| During the first six months that I had my yellow lab, | | | | Walk the normal way you usually do, in heel position |
| he was a typical, high energy, crazy puppy. Besides | | | | with a training collar and leash, adding the backpack. I |
| enrolling in obedience classes to give him a job and to | | | | noticed right away that the walk became even more |
| bring some order to our lives, I began looking around | | | | of "a job" for my dog. By his body language, position |
| for other solutions to burn energy. | | | | of ears, etc, I could tell he was concentrating on this |
| One thing I tried worked great. It was the canine | | | | activity and not sniffing around and pulling in the |
| backpack. These are sold at pet stores and on the | | | | wrong direction so much. And yes, it accomplished |
| internet. To begin with, your dog needs a physical by | | | | the goal, he was tired when he was done. So we |
| your vet to make sure he can safely carry a | | | | increased his weight over the years. Until he was |
| backpack and for a recommendation on how much | | | | diagnosed with hip dysplasia, we have since dropped |
| weight he can safely carry. Next, start out slowly, | | | | the backpack. |
| just like you would for yourself, when introducing | | | | When my second dog reached a year old, she got |
| new exercise. We used water bottles and started | | | | her backpack and I witnessed again, what a great |
| with one half filled on each side and moved up from | | | | energy drainer it was and how it fulfilled the need to |
| there. The guidelines are up to 10-20% of your dog's | | | | "have a job". It is an inexpensive, easy addition to |
| total weight. | | | | your dog walk that will reap big results. |