Lessons of Overworking a Dog on a Very Hot Day

I just wanted to share that I may have worked Finn too hard because when we came home Monday from our neighbor's house, Finn was panting so rapidly. After approximately 45 minutes of rest, when he got up, we noticed he was a little wobbly.

At first I thought it was one of his hind legs but it turned out to be his on his front right leg. He didn't put his foot all the way down and so my initial response was to inspect all four feet. I did not find anything lodged in his paw or any cuts for that matter. The limping went away that evening after a couple of hours of rest and some doggy friendly Denise's Homemade Ice Cream. Finn was fine afterward and when we took him to our holistic vet on Tuesday, the vet didn't see or sense anything wrong. Tuesday evening after our early evening walk and dinner though, I started noticing him showing some discomfort again. Doug noticed him wobbling a little late that night and Wednesday morning he looked fine again. Then after his off-leash romping out in the park on Wednesday, I started noticing that slight wobble AGAIN. After 5 minutes of no activity and laying down, he was limping AGAIN. Wednesday afternoon I checked on him, he was slow moving and was still not putting all the weight on his right foot. But strangely enough, he was rolling on the grass in the back yard as happy as a puppy. I didn't walk him this time around for it was high sun and extremely humid. Something was up and it was clear that Finn was feeling the pain. It just seemed hard to tell since he always appeared calm.

Well, something told me that I need to cut down on the fetching and the off-leash romping as well as the distance in our morning walks on pavement (sustained movement on pavement is hard on the joints). We love playing in our neighbor's yard and in the park too and now we have to stop that for a while.

Here's something to be mindful of when playing with your dog on a hot & humid day:
-Keep play (fetching, running, romping) short and avoid playing in the middle of the day
-Walk early in the morning or later in the evening when it's cooler outside
-Have lots of water available
-Keep the dog lean (a heavy dog can easily stress his joints)
-Feed a natural & wholesome diet and do not over supplement (i.e. too much Omega 6's Fatty Acids are pro-inflammatory; fish oils high in Omega 3's without added Vitamins A & D are anti-inflammatory)
-Due your research