Laurie's Blogs.

Hey Laurie

I have a question for you, which may also be a good blog question for your page? What do you do in the situation where you are being asked to help someone with their dog and you don't feel they are being realistic?  Here is my current quandary. I have been asked to assess and provide strengthening exercises for a Bernese Mountain Dog that the owner wants to do agility with. IMHO a Bernese is not a breed that should be doing agility!   Under AAC rules, this dog will be measured to jump 26 inches, he could be dropped to 22 inches if they list him as 'special'. So, I feel it is a bit of an ethical dilemma. I am glad that they have come to me for help - better than not seeking help and just going ahead and doing agility. But, as a large breed dog already potentially predisposed to joint issues, is jumping something this dog should be doing at all?  How do you go about broaching this kind of subject with owners??

Thanks!

S.B.

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Hey S.B.

So this is a good question.  And I would say that many Bernese are physical disasters (wonderful dogs - don't get me wrong on that!), but there are some that are fit and athletic (I treat one - athletic dog check up) that does Superdogs, and I know of some others that have nice conformation.  They are not the majority however.

So, I would start off with my assessment of issues (i.e. assess all joints, tendons, the spine...), then go into an assessment of conformation... which can lead to a discussion about what that conformation could be prone to.  From there, you could suggest 'specials' or just certain kinds of Agility (?? tunnelers or weaver courses only), or suggest Rally-O, or Scent Hurdle as an alternate sport to look into.

If that falls on deaf ears, then you just suggest a regular check up tune up (athletic dog assessment) monthly.  You see what you find.  If you keep getting issues, then you can reiterate your points.

I don't look at it as a matter of 'I HAVE to change their mind'... I approach it as 'I will tell them what I believe to be true from my objective assessment.  What they do with the info is up to them.  If I need to reiterate my suggestions based on objective findings down the road - then do so.'  But it's kind of like raising kids... there's only so much you can tell someone else before they get fed up and just stop talking to you at all!  You still have to remain an arms length on the issue... for your own sanity.

I hope this helps in your thought processing.  Let me know if you come up with a unique strategy that makes sense for you!

Cheers,

Laurie