A Salute to Our Veterans

Every day of the year, but especially during this month of Thanksgiving, we salute the men and women who have served in the military and those on active duty. Dogs also have a long history of working for the military. Ancient Egyptians, Romans and others trained war dogs to go into battle. Through the centuries, duties changed. Dogs protected and carried messages in the American Civil War and served as mascots on recruiting posters in World War I.

Today, the Defense Department's Military Working Dog Program has an estimated 2,300 working dogs. These dogs serve with handlers from every military service. Together they are deployed worldwide to support the war on terror and help safeguard military bases. Working dogs have an acute sense of smell five to 10 times stronger than a human's. This allows them to detect minute traces of drugs and to detect bombs and other explosives before they create damage or harm humans.

Photo Caption: Tech. Sgt. Chad Eagan and Military Working Dog Benjo spent a great deal of time searching for munitions in Iraq. Eagan and Benjo display their success with a 107mm rocket they found. The team is credited with locating 15 weapons caches, 98 mortars and 70 pounds of TNT. Benjo retired November 12, 2009, and was adopted by a retired military man.

This post appeared originally in my monthly Newsletter, then on my site in the Newsletter archive area. If you would like to sign up to receive the monthly Newsletter, please visit my main site and enter your email address - that's it!.

Massage for Senior Pets

One day you are playing with a puppy and all too soon your furry friend is showing signs of aging. Different breeds and sizes of dogs age at different rates, but most breeds reach middle age at about age 7 and proceed into their senior years. Giant breeds begin middle age even earlier. Changes do not occur over night. They creep in slowly and may go almost unnoticed until one day you realize something just doesn't seem right with your pet.

According to the AVMA, approximately 40% of dogs seen by veterinarians are 6 years or older. Old age is a condition not an illness or a disease, but some of the signs and symptoms require veterinary attention. Stiff joints and difficulty getting up are changes that are common in many dogs. Your veterinarian may offer medications to limit discomfort, but you too can help your pet. You can provide massage, a therapy recommended by many veterinarians, to soothe your pets achy joints, increase range of motion, and maintain flexibility. Stretches are excellent for aging pets as well as younger dogs. Stretches relax muscles, increase flexibility and range of motion, improve muscle tone, increase elasticity of muscles, tendons and ligaments, and enhance circulation.

A lateral stretch, or stretch to the side, stretches the muscles of the neck, shoulder and trunk and maintains flexibility of the muscles and joints in the spinal column. Reach in front of the dog and let him sniff a treat or see and hear a squeaky toy. Once you have his attention, guide his head toward his hindquarters using the treat or toy as bait (see Fig. 1).

Figure 1	Figure 2

Use your hand or leg to anchor the dog's hindquarters so he stretches toward the rear but does not circle in a tail-chasing motion! Move to the dog's other side and repeat (see Fig. 2).

As the dog's nose follows the treat in your hand, he stretches the muscles of the neck, shoulder, rib cage, and trunk. The first few times you try this technique, the stretch should last at least five seconds. Once the dog understands that the stretch will result in a treat, encourage him to hold the stretch at least 10 to 15 seconds before releasing the treat. Remember, the benefit the dog derives from the stretch relies on your ability to entice him to hold the stretch for several seconds. Always stretch both sides of the dog!

This post appeared originally in my monthly Newsletter, then on my site in the Newsletter archive area. If you would like to sign up to receive the monthly Newsletter, please visit my main site and enter your email address - that's it!.