Conditioning the Performance Dog
Purpose: Two-fold: (1) to recognize the unique needs of your performance dog as an elite athlete and develop a conditioning program which will lead to a long, productive career – not just a good run, and (2) to achieve the greater goal of providing your Performance dog with a more comfortable, energetic retirement.
The emphasis is on competition and service dogs, and will focus on the many factors which may reduce the risk and/or severity of injuries for dogs dealing with the multi-stresses of working lives.
Pre-requisites: A student must have a minimum Intermediate level of achievement in dog sports, or 1 year previous work experience with a service/working/sport dog.
Course Length: Live: This course meets once weekly for 90 minutes and runs for 8 weeks. OnDemand: Eight (8) 90 minute sessions.
* Certificate awarded after successful completion.
Course Cost (Register above):
Certification (Live or OnDemand): $307
Audit (NO certificate) (Live or OnDemand): $210
Course Information:
This course focus is multi-faceted. We begin with structural evaluation of your dog as it relates to performance – in other words, we are evaluating for purpose, not for fancy. This will identify areas of weakness and create your “Problem List”.
Next we identify the five important physical attributes for the performance dog; using the information from your problem list, we will work through the steps to develop a Conditioning program which will enhance the aspects your dog may be lacking and preserve the ones it already has. This will create balance by strengthening adjacent musculature in addition to the primary muscles used for your particular event.
We will not only take your dog’s physical fitness to a new level, the Conditioning program will create variety {which is the key to maintaining mental sharpness for any working dog} and result in tapering {a technique which will keep the dog’s performance at its peak by avoiding undue stress and preventing staleness}.
What a student can expect to learn from this Course:
- Enlightened appreciation of your dog as an elite athlete
- How to evaluate structure in relation to Performance
- Basic understanding of sport related injury, recovery and prevention
- Intensity / Duration / Frequency: the importance of each & how to use them
- Balance and proprioception: the keys to achieve optimal performance and enhanced wellness
- Strength vs. Endurance - how to combine them successfully
- Fitness Program development *templates provided
- Skills that will enhance abilities to raise and train each dog better than the last
- Certificate awarded after successful completion.
Instructor: Racine Hyatt is certified in Canine massage, graduating from the first class of the 2003 program at Treetops. She then went on to complete studies in Canine Rehabilitation Institute in the USA, receiving instruction in Anatomy & Physiology, Bio-mechanics, Program Design and Rehabilitation Techniques and Canine Sports Medicine. She seizes every opportunity to attend workshops and seminars believing the key to being able to help so many different dogs successfully has been her continuing education which puts as many 'tools in the box as possible' since there is rarely one right answer!
Racine has been training dogs in various disciplines since 1972 
when she began showing the family Newfies in conformation. She would discover her life's purpose and the world of rehabilitation in 1992 when she was blessed with her first canine life-partner, Meisha, who required several surgeries to repair the damage from the acutely abusive situation from which she had been removed. Although Meisha's after-care was complicated (the variety of practitioners who helped her would introduce Racine to complimentary health care) everyone involved knew the real struggle would be in restoring the confidence this Boxer should have. Someone suggested dog sports would be an excellent way to help "Moo", but didn't say which one - so Racine and Meisha signed up for everything (and so began Racine's education in the benefits of cross-training) including Schutzhund (Racine and Meisha did their last demo for a small training club when Moo was 9yrs old!). Racine attributes the (then rudimentary) skills she was taught in massage, T-touch and acupressure for maintaining Meisha's health and in large part why she never experienced a single injury (Racine discovers the benefits of physical conditioning!).
Today, Racine's practice in rehabilitation exposes her to (what she believes) is a ridiculous number of dogs recovering from the same few injuries - pets and athletes alike! As we enjoy more active lifestyles, so do our dogs; and yet few people apply the same basic 'rules of fitness' to the dogs as for themselves. A large part of her programs at DOGWORKS is education - and as word spread, Racine began doing more conditioning/preventative counseling than injury recovery!
Racine shares her life with Boxers, German Shepherds and an extraordinarily patient husband! When not training or competing in Schutzhund, Racine's dogs take turns demonstrating at seminars the benefits of conditioning and the body's ability to heal when given the right support!
She believes it is never too late to start and that an educated handler will go on to raise and train each dog better than the last - certainly the dogs deserve this!
Student Information
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