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Not just muscles! - some thoughts on conditioning your Dalmatian
by Anne Dickens

As we know, the Dalmatian is an endurance dog. That does not mean we're all blessed with owning a dog with perfect confirmation. In fact, it's very likely that none of us are, as it probably doesn't exist. So the first thing to think about when working up a conditioning programme is your dog's conformation. Of course the beauty of the Trials is that all shapes, sizes and colours of Dalmatians are welcomed, but we need to be aware of our dogs' strengths and weaknesses and take account of these when working.

The kennel club breed standard may be found here. Ideally our Dalmatians should have deep chests with a well sprung ribcage to accommodate both heart and lungs capable of coping with prolonged periods of work. They should have tight cat like feet with arched and well articulated toe joints and nice round, firm pads to act as shock absorbers. They are supposed to have adequate length and width of bone and well angulated (but not overdone) shoulders and stifle joints for a typical driving action. They should, overall and above all, be well balanced to support a sound and efficient gait. And on top of this they need to have good muscle tone all over. There are other important aspects to their conformation and I encourage you to examine and understand your dog and its limitations.

As an example, when I was training my second carriage dog along with his sister, her owner and I discovered that he had much hardier pads than she did. All our training was done on the roads and tarmac and concrete are very abrasive, especially when hot, and we had to be very careful to keep her feet in good condition. A damaged pad can take a long time to repair, so best to try to keep them in good condition to start with. A way to condition pads for trotting with a carriage on the road is regular lead walking on the pavement.

The Trials demands an endurance test of 10km, 20km or 40km depending on the level you are entering. Your dog will be vetted at the start and finish and for Silver and Gold tests, at the mid-point too. The scores the vet judge allocates will count towards your overall score. So conditioning your dog for its endurance trial is as important as practising for your obedience test. The times allowed are fairly generous, so you will be able to pace yourself along the course. Managing your dog (and horse/s) on the day, especially taking into account weather and ground conditions, is an important part of the trial, but pre-trial conditioning is critical.

Bearing in mind your dog needs good hard pads to be able to cover distances, inspect them after every training run. Be aware that different terrain will cause different wear and tear. Make sure you build up any regular road work starting with short excursions, especially with a carriage or bicycle where trotting for long distances will be required. There are products which can help protect paws (many used by working pulling dogs e.g. huskies) and boots which can be worn for protection in poor road conditions e.g. snow/salt or hot sun.

Hard roadwork will also have an impact on muscles and tendons, so again be sure to build up to longer distances slowly and ensure adequate rest and recovery time in between outings. For the long distance of 40kms, don't think it's necessary to be running this distance twice a week. Like all successful marathon runners, it's necessary to work out a programme 2-3 months before your trial which builds up slowly to longer distances, culminating, if possible (and not everyone is able to do this) in a mock trial distance over similar terrain and timing, a couple of weeks prior to the trial. After this much lower distances can be covered to maintain optimum fitness levels for competition day.

Don't forget to warm up with a short period of walking before trotting is advisable, with a cool down period at the end of each excursion too. Fitness training benefits from periods of walk and trot, as well as periods of free running (for dogs and horses). On hot days or after long distances, a cooling hose down for all the animals will be both welcome and beneficial.

Hydration is an extremely important element of fitness training. Always carry water with you (for you and your dogs) and encourage the dogs to take a small drink regularly when covering long distances or working in hot weather. I have used electolyte additives to help maintain necessary mineral levels. These can change the taste of the water, so it's best not to try to use them on the day if you've never used them before, as your dog may refuse to drink. For long distances I have always carried some plain water and some with an electrolyte additive and offered both to the dogs so they can make a choice. Some people carry a water/milk mix to encourage the dog to drink. Think about what will work best for you and your dog to ensure good hydration.

Remember that an intensive training regime will demand increased calories. Review your dog's feed and decide how much more he might need. I have tended to increase the meat component of my dogs' feeds and introduce a larger midday snack, but obviously feeding is a personal choice depending on your household routine and the dog's constitution. Once again, there are various supplements for working dogs which you may wish to consider.

Above all, just like your obedience work, your endurance training should be enjoyable for you and your animals. If you're training on a carriage, hopefully you have a groom, so maybe you can make the longer excursions a bit of an outing! When I was training for Gold, we had asked a local farmer if we could use his field margins, as I wanted to do some off-road work and take in more hills (having only flat lanes near where I lived), so we used to pack a picnic and some long lead ropes. The ponies would be taken out of their carriage and allowed to graze, the dogs would get a smelly tripe stick and we would try to munch our egg sandwiches before the dogs noticed them! This, and allowing the ponies to have a rare canter up the some of the hills (there's nothing like a pair of ponies hurtling up a hill together!) made all the packing and unpacking and travelling the trailer worthwhile!

A powerpoint presentation which covers more detailed and technical information about conditioning and vetting of your dog by an experienced vet judge may be downloaded [[Media:Vetpresentation2011.ppt|here]]