French Bulldog
6 years, 2016
Concerns/Goals/What Brings You in Today?: Weightloss, knee strength to avoid surgery, general well-being
12-3-22 Initial report
Background
Supplements: n/a
Food: kibble
Activities: walks, fitness with fido classes
Injuries: right knee surgery 2020, pinched spine nerve in 2021
Equipment access: Klimb, balance disc, peanut, propel
Short term goals within 6 weeks 1-14-23 – lose .5 lbs, start evening up thigh muscles, 1.5cm difference, work to .25cm difference
Checkpoint Posture Assessment
hold a stand for ten seconds without sitting or lying down? yes
shifting more weight onto their forelimbs? No, wide stance
shifting more weight onto their hindlimbs? Yes on right back leg
Are they avoiding putting a good deal of weight on one of their limbs? about 20%
What does their topline look like? straight
Checkpoint Exercise Assessment
Standing Still: Wide stance, not fully stacked/extended, short stance
Stand with Head Tilt Up: Lifts front paw
Backing Up: Using front legs more to back up
Sit to Stands: yes
Elevated Sit: Yes, somewhat slouched and slanted to right
Plank (duration & Equipment): Weight shift more on right back leg
Walk/Gait/Endurance:
Elevated down: Tight hips
SUMMARY
OVERACTIVE MUSCLES: right back leg
UNDERACTIVE MUSCLES: inner thighs
NOTES: Primary core work & even thighs up; secondary lose weight
Below are the progress photos, the back view you can really note the weight shift!
Measurement Tracking
| Date | 12/3/22 | 1/24/23 | 3/24/23 |
| Weight | 30 | 28 | |
| Chest | 64.5 | 62.25 | |
| Waist | 51.5 | 51.5 | |
| Thigh R/L | 26.5/25 | 24/23.5 |
Warm Up & Cool Down Routine
Warm Up with side stepping, backing up, toss and run, walking, uphill walking, etc for 2-10 minutes
Cool Down with massage, high paws up on klimb, bow, cookies stretches for 2-10 minutes
Red Light Laser Therapy when possible
Session 1 Homework 12-3-22:
starting with building up core strength and form.
circuit 1
toss & run game – 3 minutes, aim for daily with toy or can green beans or carrots for calories and visibility. Getting on and off treadmill turned off to become familiar.
circuit 2
Paws Up – 3 sets of 20 seconds on balance disc, once a day or every other day
circuit 3
Plank Head Nods Up – try 10-20 reps once a day with breakfast and/or dinner
Session 2 Homework:
continue with last week’s exercises and add these to his routine. Try to do 3 out of 5 exercises daily, mixing it up so you do all of them without repeating. 1 minute treadmill, 12 incline, 1 mph
circuit 1
elevated sit – 3 sets of 20 seconds
circuit 2
back up to target – 2 sets of 4
Session 3 Homework:
continue with last week’s exercises and add these to his routine. Try to do 3 out of 5 exercises daily, mixing it up so you do all of them without repeating. Owner going on 2 week vacation, will pick up from here when she returns. 2 minutes treadmill, 12 incline, 1 mph
Circuit 1
Up and down paws up combo, 20 secs front, back paws 10 sec – 4 minutes
Circuit 2
Plank – regular 30 seconds
- Plank alt left and right – 20 reps total
- Plank left side looks – 8 reps
- Plank right side looks – 8 reps
Circuit 4
Repeat circuit 1& 3
Session 4 Homework:
adding in progressions from last week. 3 minutes treadmill, 12 incline, 1mph
Circuit 1
Dynamic Up and downs, 8-10 passes each
- Regular
- Pauses
- Look left and right
Circuit 2
- Plank on Propel Regular hold – 30 seconds
- Plank looking up and down – 30 seconds
- Plank with propel and disc, 2 on 2, 30 seconds each way, repeat
Circuit 4
- Rear leg targeting, 5 each back leg – work on cue
Session 5 Homework:
start working on inner & thighs to strengthen knees as his core strength has developed up. 5 minutes, 12 incline treadmill
Circuit 1
Rear Leg Targeting, 10 each back leg
Rear Leg Adduction Hold, 10 seconds, 4-6 rounds
Circuit 3
Pivots, each direction, 1-2 times
Circuit 4
Lateral Holds, 20 seconds
can really tell the external rotation in back left leg
Session 6 Homework
continue working on inner & thighs to even up. Progress check in
5 minute treadmill, incline 12, 1 mph. Stayed on the whole time
Circuit 1
Plank, 30 seconds, 8 rounds
Circuit 2
Rear Leg Adduction Hold, 20 seconds, 2-3 rounds
Circuit 3
Pivots to Targets, each direction, 1-2 times
Circuit 4
Side Step to Lateral Hold 10 seconds, 4 rounds
Progress Check In 1-24-22:
Measurements 1-24-23
right back leg – 24 cm
left back leg – 23.5 cm
waist – 51.5cm
chest -62.25 cm
weight – 28 lbs
Lost 2 lbs and 2.25cm around chest! Waist is more defined though the same size. .5cm difference between legs! Evened up by 1cm!!
Long term goals – lose about 3 lbs, define waist, strengthen knees to avoid surgery and even up muscle mass in back legs, there’s about 1.5cm difference, from luxating patella surgery on the back left leg, 3 years ago, 2020. Working hard and already meeting those goals! New goals, 1 more lb to reach goal weight, but mainly work on strengthen the knees and overall health.
Short term goals within 6 weeks 1-14-23 – lose .5 lbs, start evening up thigh muscles, 1.5cm difference, work to .25cm difference. Met all those goals, congrats! New goals, even up thighs, currently there’s .5cm difference, work on .25cm. New check in date: March 24th.
Session 7 Homework 2-8-23
Start focusing more on evening up thighs
Disclaimer: Fitness with Fido only offers canine conditioning. Rehabilitation programs and the diagnosis and treatment of illness and disease are not provided. All participants of canine conditioning activities and programs should be cleared by their veterinarian before beginning. When/if concerns are noted during the course of conditioning, clients will be directed to seek care from the appropriate certified professional (Veterinarian, chiropractor, etc.) Results may vary.
