Supplements For Fido

Working in the supplement industry for 20 years I have taken vitamins for more than half of my life.  I believe they are beneficial for many different problems, can be a good preventative for some things and can be a good reassurance that you are getting all your nutrients.  I feel the same for my dogs and I have always given them vitamins throughout their life.  

I start with a basic multiple vitamin.  I give them a multiple for the same reason I take one and I use it as a reassurance that I am getting all my nutrients.  Sure I would like to believe I am getting all my vitamins from food but it is unlikely I am getting everything I need.  I do the same for my dogs and although I feed them a good dog food that is balanced I still provide them with the extra protection. 

I give them fish oil, which I squirt on their food once a day. This is great for their coat and especially good for joints.  It has the same benefits for humans because it is great for our skin, helps to lubricate joints and reduces inflammation.  I give my older larger dogs Glucosamine for their joints.  I have always ran with my dogs and Glucosamine is great for joints. 

I have a dog named Daisy who has always been healthy and very fit.  She has had blood taken on a few occasions and had slightly elevated liver enzymes.  Luckily I have a vet who is open to alternative medicine.  The number was not so high to warrant concern but it was something to keep an eye on.  She suggested I give her Milk Thistle and Glutathione both of which are good for the liver.  Since giving her that her numbers are in the normal range.  

Tigger is still active at 10!

It is very important to always talk to your vet before giving your dog any supplement.  Not all supplements that humans can take would be appropriate for your dog.  It is important to remember if you feed your dog anything other than dog food to discuss it with your vet.  Human food is not balanced properly to provide all the nutrients a dog may need.  Your dog could end up with brittle bones from not getting enough calcium or a variety of other aliments.  You may think your doing a good thing by cooking healthy food for your pup but if they are lacking in one nutrient it could be dangerous.  Always discuss changes in your dogs diet and supplementation with your vet.  Make sure you buy a quality name brand product to ensure the potency is accurate.  It is the same for supplements that humans take.  There is no regulation in the supplement industry so buying a reputable brand name product is important.

Daisy still runs with me at 8! 

Walk For A Cause!

I hope you and your mutt are staying active this summer.  If you walk or run with your dog on a regular basis then you can help your local shelter.  There is an app for your phone called Walk For A Dog and they donate money to a charity of your choice when you walk your dog!  Its is simple and easy to use and only takes a few minutes to set up. You can download the app for your phone and using your phones GPS your mileage is automatically tracked once you turn the app on. You can find out more details at www.wooftrax.com.  Now your walk or run with your mutt can help shelter dogs!  If you live in Las Vegas then you can help the Nevada SPCA like I am doing.  Get out and move with your mutt and now help out your local shelter.  

Here I am with shelter dog Meredith at the Nevada SPCA

Does Your Dog Smile When They Run?

Today I logged 24 miles of running and most of it was with my four legged friends.  I am in training for a 6-hour ultra marathon to raise money for the Nevada SPCA and today my training plan called for 24 miles today.  I had a plan and my plan was to run from my house to the Nevada SPCA which was 4 miles. I figured I would run 3 miles with 3 different dogs for a total of 9 miles then return home which was again 4 miles.  That would put me at 17 and then I would run 4 miles with my dog Daisy and finish off the last 3 miles with my other dog Tigger. It worked out almost perfectly but before I left the shelter I was about 3/4 of a mile short so I had to take out one additional dog for a quick run.  My partners at the shelter were Amazon, Huckleberry, Domino and Meredith.  Most days I go to the shelter I opt to take out the more excitable, energetic, and harder to manage dogs such as Andre and Margaret.  I love the challenge and in the end both those dogs are great dogs they just want to play too much rather than run.  I think Andre would be better at a water sport and Margaret at agility.  So today I didn't feel like the challenge so I took some dogs that are still energetic but really just love to run.  

I am so thankful to have found a way to combine my passion for running and my passion for my furry friends.  Although running 24 miles was not easy it was not nearly has hard as running it alone.  When I was running with Huckleberry I kept thinking that he looked like he was smiling the entire time.  I was so thankful to be able to bring a bit of joy into these dogs life today while they await their forever home.  I plan to go see Margaret and Andre this week because I feel guilty that I opted for the easy dogs today.  Andre is such a fun, playful boy he needs a home that can offer him lots of activities. 

I can't forget about Tigger he brought me home running the last 3 miles with me.  It wasn't a fast 24 miles but when you have to stop and pick up poop, and stop to pee on everything (not me the dogs) then that adds a little bit to the overall time! If you want to help support me for my 6-hour run you can go to Run For Fido 

The Nevada SPCA does so much for our furry friends (cats and dogs).  They offer much needed medical care to animals that are in need of it.  They keep animals until they get adopted which in some cases is over a year.  When they have room they adopt animals from the local animal shelter that euthanizes hard to adopt animals.  My fundraising goal is $3000 and I am about halfway there. You can go to the above link and make a flat donation or you can go to my website to sign up to sponsor me per mile. If you choose to do that I hope to run 35 miles in 6 hours.  I will contact you after the event to tell you how far I ran and then you can make your donation.  That link is Coach Cyndee

Thanks for your help!

One Persons Trash Is My Treasure!

She Overcame Her Fear Of The Water!

Daisy's Adoption Intake

I was going through the medical folder that I keep for my dogs and I came across the original adoption papers for my dog Daisy.  It brought back memories of the day I adopted her.  As I flipped though the papers I realized the name and number of the person who surrendered her was on the paperwork. I never noticed this before and I had mixed feelings about this person who I don't know.  I do remember that they told me that he said he found her running on the street however when they checked her for a microchip she had one and it went back to his name.  I was angry at this person for not only lying and not admitting that he just didn't want this dog but also for giving her up in the first place.  Then the more I thought about it I realized I should be thanking this guy because he brought to me one of the best things to come into my life.  I love all my dogs and they each bring me a special joy.  I have a unique connection with Daisy that I don't have with my other two dogs.  I have some ideas why this might be but I am not sure.  I have more issues with Daisy than the other two.  She has behavioral and aggression problems. I have hired an animal behaviorist and a trainer to tell me what to do with her and her "issues".  While I have worked through some things there are still underlying problems with her that I am sure go back to her life before I came along. Working with her has been somewhat of a bonding experience for both of us. It is me trying to understand her and her trying to protect and understand me.  Another reason I have a special bond with Daisy is that we always run together and through the years we have logged hundreds of miles.  I can't say I have ever had another running partner quite like her and I am sure I never will have another one.  I don't have to worry about what time of day we run morning or night and light or dark she would not let anyone come near me.  This is good when running in the dark but can cause problems on a daily basis and is one of the issues we are still working through.  She overcame her fear of water and loves to swim and go to the lake.  It is no surprise once she overcame her fear of the water she is an amazing swimmer.  

I thought about texting a picture of Daisy to the guy who gave her up. I might say something along the lines of, "thanks for giving me this amazing creature and I hope you never got another dog and will never own another in your life".  I doubt I will do that but it would make me feel better. Daisy currently weighs about 55lbs and that is with all the walking and running we do.  She is very muscular and fit and has amazing endurance.  When I got her she was grossly skinny and undernourished.  I saw on the intake form that she was 41lbs.  I don't understand why people treat animals badly or give them up when their lifestyle no longer fits with the dog.  I can't even imagine entertaining the thought of giving up my pets.

Looks at me like I am the queen!

She is a beauty

In the end I am overjoyed that this guy gave her up and I somehow found her.  I have learned from her, loved her, had fun with her, laughed at her, played with her, cuddled with her, ran with her, and she would run to the end of the earth for me.  I only hope there are many more years with her. When people meet me and my dogs they notice the connection that Daisy and I have.  She will sit by my side and look up and me waiting for me to do whatever it is I am going to do.  She is by my side and knows my habits, my routines, and I know hers.  It is really hard to describe the connection but if you are a dog owner it is likely you know what I am describing.  The man who gave her up has no idea what he gave up and lost.  My life is better with Daisy, Tigger and Spec.

She is amazing at agility!

Not a better running partner around

Out for a great trail run!

Run For Fido

I am so passionate about keeping people and pets fit!  As both human and pet obesity continue to rise my quest seems never ending.  I make it a priority each day to get my dogs some exercise.  Some days between work and school I am busy 14 hours so I find myself walking them in the dark of the morning or evening.  I find ways to get it done I wear reflective gear I carry pepper spray and we manage to walk or run each day.  

I have dedicated a few days a week to running dogs at the local dog shelter.  The dogs I choose to run are high energy and dogs that need to be outside running. When I take them out to run I can tell they are so happy its as if they are smiling the entire time we are running.  The weekly visits to the local Nevada SPCA have put me on a path to help any way I can.  I have decided to participate in a 6-hour run called the Jackpot Ultra here in Vegas. I will run for 6-hours continuous and hope to run about 35 miles in 6-hours.  Part of my training is going to the shelter and running with the dogs.  I have set up a donations page and pledge page and people can sponsor me per mile for this run. All the money will go to the Nevada SPCA.  The shelter is a no-kill non-profit shelter that helps find homes for so many animals.  They get hard to adopt animals from the local kill shelter and try to find these dogs home.  I hope to raise $3,000 for the shelter.  

Queen Anne 

Margaret

I hope to raise the money to help the shelter but I also hope to bring awareness to some of the higher energy dogs that have been at the shelter for a long time.  These are dogs that need a home with active owners.  They love to run, hike, swim and play.  They are energetic, funny, goofy, balls of fur.  I have become so fond of many of them and wonder why they have not gotten adopted.  When people come to meet them they are often overly excited and interested in anything but the people there to see them, but that doesn't mean they won't make a great pet.  They have just not gotten to the the person but unfortunately people need to feel an immediate connection with a dog.  Sometimes a dog with a lot of energy this might not happen immediately.  I hope to have some of the dogs shown here at my run for people to see them in a new light. 

Meredith 

Andre

 You can donate by going to my website at www.coachcyndee.com and go to the Run For Fido tab.  You can either sign up to sponsor me or just donate a flat amount.  

Donate Here!

Sponsor Here!

So Many Good Dogs

I love all dogs and I have three dogs each a different size, breed mix, and personality.  I volunteer to walk and run dogs at a local dog shelter.  I typically walk and run the larger dogs and the ones that are more difficult to handle.  Most of the larger breeds are some type of pitbull mix but there are many mutts.  I find myself constantly defending the pitbull breed of dogs when I tell people I run lots of pitbulls at the dog shelter.  Most people (not all) have an idea about this breed that is so far off and it saddens and angers me at the same time.  It is unfortunate that people are ignorant to the true facts and are closed minded and refuse to listen to the facts.  My own mother and father are in this group of people and I love them dearly but I don't understand them and their opinion on these dogs.  I was speaking to my mother about a certain dog at the shelter that I am fond of and am considering adopting.  She said that I better be careful because the dog could attack my dogs because its part pitbull.  I found myself trying to explain to my mom that she was wrong and not only pitbulls can be aggressive dogs.  Any dog could be aggressive and my own dog Daisy has shown some aggression at times and she is not a pitbull.  

Time Magazine Article

Pitbulls are unfortunately categorized as bad dogs because of humans that have used them as fighting dogs.  Pitbulls are some of the nicest most gentle dogs around.  Here is a study that found them to be one of the most tolerant dogs out there.  Sure there are some pitbulls that I walk or run that don't like other dogs but there are many other breeds that I walk or run that don't like other dogs too.  There are many dogs that bite and many of them are not pitbulls.  Pitbull bites get the most press and are talked about and most of the "other" dog bites are never made public.  Pitbull  - Beyond The Myth is a great documentary that discloses some of the major myths about this breed.  One myth about pitbulls is, when they bite their jaw locks but this is not true. They also do not have the strongest bite of any dogs.  Pitbulls are such great dogs and here are a few that I walk and run on a regular basis!

Anna Marie a pit mix that I walk

Lucy a pit that I walk

Margaret a pit mix that I run

Violet was one of my favorites and finally got a home!

Mix It Up With Fido!

Are you bored with your daily walks with your dog but still want to help them stay healthy and fit?  There are many other things you can do with Fido to keep him/her fit.  Here are just a few:

• Hurdles - jump hurdles, you can make these very easily with PVC plumbing piping  and you can make any height for very small or large dogs. 
• Play fetch - if your dog enjoys fetch this is a great way to get some exercise.  
• Play hide and seek - hide a small piece of kibble or their toy and see if they can find it - you may have to give some hints at first. 
• Play up/down - on a bench or chair have your dog go up and down.  This is good exercise and it makes their brain work too!
• Swimming - try a pool or lake and use a life vest for Fido to be safe. This is great exercise and so much fun for water loving dogs.  Check your area for a local dock diving club which is another fun thing for your mutt.
  
• Use a skateboard, bike or rollerblades to let your dog pull you along.  Be careful and make sure you wear a helmet!  
• Go to your local high school track while you go for a jog let Fido run with you.  I do this if nobody is on the track and I make sure all the entry ways to the track are closed before I let them off the leash. 

Have fun and stay Fit With Fido!