that dogs lose electrolytes in the same manner that humans do. Dogs do not sweat as humans do, therefore do not lose electrolytes through their skin. Studies have shown that endurance sled dogs do lose sodium, potassium, and chloride during endurance exercise through urinary water loss, however, not due to heat. What this means is that giving your dog electrolyte infused water to help with the heat doesn't actually help them like it would a human.
So, What Can You Do?
1. Keep cool clean water constantly available in a big dish. An average 50lb house dog needs 5 cups of water per day. That more than doubles with strenuous activity.
2. If you feed kibble, soak kibble in water in a 1:1 ratio. This gets more water into them while they eat.
3. Bait the water to encourage them to drink more. Add some type of flavoring to the water that makes them want to drink it. Liver juice, some chicken broth, kibble, meat,or some other delicious temptation. Yes, it makes the water look nasty, but it encourages water intake.
4. Keep water with you. You know how water tastes different in different places? Well, dogs notice that too. Either bring your water from home, or if your dog is used to gallons of distilled water from the gas station, that will work too. Using water from random places can discourage proper hydration.
Remember:
Hydration starts ahead of time, not right before and after you take your dog out to work. So remember the above tips so your dog is hydrated before starting any work. Don't think that giving your dog electrolyte water will make up for dehydration after the fact. And remember to give your dog time to cool off. Dogs need time to recover between bouts of activity, so don't push them too hard. Heat is a killer!
]]>While dogs do use muscle glycogen during high energy, high intensity work such as sprinting, studies show that dogs who have been better conditioned more efficiently use the muscle glycogen. Thus, it is more important that a dog be adequately conditioned and exercised in a long-term program, and fed a diet higher in fat, than any type of human-esque carb loading.
With that said, there is a time and place for carbohydrates. Specifically, studies indicate that for both sprinting and endurance dogs, a carbohydrate supplement is good to give after bouts of strenuous exercise to enhance repletion of glycogen stores. For example, for a schutzhund dog competing in three phases in one day, giving a carbohydrate snack immediately after the 1st and 2nd phase will help the dog replenish muscle glycogen levels quickly and have optimal energy available for the next phase.
]]>Second to body condition, however, the fat content of diets proved to be the next most influential factor in olfactory performance. Dogs eating higher fat content, specifically higher in unsaturated fats, exhibited improved olfactory acuity. Though not confirmed, the theory is that the proportion of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids in a dog's diet modifies the fatty acid composition of cells of the nasal epithelium and affects a dog's ability to detect low concentrations of odorants.
There are various dietary sources high in unsaturated fatty acids. Omega 3 unsaturated fatty acids are found in sunflower seeds, chia seeds, flaxseed, and hempseeds (found in many of our formulas). Chia seeds actually contain 3 times as many Omega 3 fatty acids as salmon oil.
It is also advisable to add additional oil to your dog's diet. Try to rotate between a fish oil (preferable small fish or krill to reduce contaminants), olive oil (monounsaturated), flaxseed oil, and hemp oil to up your dog's tracking game.
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