During these years we have also helped and have been credited with achieving championship status for Agility, Showing, Flyball and Obedience champions. Julia and other Registered Practitioners have given talks at a myriad of canine seminars, clubs and meeting.

Galen Accreditation

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The wreath to be laid at the Menin Gate

Galen Therapy Centre (three of us) are going to Ypres tomorrow 11.11.11 for Remembrance Day.  We will be going to the Menin Gate to lay a wreath for all the dogs who have died during human conflicts, either being messengers, sniffer dogs, guarding dogs, tracking, companion and every other role they have played.

Some dogs who have played an active part in military warfare are classed as ‘equipment’ but when you read about the heroism and dedication we feel that they should be classed as personnel.

We at Galen would like to make a poignant demonstration to thank all those dogs who have played a valuable part in protecting our troops during all conflicts.

Sid

We are delighted to extend the invitation first seen on our facebook page to a one day seminar with James Breakspeare who will be bringing his Wolves to demonstrate behaviour patterns and to discuss various comparisons between his Wolves and domestic dogs.  The day will also include the discussion on aspects of nutrition and we will also present a video demonstration of a Wolf receiving treatment, both Myotherapy and Exercise Physiology

Tickets are extremely limited but to give you all a chance names are being pulled out of a hat on Friday 30^th September.  Apply for tickets which cost £25 each including tea & coffee (bring your own lunch) by emailing and put on the subject WOLF.  You will be told by email on Tuesday 4^th October if you are successful. The venue is a farm just outside Horsham West Sussex.

Review: Whether you’ve just bought your first puppy, or are an experienced dog breeder, this book is essential reading. A detailed outline of how puppies develop physiologically, together with appropriate exercises for them at each relevant stage of their puppy-hood, helping ensure good balance, mobility and health throughout your dog s life. Easy to follow, with clear instructions and helpful photographs, this is a detailed outline of how puppies develop physiologically, together with appropriate exercises for them at each relevant stage of their
puppyhood. Different breeds develop at different paces, and all the exercises covered in this book are soft exercises meaning that the puppy/dog dictates what he or she can do. By adopting a more natural exercise regime, puppy owners can encourage appropriate and robust development of their dogs muscular and skeletal framework, thus assisting good mobility from puppyhood through to adulthood. From alleviating stress on developing joints using obstacle negotiation, to how and when to massage your puppy, this is a comprehensive guide suitable for beginners and experienced dog owners alike.  To purchase follow the link.

galen-natural-progression

The DVD is available now you can only buy this DVD from our shop

See the trailer on youtube  for this link.  It has already recieved fantastic reviews!  Buy yours now and find out more about how dogs move through the beauty of slow motion!

‘It gives me great pleasure as a veterinary surgeon with an interest in dog movement and anatomy to write a review of this
wonderful DVD – which is unique, informative, and above all, enjoyable to watch…….SUZANNAH STACEY BSc BVM&S MRCVS Cert Vet Acu (ABVA 2004)

If we have our dogs from puppy’s, when we take them home they are very young and for all breeds very small. Before they leave their mother and possibly siblings, they are living a life in their own scale, in other words, their siblings are about the same size and therefore can move roughly at the same rate of speed and endurance. When they leave this environment they immediately join the land of the giants, where everything is huge by comparison and their mothers and siblings have been replaced by ‘people’ and peoples environment, this presents many issues but one in particular is exercise.

When we first take our puppy’s out, it is generally on a lead for their own safety as we need to keep their natural exuberance and spontaneity controlled. By doing this we are introducing two elements that could influence their development.

1. They are encouraged to ‘walk’ on one side of us
2. They are encouraged to ‘walk’ at our pace (not necessarily their own natural pace).

The issues of exacerbating a lack of balance in a dog by them always walking on one side is something that we at Galen Natural Progression have been drawing attention to for a while; but have we considered what we are doing by always asking our puppy/adult dog to walk at ‘our’ pace and not their natural pace or gait.

In both those examples the word ‘walk’ is used, but in both those examples how often does a dog ‘walk’ and I mean walk, not jog, I mean walk, a four time gait pattern that involves each leg moves independently.

A proper walk is a pace that through early exercise has almost been trained out of our dogs, especially those that are medium or small sized. For these size dogs they would find it easier to jog, that is a two time gait, (two legs generally opposite diagonals, moving together) providing a naturally faster and less energetic pace, required to maintain the pace set by the human.

If you view wide life programs, especially those featuring wild dogs and cats stalking prey, one of their distinct paces is that of a walk; it is defined, can be ponderous and demanding a huge amount of static strength. It also can be fast by using their full length of stride to cover the ground. The use of this gait is encouraging core strength (through their back, rib region and abdominals) and great stability because each limb has to maintain the weight of their body through the transition. The neck is engaged through the stride pattern, maintaining a good length and therefore creating a balanced long stride, also sustaining a good length through the back. It activity works each limb and joint without over stressing.

This long deliberate stride is something that is not always encouraged and when dogs get older it is amazing how many dogs physically cannot really walk, especially if they are asked to walk slowly with their heads extended.

To encourage your dog to walk is always beneficial and then lengthen their stride at the same pace can enhance their whole action. To do this under supervision can improve and tone their whole body, whether your dog is for showing or take part in any other activity, these gentle exercises will always be beneficial. Be sure however to ask them to keep their heads in a natural position for them and not to ask them to look up at you, as this will negate positive gains.

If your dog has an uneven stride or is unsound, quite often they are asked to perform a gait analysis by a therapist or Vet, more often than not this is conducted with the dog being asked to jog or trot. A jog can hide or disguise an issue due to how much easier it is for the dog to conduct this pace and gait. If however you ask the dog to walk it is amazing how much more is exposed. You can view a much more deliberate head nod and have a much clearer view of which of the limbs or area of the dog is dysfunctioning. At a walk a dogs top line should remain steady and even.

So an active walk can promote good balance and core strength, help to expose where a dog is not sound and also be one of the best corrective exercises a dog can employ.

When treating dogs either with Myotherapy or Exercise Physiology, the walk is more often than not part of a dog’s recovery program and in fact there have been many occasions when this alone has helped to correct an issue. When a dog runs or jogs, especially young dogs and puppy’s, their body is gathered up to produce the explosive stride; however when a dog walks, using their natural head carriage, it has to extend through their whole body, that can help to release tension and compaction in joints both in their backs and necks.

Just recently a lovely young greyhound came for a gait assessment and exercise physiology session with Galen Natural Progression as he was not producing a good length and evenness of stride. His observant and caring handlers recognised he was not correct but could not understand why. After taking part in an assessment and then through a prescriptive session of natural exercises, encouraging natural movement, the difference was amazing. Walk was something he just could not do at the beginning of the session but by the end he could and could produce a good length of stride.

For those who are interested in Canine Movement you may be interested in a DVD that Galen Natural Progression are bringing out called ‘Tongue to Tail, The Integrated Movement of the Dog’.

For more information, on either assessment and treatments or courses, visit Canine Exercise Physiology (Galen Natural Progression) or call 0845 3751767 or email .