#Nyx FITDOG of the Week

Posted on January 15, 2020 by FITDOG NATION

This weeks FITDOG of the week reminds us that its not just the bull breeds and terriers who can look and perform good. We are pleased to announce that Malinois Nyx is this weeks FITDOG of the week. Heres an interview we did with her owner.

@mostly_belgian_melon

How long have you been into the dogs?

”I’ve been into dogs ever since I was a child. Growing up, I always had dogs around and since I was an only child, I was always playing with them and teaching them little tricks and whatnot. As far as the more serious side of things, Nyx is actually the one that got me into the dog world and competing in sports. ”

What’s an average day of exercise for Nyx?

” Her average exercise right now consists of mostly cardio. Just go out and let them run like crazy in a field. We also alternate between things like parachute training, xvest, fitpaws, some small weight pull throughout the week”.

What do you feed Nyx?

”Nyx has been raw fed for, I think, about 3 or so years now.”

What events does Nyx take part in and does she have any titles?

‘‘We started competing with dock diving then went to IGP and fast cat, but we dabble in other sports like agility and weight pull just for fun.
Nyx’s titles consist of BH DEX6 AEX2 AM DM BCAT CGCA CGCU.
I believe that’s all of them right now but hoping to add more this year!’‘

Do you want your dog featured as FITDOG of the week? Contact us on our Instagram or Facebook page and we would love to give your FITDOG a feature!

Keep them FIT,

FITDOGNATION.

P.S.
Which of our dog fitness tools are going to give you and your dog the best results?
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The Ultimate Canine Conditioning Method

Posted on January 6, 2020January 6, 2020 by FITDOG NATION

One of the most common questions we get asked is ‘what is the best exercise for my dog’. Well, the truth is that all dogs are different and have different needs. However, the most bang for your buck exercise for all dogs is without a doubt, SPRINT TRAINING.

Sprint training helps your dog with everything that he/she needs!

Here are the 5 key benefits to sprint training:

1) Builds strength
Sprinting stimulates the growth of the nerves that control your dogs muscles. By sprinting you are creating strong, capable canine muscles.

2) Burn fat
One of the best ways to burn fat is to increase your dogs heart rate with high intensity exercise, this makes your dog expend more calories. The most effective way to increase heart rate is sprinting!

3) Boost endurance
Regular sprinting training teaches your dog’s body to store more glycogen in their muscles and use fat for fuel instead of muscle. This means that your dog has more energy for longer!

4) Increase speed and power
Sprinting increases your dogs fast twitch muscle fibres which are the key muscle fibre type that are required for making your dog move fast and powerfully such as jumping high or moving faster across the ground.

5) Saves time
Sprinting is hard work, 10 minutes of hard sprint training is equivalent to a 1 hour walk. That means you will have a nice tired and chilled out dog in a quicker amount of time. This is gold for people who lead busy lives!

There are many ways to sprint train your dog such as playing fetch, cycling or using a treadmill.

However, in our experience the ultimate way to sprint train your dog is using a manual treadmill such as a carpetmill or slatmill. Here are three reasons why:

1) Intensity.
With a treadmill you can control the intensity by dictating how much rest your dog gets. For example you can sprint your dog for 30 seconds and then force him into a 3 minute rest. This kind of control over your dogs rest is crucial as it will let your dog replenish his phosphocreatine energy stores for the next set of sprints.

This allows him to go hard and create even more damage to the muscle fibres which stimulates more muscle repair and lean muscle growth. You cannot do this as easily playing fetch as your dog can get distracted such as going to scent before coming back to you or going to play with another dog / human.

Neither can this be done cycling your dog as you may have to detour and make a forced stop such as traffic lights or if you bump into an aggressive dog. This gets in the way of the conditioning session and prevents gains.

With the treadmill you have full attention and control over your dog and will get a focused conditioning session in no distractions and make those essential gains.

2) Efficiency.
To sprint train most people need a large open green space which is normally a walking distance or car ride away. With the treadmill there is no travel needed, you just set your dog on the mill and away you go, this saves time and is crucial especially for dogmen/women who lead busy lives.

3) Consistency
We cannot control the weather but we can control how we train. Having a treadmill means your dog will never miss a conditioning session. When its too wet, cold or too hot, if you have a treadmill your dog will still be making those gains while the competition is forced into a rest day due to bad weather.

Keep them fit!

FITDOGNATION

PS. Ready to make gains in 2020? Order your Slatmill or Carpetmill today!

How to choose the correct sized treadmill for your dog.

Posted on December 27, 2019 by FITDOG NATION

So you decided to invest in a new dog treadmill but your not sure what size would be best? Have no fear, in this article we will break down how to choose the correct sized mill so your dog will get the best of their new fitness machine!

STEP 1

The first step to choosing the correct sized treadmill for your dog is to decide which treadmill type you need. Slatmill or Carpetmill? If you havn’t yet decided read our article ”Slatmill VS Carpetmill”

STEP 2

The second step is to know your dogs height to the withers and chest width measurements. In the photo below we outline how to take the measurements for each.

STEP 3

Now that you have decided which treadmill you need and you finally know your dogs measurements, it’s time to select your mill size. Our slatmill and carpetmill come in two different sizes, large and medium. Lets look at the Slatmill first.

Slatmill Sizing

Large: Our Large slatmill fits dogs with a height to the withers up to 78 cm (31inch) and a chest width less than 38 cm (15inch). It best fits breeds like German Shepherd, Doberman, Rottweiler, Belgian Malinois and other dogs with similar size.

Medium: Our Medium best fits breeds with a height to withers up to 58 cm (23 inch) and chest width less than 33 cm (13inch). Great for breeds like American Pitbull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier, Bull Terrier and other breeds with similar size.

Width upgrade: For dogs like American Bully or other with chest width more than 38 cm (15inch) we can add width upgrade. This will make production time slightly longer by -2 weeks longer and will cost an additional $70.

Carpetmill Sizing

Large: Our large carpetmill fits dogs with a height to the withers of up to 76 cm (30inch) and a chest width less than 42 cm (17inch). It’s ideal for breeds like German Shepherd, Doberman, Rottweiler, Belgian Malinois and other dogs of similar size.

Medium: Our medium carpetmill best fits breeds with a height to the withers of up to 58 cm (23 inch) and a chest width less than 42 cm. Its great for breeds like American Pitbull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier, Bull Terrier and other breeds of similar size.

**NOTE: The carpetmill is a power training tool and is ideally recommended for powerful dogs of over 15kg in weight.

So which sized treadmill would suit your dog best? Fill in the form form for a FREE quote on shipping.

Keep them fit!

FITDOGNATION

The three Canine Energy Systems

Posted on May 28, 2019May 28, 2019 by FITDOG NATION

Any movement your dog does requires energy. The way your dogs body generates energy is determined by the intensity and duration of the activity they are performing. Activities that require short bursts of high effort, such as sprinting or weight-pulling, require the body to produce large amounts of energy over a short period, where as activities like running or hunting require continued energy production over a longer period and at a slower rate. It is the energy systems of your dogs body that control these activities. That is why it is important for you to understand which energy systems your dog needs when you are conditioning them for better health and performance. As you can see from the picture below there are three main canine energy systems. The Phospagen, Glycolyctic and Aerobic energy systems

The Phosphagen energy system is important for dogs who carry out high intensity short duration activities that last between 5-10 seconds such as weight-pulling and sprinting. These kinds of activities need strength and power. An example of improving this energy system is sprint training on a High Resistance Carpetmill or with max effort Flirt Pole work.

The Glygolytic energy system is essential for dogs who perform moderate to high intensity activities for longer period of up to 3 minutes such as racing greyhounds. These types of exercises involve speed endurance such as interval training on a Slatmill.

The Aerobic energy system is critical for hunting dogs and/or service dogs who perform their activities for longer periods of time but at a low to moderate intensity. This involves aerobic endurance such as long distance jogging which can be done with your dog running along side you on a push bike or with the use of a Slatmill so you can track speed.

Having a good understanding of the energy systems will allow you to plan better conditioning plans for your dog that help them perform at a higher level. For example, if you have a weight pull dog you should only really focus on activities that involve the Phosphagen energy system. Doing activities that use the aerobic system for example will reduce their strength and power. Of course all dogs are individuals and some activities require energy systems that overlap. In these cases it helps to get some professional advice. In our 12 Week Conditioning Programs we can support you and tailor your dogs plans based on your needs.

Which energy system is most important for your dog?

Keep them fit!

FITDOGNATION.

Slatmill VS Carpetmill: The 3 Big Differences.

Posted on May 23, 2019December 30, 2019 by FITDOG NATION

The dog treadmill is the ultimate conditioning tool because it saves time when it comes to exercising your dog and it boosts your dog’s health and fitness. But which one is better the slatmill or the carpetmill?

The honest answer is they are very different! They are both mechanical treadmills which means the dog has full control over the workout and can stop at any time, unlike electric treadmills which is why we prefer slatmills and carpetmills.

There are 3 key differences between the carpetmill and slatmill and they are 1) Fitness adaptation 2) Investment 3) Space.

1.Fitness adaptation

As you have probably seen, both treadmills look very different with the slatmill designed with rollers and slats which make it very free spinning and easy for the dog to move and the carpetmill using a ‘carpet’ for the running surface which means there is more resistance and the dog has to work harder to turn the treadmill. Because of this, the slatmill is best suited for dogs that need to improve their aerobic endurance fitness like hunting, tracking and long races. Where as the carpetmill is perfect for dogs who need more strength, power and lean muscle like protection dogs, weight pull dogs, catch dogs and canine athletic competition dogs.

That being said, we recently innovated our slatmill with a slope which comes with adjustable front legs and is available or an extra $40 to add more resistance to your slatmill. Although it does not produce exactly the same resistance as the carpetmill, it does give your dog more strength and power than any other standard slatmill on the market so your dog gets ‘The best of both worlds’ in conditioning = endurance and power!

2. Investment

Due to the difference in design there is a variance in investment. Our slatmills start at around $1000 and our carpetmill at $800.

3. Space

Another major factor to take into account when choosing between a slatmill and carpetmill is space. For example the outer measurement of our Large Slatmill is 185x50cm and our Large Carpetmill is 170x60cm. Our slatmills are delivered part assembled with an instruction manual to help you to full assembly and our carpetmills are foldable and easily assembled in 1minute and 40 seconds.

Which one suits your needs? Click the link below & Grab yours now and to take your dogs health and fitness to the next level! https://fitdognation.com/product-category/treadmills/

The 4 Pillars of Canine Conditioning

Posted on May 16, 2019May 16, 2019 by FITDOG NATION

There are four main pillars to canine conditioning in order to have success in developing your dogs performance. In this post we are going to take you through each one.

STEP 1: MAKE A PERFORMANCE BASED GOAL

For us canine conditioning is all about health & performance first and foremost. Sure, looks are nice but these are a byproduct of conditioning for performance and shouldn’t be the focus. The reason being once you follow looks or confirmation the results gets distorted, the exotic breeds are a great example of this distortion. A good example of making a performance goal is to set out to achieve a 4 metre wall climb, run a distance in a certain time frame or pull a certain amount of weight.

STEP 2: FEED THE RIGHT AMOUNT

It is essential to feed the right amount. Every dog is an individual, however a guideline which works is to feed a certain percentage per lb of body weight based on your ideal weight. For example if you have a dog who is 60lbs in weight and they are overweight you should feed them a serving of food that weighs 1% of their total body weight. If you want to maintain their weight feed them 2% of their total body weight and if they are underweight feed them 3%. Of course this is a guideline and every dog is an individual. Remember when it comes to judging a dogs weight you must be objective. You can do this by using our 5 point body composition chart.

STEP 3: TRAIN THE CORRECT FITNESS COMPONENT

This is probably the most commonly made mistake. Most people condition the incorrect fitness component. There are five key canine fitness components; Power, Strength, Endurance, Agility and Speed. You must know which one(s) you need and how to conditioning them. For example. if your competing for a weight pull competition you had better cut out any endurance work if you want your dog to achieve their highest weight pull potential. The reason being that endurance work encourages more type I muscle recruitment which is exactly opposite to the kind of muscle your dog needs to recruit when doing weight pull. They need Type II muscle recruitment. A weight pull dog should only ever really be training strength and power which involves activities such as heavy pulls and short bursts of power based sprints on a high resistance treadmill such as the carpetmill.

STEP 4: CREATE A PERIODIZED PROGRAM

Finally and most importantly, you need to make a periodized program for your dog that is at least 12 weeks long. What does that mean? A periodized program is a conditioning program that manages your dogs rest, workout intensities and duration’s. You see, you cant just make it up as you go along. It needs to be planned and organised otherwise your dog can become over trained or go ‘stale’. When this happens the risk of injury increases and your dog is less likely to peak. For example, when we write our 12 week Canine Conditioning programs we plan light, moderate and hard days which are rotated. We also factor into our programs rest days and active recovery days.

If you got value from this post please like, comment and share!

To your dogs potential,

FITDOGNATION

Is your dog getting enough exercise?

Posted on May 12, 2019May 12, 2019 by FITDOG NATION

In our last blog post we showed you how to check your dogs ideal body weight. In this blog post we will help you check if your dog is getting enough exercise? This is critical as 59% of dogs are obese , here are some breed specific exercise guidelines to make sure your giving enough exercise!

Our guidelines are breed specific and this is essential because even if you have a spaniel that is not a worker and does not flush and retrieve, their physiology and energy systems will still be set to flush and retrieve game. If you do not provide the right amount of exercise for your dog it could result in a host of issues, including weight gain, behavioural problems and anxiety disorders.

For example, spaniels typically require 2+ hours of moderate intensity activity. Moderate intensity activity is defined by the dog working at 60% of their maximal capacity. Moderately intense activities include running/fast jog. In the case of fighting/combat breeds, they require on average 2 hours of high intensity activity. High intensity activities require 80%+ of a dogs maximal capacity. Examples of these kinds of activities are intermittent sprints, wall climb and weight pulling.

How much exercise does your dog need? Comment below!

PS. Ready to take your dogs fitness to the next level? Check out our SHOP for our most popular fitness tools!

Keep them FIT,

FITDOGNATION.

Ideal Canine Body Weight

Posted on May 12, 2019 by FITDOG NATION

There’s tons of discussion online about what is fat, starved or fit. Unfortunately in 2017 the American Pet Products Association found that 59% of dogs are actually obese!

You probably KNOW how to keep your dog fit & healthy but most of the general public does not. In fact you may have been told your fit dog is ‘starved or abused’ so we wanted to give you the 5 point body composition chart to use as proof that your dog is healthy!

Obviously this is a general guideline and this differs slightly with certain breeds. For example, the running and sight hounds generally come up as underweight due to their natural disposition to have a low body fat and muscle mass percentage. However, there is never an excuse for any dog breed to be emaciated or overweight so please study the 5 point body composition chart carefully and hold yourself accountable to your dogs health!

PS. Ready to take your dogs fitness to the next level? Check out our SHOP for our most popular fitness tools!

Keep them FIT,

FITDOGNATION.

FITDOGNATION – Privacy Policy 2019

Posted on May 11, 2019 by FITDOG NATION

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The different types of Dog Treadmills

Posted on January 31, 2019May 20, 2019 by FITDOG NATION

The benefits of using a dog treadmill are endless; working dog enthusiasts use them when preparing for athletic / sporting events, confirmation fanciers incorporate them for show ring practice, veterinarians use them for gait analysis & rehabilitating from an injury, dog trainers use them for behaviour management and many dog owners use them as an all year-round conditioning tool when the weather is bad or the dog parks are too busy.

Although there are many different models of dog treadmills on the market today, they can all generally be classed into two different categories, either motorised (electric) or non-motorised (manual).

Motorised Dog Treadmills

Motorised treadmills are basically what you would find at a gym or sports & fitness store. They are electronic motor driven treadmills and the speed and duration of the workout is controlled by the handler. Many motorised dog treadmills also come with a powered incline and a speed-o-meter with timer/distance tracking. They vary in price from $1000 – $5000 depending on the model and brand.

Pros: Reliable power.

Cons: The most expensive, do not support a natural gait, heavy, can be dangerous as the dog is not in control, the speed is capped and they can be noisy.

Non-Motorised Dog Treadmills
The non-motorised dog treadmills can be classed into two different designs; a slatmill or a carpetmill. The slatmillis made up of a number of slats which are joined together in a loop and positioned over a set of rollers. There is normally an attachment point for a harness, and barriers on either side so that the dog remains in position and avoids injury. The dog is in complete control at all times and the slats only turn when the dog moves. Many slatmills on the market also come with a speed-o-meter and timer/distance tracking system. Their typical cost is between $800-$4000.

Pros: Promote natural gait, are not as expensive as electric treadmills, the dog is fully in control and they are very free turning.

Cons: Fairly heavy, can still be quite expensive and noisy.

Like the slatmill, the carpet mill is also 100% powered by the dog and is similar in appearance to a slat mill except its generally all wooden in construction. There are no metal parts and the bed of the mill (the track the dog runs on) is simply a board between two wheels with a carpet going around it for the dog to run on. This mill is not as “free-turning” as a slatmill and therefore the dog has to work a lot harder to move the ‘carpet’. Most carpetmills have an incline option and come with a speed-o-meter time/tracking system. They figure in the range between $400-$600.

Pros: The most cost efficient of the three dog treadmills, the least noisiest and lightest in weight.

Cons: Not as free turning so the dog has to work harder.

No one treadmill type is ‘better’ than the other, it depends on your set up, finances, your dog and your goals. We really like non-motorised treadmills like the slatmills and carpetmills because we like the fact that the they mimic a dogs natural gait better and the dog is in complete control being able to stop when ever he wants to or accelerate / decelerate on his own at different intervals without needing to control it on a speed monitor. We feel this makes the workout more effective when doing interval sprint training and also makes it a lot safer reducing the risk of injury.

Keep them FIT!

FITDOG NATION

PS.

Check out our online shop for some of the best models of slatmills and carpetmills on the market right now!