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Exercise For Pregnant Bitches


toshman
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Hoping my bitch is pregnant...she is 21 days today from her first mating, and I'm not sure how much exercise is too much, too little or just enough! She is a very active little dog (Border Terrier) and lives to chase her ball, running and jumping , putting everything into it. Until she came in to season last month she was actively competing in lure coursing, tracking and Earthdog, which has all ground to a halt for the time being (a little sadly..she was just hitting her straps in all three sports...roll on next season! )

I have been a little nervous about letting Her run and jump as normal (for her)now - we walk instead much to her disgust! So I'd love to know what level of exercise is considered "normal" and safe for an expectant mum...fingers crossed!

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I trained Em pretty hard because she's the sort of dog who will do herself an injury if you try to keep her quiet. Lots of retrieving work on the flat and a bit of swimming. No agility, limit crazy running as much as possible but substitute LOTS of brain work. She bounced back from whelping really well and was out training and running (on the flat of course) after a week or two despite being a devoted Mum. She had SO much milk but dried up beautifully as the pups went off to their new homes and was back competing in retrieving trials within another 6 weeks. And nailed it!

Good luck!

Edited by The Spotted Devil
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I don't change a thing, the bitches exercise just as they always do, they dictate how much they want to do. It's only in the last couple of weeks that they slow up .

A fit active bitch is more likely to whelp easily and without complications. There's no point wrapping them up in cotton wool.

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Let her run and play :) Don't let her 'play rough' with other dogs, and I agree on keeping her out of competitive sports at this point, particularly the lure coursing in case she takes a tumble at high speed (we will see that monkey magic again soon enough :p ) but keeping her fit is good, as mentioned, for a hopefully easy whelping. She should self limit as she gets bigger - generally in the last couple of weeks.

Edited by espinay2
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I think "as normal" depends on the dog. Mine wouldn't notice if she lost a limb so is not the best candidate for self-limiting :laugh: There's certainly an increased risk of ligament injuries associated with relaxin production - which is why I steer clear of twisting, turning and jumping.

Edited by The Spotted Devil
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Thank you everyone! I might loosen the reins a little then - I was getting a little worried that her fitness levels would fall away ????

Espinay - the Monkey magic will return next season in lure coursing, we'll have a little catching up to do though!

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Let her run and play :) Don't let her 'play rough' with other dogs, and I agree on keeping her out of competitive sports at this point, particularly the lure coursing in case she takes a tumble at high speed (we will see that monkey magic again soon enough :p ) but keeping her fit is good, as mentioned, for a hopefully easy whelping. She should self limit as she gets bigger - generally in the last couple of weeks.

Agree with this. All the best with Miss M :D

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Let her run and play :) Don't let her 'play rough' with other dogs, and I agree on keeping her out of competitive sports at this point, particularly the lure coursing in case she takes a tumble at high speed (we will see that monkey magic again soon enough :p ) but keeping her fit is good, as mentioned, for a hopefully easy whelping. She should self limit as she gets bigger - generally in the last couple of weeks.

Agree with this. All the best with Miss M :D

Thank you!

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