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Where does your dog get his energy?

By Roseanna Bell

Where does your dog get his energy? Sources of energy can come from nutrition, physical activity, and spiritual interaction. Most understand the importance of diet and exercise as sources of energy but spiritual interaction? There are many forms of positive energy all around us; it just takes our attention to fuel them. The quality of positive energy our pets exhibit depends on our care. How can you increase your dog’s energy, so he can be the best walking, buddy ever?

The first source of energy is a healthy, nourishing diet. I am a raw pet food advocate and I recommend a balanced and complete raw diet. This is because I have seen the benefits first hand in pets of all ages, breeds, and with different health conditions become more energetic, happy, and healthy. We are fortunate today because we have available to us some of the best raw pet diets on the market. Many independent natural pet food retailers and some veterinary clinics are adding freezers to their establishments filled with these diets. Balanced raw diets come in many different recipes, from organic to ingredients of the same quality that you would serve your own family. Many of these raw pet diets are actually manufactured under strict guidelines in human food production facilities. Energy levels in most pets soar when on a raw diet or a raw diet supplemented with some quality kibble. High quality kibbles are my second choice. Feed the amount that keeps your dog fit, not fat. Feeding directions should only be considered guidelines. A leaner dog has more energy, is far more athletic, and will likely live longer.

Adding a good daily multi pet vitamin that is all natural is an important part of a good diet. Every dog is an individual, with individual needs, not just average. Your observation is important in determining some of these individual needs. Human nutritionists tell us that by adding a multi daily vitamin to our diets, we will improve the quality of our health and raise our immunity. It works the same for our pets.

A second link in the chain of energy production involves physical activity. As our pets participate with us in any sport their energy increases over time. When your pet is part of your activities of walking; massage, guided touching, or acupressure are beneficial sources of energy and healing. There are many animal massage therapists who can teach you the techniques. Two great books on animal massage are Tellington Touch for Dogs by Linda Tellington-Jones, known as the T-Touch method and The Well Connected Dog, A Guide to Canine Acupressure by Amy Snow and Nancy Zidonis. How much time does it take? It just takes a few minutes, once you learn the techniques. This energy is more meaningful when you are the one administering it. The results are healthy energy to do the things your pet wants to do with you. You will notice the difference.

The third link in generating positive energy sources is cultivating his spiritual side. Every dog has his own way of thinking about the world around him. Take some time to learn your dogs’ special needs regarding his temperament/spirit. Some dogs who live with us are just happy to be anywhere we are. Many of us have breeds that like to mix it up with other dogs and sometimes even with people. Then there are dogs with strong natural herding, guarding, or retrieving desires. These behaviors can make it challenging and can actually be energy draining. Our active dogs cannot help these inherited desires but they can learn to redirect these tendencies. This is the spiritual side of our dogs. Coming to a mutual agreement on how our spirits interact gives us immeasurable energy. The opportunity to spend some time developing our dog’s spiritual energy may be the most difficult to schedule into our busy lives. The best way to keep a dog’s energy in alignment and their actions within the bounds of our environment is to take the time to socialize and train our pets.

This means obedience classes or even special one-on-one classes with a trainer. Every minute of this activity it is well worth it. You can learn dog training from books but it is always the most beneficial to work with someone who is an experienced trainer. Check out trainers first before you introduce your dog to training. You want a trainer who is respectful of your dog and one who uses positive reinforcement methods. An excellent book that gives insight to positive training techniques is Don’t Shoot the Dog by Karen Pryor. Her method of training animals is called “Clicker Training.”

Your spirit and your dog’s spiritual outlook will be what you want it to be if you use these guidelines. Training is an investment of time that will make both of you happy, active companions.

All in all, energy comes from the attention to nutrition, physical activities, and acknowledging the spiritual side of our pets. Who knows, you may even improve your potential for increasing your own energy.

Roseanna Bell is currently the national marketing representative for NW Naturals and has a passion for dogs, showing, breeding, and rescuing. She has studied animal nutrition and is an advocate of raw diets for dogs. She can be reached at 541-954-1181