由 doggydc » 2006-04-03, 07:35
The purpose of exercise is trying to maintain the strength of muscle, so you do not have to stick on 30 minutes schedule every time. It all depends on the tolerance of your dog's ability. If he is still limping(feels the pain when walking), you shouldn't walk him at that moment. You can start to exercise him gradually once he is not limping any more. You can start every 5 minutes and rest for a while first. If he still feels good and walks normal, you can walk him again for another 5 minutes. You can use this pattern to exercise him for 30 to 40 minutes in the beginning. If he shows signs of uncomfortable and hesitate to stand up or move on the second day that means he is exercise too much the day before. You can let him rest for 1-2 days and start exercise again when he is back to normal. Sometimes we recommend exercise one day and rest one day pattern in the beginning for CHD dog. If he really shows signs of pain after couple days of rest, you need to give him some pain control medicine to take care the inflammation which is a bad factor for joint condition. Once the strength of muscle is stong enough and the joint condition is controlled by chondroprotective medicine, then you can increase the time and frequency of excercise.
If you still have any question, please feel free to ask.
Dr. Lee from Elwood animal medical group