During the week I saw a small dog taking her human for a walk and it got me thinking about balance. The little dog was straining at the lead: pulling away from its owner. Watching the dog walking toward me, its little shoulder was nearly touching the ground, such was the angle it was pulling.

Observing both the dog and his/ her owner, it struck me how unbalanced both their bodies were. The dog was unbalanced diagonally with the front shoulder dropped considerably and taking much of the dog’s weight. The dog’s owner was unbalanced from side to side. He had one arm extended to hold the dog’s lead and his body was leaning the other way as a counterbalance.

When animal bodies are “unnaturally” out of balance, particularly during movement, their muscles become strained from over-work or from compensating for the unnatural posture. If muscles perform in an unbalanced way for long periods of time, with high strain, or on a regular basis, the likelihood of muscle injury and pain increases.

So when choosing equipment and training your dog to walk with you, it is worthwhile considering your dog’s balance on their four feet. Choose equipment (leads, collars or harnesses) and train walking positions where your dog is balanced on their feet from front to back, side to side and diagonally (hip to shoulder). Maintaining balance in movement goes a long way to ensuring your dog’s muscle health.

For more information about maintaining the health of your dog’s muscles, please contact me at jlconlon@fullstride.com.au