DOG

[xoxoxoBruce]

[DanaC]

Pretty damn cool.

[Gravdigr]

I avoided that video when I came across it in my surfings...but, it didn't end like I thought it would.

I'm still not ready for dying pet stories yet.

[xoxoxoBruce]

I'm generally opposed to them myself, unless they involve saving an entire orphanage, or the planet from aliens.

[BigV]

He's gonna need a bigger treadmill.

[Carruthers]

I look after a Chocolate Labrador three days a week and when his owners are away so he spends almost as much time with me as he does at home.
A while back, he was recovering from a leg operation and needed hydrotherapy which involved walking on a treadmill in a water tank, the idea being that it strengthens the limbs without putting too much of a load on the joints.
I took him to the local veterinary centre for this therapy and while I know him to be a clever and wise old boy, I wasn't prepared for what happened.
He entered the tank, the water was let in and the treadmill was started.
Finding the prospect of exercise a bit too much like hard work, he managed to straddle the moving belt and parked his paws on the non-moving edges.
After some persuasion, he reluctantly agreed to follow the rules.

[DanaC]

Hahaha

Carrot's hydrotherapy was with the treadmill. He was really good and cooperative as long as I draped my arms over the edge and coaxed him along with biscuits. He used the step on the sides trick when he got tired.

[BigV]

I don't see how that setup in the picture can reduce the force on the joints. I imagine the intention is to relieve how heavy the body is as it's partially supported by the water. But the part of the dog that's in the water isn't positively buoyant. How is there any reduction of stress on the joints achieved? More resistance, sure, as the hairy dog legs have to work harder to get through the water step by step by step. But the dog's got just as much weight on his feet in that water there as he does on dry land.

[xoxoxoBruce]

So you're saying the whole weight of the ship when it's floating is still on the anchor? I don't think so.
On each step, when then foot/paw hits the deck every joint in jarred by the weight of the critter. Buoyancy of the body reduces that shock. Moving through the water is harder work for the muscles, but that's the point, work the muscles without destroying the joints.

I noticed Carruthers is an old hand at dealing with needy creatures.

[BigV]

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

So you're saying the whole weight of the ship when it's floating is still on the anchor? I don't think so.
On each step, when then foot/paw hits the deck every joint in jarred by the weight of the critter. Buoyancy of the body reduces that shock. Moving through the water is harder work for the muscles, but that's the point, work the muscles without destroying the joints.

I noticed Carruthers is an old hand at dealing with needy creatures.

No, I'm not saying anything about your imaginary boat at anchor. A floating boat at anchor with slack in the chain has no downward pressure on the anchor chain, duh.

On each step, when the foot/paw hits the deck, all the joints are jarred; agreed. Buoyancy reduces that shock; agreed.

My point is there's no buoyancy at work in the picture above. How much positive buoyancy do you experience when you stand in water up to your crotch? I'm guessing zero, just like with the dog in the picture. Bones and muscle are denser than water and that's all that is displacing the water in the picture. Fat and air are less dense than water, that's where you get your buoyancy from and I don't see anything about that dog that suggests that there's much fat or air under the water, buoying him up, relieving pressure on his joints. *That's* my point.

If the doggy was in water up to his chest, different story.

[xoxoxoBruce]

OK, I see your concern. It looks to me like the chest is fully submerged, but back by the hips of course it would take deeper water because of the way dogs are built. A swimming dog would level out but of course this one's not swimming. Maybe the motion of the treadmill causes the water to move causing a bow wave, and the mutt is body surfing.

[infinite monkey]

Labs are the best!

[DanaC]

The water supports the dog's weight it doesn't take away all impact but lessens to the point that the impact is not jarring the joints.



It's also about balance and foot placement. They're having to be much more conscious of their movements.

[Carruthers]

I think at the time I took that photo, the tank was still filling.
It's a couple of years back (March 2013) so I can't be sure.

[Carruthers]

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

I noticed Carruthers is an old hand at dealing with needy creatures.

Yes, dogs, horses and, this very afternoon, elderly neighbours.