Exercise Machines with Fur

The current love of my daughter's life (no offense to her boyfriend) is a black-and-white bundle of energy and affection called Lucy.

My daughter calls the one-and-a half-year old Boston terrier "sunshine with fur."

Lucy brought so much happiness to us that my daughter got another BT, a girl named Lilu, while my husband and I got a big stocky boy called Buddy.

Irresistible
Why do dogs (and other pets) make us feel so good? Is it because they are always happy to see you and never answer back? How can you resist a dog that wants only to please and follows you around?

A pet therapy article in HolisticOnline.com has several theories on the stress-reducing benefits of pets.

While our interactions with people may be quite complex and unpredictable, animals provide a constant source of comfort.

Animals bring out our nurturing instinct because we feel needed and responsible.

Pets make us feel safe and unconditionally accepted.

Pet ownership may affect people physiologically through the soothing and relaxing effect of touch.

Speechless communication with a pet or simply watching a cat or fish may produce a relaxation response and may be an antidote to a foul mood or stressful day.

Health benefits
Research found that, though dogs were not the only ones that made people feel good, they were the most responsive.

You don't have to own a pet to enjoy the health benefits. Oral surgery patients who watched a tank of fish before surgery were more relaxed than those who did not.

Petting a dog can temporarily lower blood pressure and increase levels of serotonin, oxytocin, and prolactin-feel-good chemicals and hormones.

A study at the University of California, Los Angeles found that dog owners needed less medical care for stress-related conditions than non-dog owners.

Another study found that having a pet increased the survival rate of heart attack victims more than the support of a spouse or friends.
But only people who enjoy having a pet reap health benefits. Those who don't like animals find their company stressful. The wrong kind of pet also causes more stress.

Overweight Pets
Chubby dogs may look cute but they are not healthy. The National Academy of Sciences says, "An overweight dog is more likely to have arthritis, heart disease, cancer, diabetes, respiratory problems, pancreatitis, weakened immunity, anesthesia and surgical complications, and a shortened life."

But many owners don't realize their dogs have a weight problem. In a study of 200 dogs, 80 percent were found to be obese, yet 72 percent of owners felt their pets had the right weight or were underweight.

How do you tell a dog is fat? Veterinary nutrition expert Rebecca Remillard said the best way was to compare a dog's shape with pictures of dogs of ideal weight. A slim dog, even of stocky build, should have a visible "waist."

"Next, run your hands over the dog's ribs. If they're covered with a slight excess of fat and not easily felt, the dog is likely overweight. If the ribs are difficult or impossible to feel through the fat, it is likely obese."

Dogs and people become overweight for basically the same reasons: too much food and not enough exercise.

A tired dog is a good dog.
Regular exercise won't just help a dog to be trim and healthy but also make him better-behaved. In "Pet Aerobics," professional animal trainers Warren and Fay Eckstein write, "Nearly every behavioral problem we have encountered... is directly attributable to lack of exercise."

The Ecksteins say exercise can cure such problems as furniture chewing, biting, car chasing, hole digging and excessive barking.
Dr. Rolan Tripp, author of "Pet Perception Management," recommends a minimum of walking one city block per 10 pounds of body weight daily. So a 60-pound dog needs to walk at least six blocks every day. Another formula is 20-30 minutes of exercise four to five times a week.

Furry machines
The American Council on Exercise (ACE) calls dogs "exercise machines with fur." Dogs can help you get fit if you exercise with them. Taking a dog for a daily afternoon walk can help an overweight youngster or teenager lose weight without feeling that exercise is punishment.

Aside from walking with your dog, you can also take him for a walk or run while you ride a bike or roller skate. Remember that dogs, especially those with long hair and/or short snouts, overheat easily. Exercise in the early morning or late afternoon. Give enough water before, during and after workout.

You can learn a lot from dogs
They are just like people when it comes to losing weight. Both have to drop excess pounds slowly and safely. Nutrition authority Jean Carper recommends cutting doggie calories by 25 percent if your pet is overweight. She cites research showing dogs do best when they lose only slightly more than one percent of body weight a week, about three to four ounces for a 20-pound dog.

If your dog is obese (weighs more than 20 percent of normal weight), a veterinarian may prescribe weight-loss foods. Carper advises owners to be patient. No crash diets or instant weight loss. She says it can take 18 months for an obese dog to regain a normal figure safely.

My daughter says dogs can also make us better people. She writes in her blog (www.calamansi.blogspot.com), "They forgive easily, they are loyal, they take each day as it comes, they love with all their being and, if all else fails, they just look cute."

Note: Paul de Leon of Promised Land Kennels (tel. 0917-6039401) is one of the best breeders of Boston terriers.