Canine Massage Workshop

We'd the ears go? Now this is relaaaaaaxed.

Klaus enjoys his massage

One of the training facilities we attend, Paws Inn Resort and Training, sponsored a Canine Massage Workshop. My only dilemma was who to bring. As the therapist said that evening, this is like "date night" with your dog so to decide who would get this special one on one time was not easy. They all deserve it.

Klaus was the one that stood out as needing some special time. We haven't attended something like this together for a while. When I entered the dog yard with the leash in my hand and said Klaus' name, he began to bounce off the kennel walls with anticipation. I've made a habit out of immediately telling the dogs who I've come in for so that those not going calm down right away. This type of training also comes in handy when trying to extract one dog out of a kennel of several dogs. Each has learned to back away from the gate and let the one I ask for, come out without issue. The command is their name followed by "Out". The same goes for those times when I am asking a particular dog to go in a particular gated area. Then the command is their name followed by "In". This makes them think.

Lately, the names they hear most often have been White Feather and Topa, as their early training is underway. But not this time. Klaus was soooo happy that it was finally his turn.

The workshop was two hours of hands-on canine massage. We learned several different massage techniques that included a warm up and a cool down. We'll try to incorporate both into our training runs and see if there is a difference in their performance. It certainly can't hurt. Looking at Klaus' relaxed face in those photos, they may just decide to go on strike until they each get a full body massage before each run.