Showing posts with label K9FITbone. Show all posts
Showing posts with label K9FITbone. Show all posts

Friday, November 20, 2015

5 Ways to Get Fit With Fido


I recently had the chance to chat with one of the awesome writers for The Dog Blog at Zuke's about some simple ways to incorporate fun and fitness with your pup into your already busy life.

You know what it's like... you get home from work, you're tired and you know you should work out but it's... well... just too exhausting. Your pup, on the other hand, is wagging his tail and waiting for you to show him a good time. 

Here's how you can use that fido friendly energy to help motivate you to get up and get going. You'll sneak in some healthy exercise for you both and your dog, and chances are, you won't even notice you're working out!

1. Play “active fetch.” Even if just for 10 minutes, head outside and throw a ball or disc for your pup. Then run toward it yourself to race your dog to the toy. Alternately, you can throw the toy and then run the other direction, which will get your dog to chase you.


Rocco loves to play chase and active fetch in the backyard
2. Combine tricks with fitness. For instance, do walking lunges down the hallway while your dog weaves through your legs. Or try a standing lunge: stand with your legs spread apart, then bend a knee to lunge to the side while your dog does a figure 8 though your legs. Doing lunges are a lot more fun, and feel a lot less painful, when you're doing them with your dog! 

3. Take an exercise class with your dog. K-9 Fit Clubs offer special classes around the country for pets and their people. A sample exercise is a “wall sit,” in which you have your back against a wall and pretend to sit in a chair. Little dogs can jump in your lap, and bigger dogs can put their front paws on your legs. It helps strengthen the dogs’ rear ends and creates more of a challenge for the human.


Love the versatility of the K9FITBone!
4. Use equipment like a K9FITBone at home. While your dog stands with his front paws on the balance disk, you can hold a plank position on the other end of the disk.

5. Take a hike. It’s not only great exercise but it clears your head. Hiking with friends who also have dogs, or join a meet-up group in your city, which has the added benefit of someone else planning the activity so all you have to do is show up.



Rocco likes to hike with his pals Johann, Gracie and Rach
Read the full story -- with two more activity suggestions and training tips -- on The Dog Blog.  Writer Jen Reeder did a great job of making me sound good! 


How does your pup help you stay active?
Let us know in the comments below.



The fun and games continue every Friday with FitDog Friday, the weekly Blog Hop brought to you by To Dog With LoveSlimDoggy and My GBGV Life to promote a healthy active lifestyle for pets (and their people, too!). Join in every Friday by linking up your FitDog story or visiting the blogs in the hop.





Friday, December 5, 2014

How to Avoid Holiday Weight Gain for You and Your Dog

Holiday meals like these can wreak havoc on a diet but they sure are yummy!
Indulging over the holidays is a tradition for most people. But our dogs are also at risk of putting on a few lbs. right along with us with all the goodies that accompany the holiday fun.

Why not get a head start on fitness New Year resolutions by eating right and keeping up exercise routines NOW. And better yet, here are five things you can do WITH your dog to stay in shape so your holiday finery will still FIT!

Hydrate

Make sure both you and your pup have access to plenty of fresh water. Not only is water essential to live, but it also can help keep you from feeling hungry.  Try using a pet fountain for your dog. It'll help keep the water fresh and we find the sound of the trickling water relaxing. Check out this new Pagoda fountain in blue from PetSafe.

Eat Slower

We've all heard that it takes time for your body to signal that feeling of fullness. Eat slower to help you eat less, and help prolong your pup's meal by using an interactive or slow-feeding bowl.

Rocco models his new Hurtta coat
Take a Hike

Just because the weather is cooler doesn't mean you can't enjoy some outdoor time with your pup. Dress warm and get out and walk through your neighborhood or through one of your favorite parks. The fresh air will do you both good! And, it's a good excuse to buy a new coat for your pup. We love this Hurtta Winter Jacket.

Learn a New Trick

Keep your pup busy and get the benefit of some leg work by teaching your dog to weave through your legs. We like to do this while moving forward... picture doing walking lunges while your dog weaves in and out of your legs.  You may need to use some healthy, low-calorie dog treats to encourage your pup at first. Rocco also loves to snack on frozen green beans, right out of the freezer!

Add to Your Doggie Gym

Consider a holiday gift both you AND your dog can use.  I love our K9FITbone for its versatility. Rocco can use it for balance, rear-end awareness and core strength training, and I can use it too! Rest your forearms on the bone for plank exercises or rest your feet on it and perform hip lifts while the movement of the K9FITbone underfoot provides an extra challenge.


If you're visiting friends or relatives with your dog, it's also super important to keep an eye on what other folks are feeding your dog. Ask them to please NOT feed unless it's something that you have approved. Those extra bits of holiday food can add to holiday weight gain and uninformed people may feed something that can be harmful to your pet.

If you have any holiday tips to stay fit and avoid weight gain, let us know in the comments below.

Happy FitDog Friday!

The fun and games continue every Friday with FitDog Friday, the weekly Blog Hop brought to you by To Dog With LoveSlimDoggy and My GBGV Life to promote a healthy active lifestyle for pets (and their people, too!). Join in every Friday by linking up your FitDog story or visiting the blogs in the Hop.



Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Rocco's Big Birthday Bash #Giveaway! More than $500 in prizes!


Today, Rocco turns two! And since he's had such a terrific year, he wants to give you all the chance to win one HUGE giveaway filled with some of his favorite things.

I know the list is pretty long, but all the items here are things we love and we hope you love them too! We've got it all covered -- from hydration and fitness to toys, treats, chews and grooming.

Huge thanks to PetSafe, DogTread, Paw it Forward, EarthBath, Petco, Zuke’s, Best Bully Sticks, The Company of Animals and Merrick for contributing the awesome products to Rocco's Big Birthday Bash prize pack!

Here's a look at the amazing prize pack Rocco's assembled for his Big Birthday Bash Giveaway! One lucky winner will receive this entire haul… a $500+ value, filled with goodies you and your dog are sure to LOVE!

Take a look at all these goodies and then enter via our giveaway widget at the bottom of this post!


For hydration


Most dogs and cats need about an ounce of fluid per pound of body weight per day.  Here's a way to help keep them healthy and hydrated.

We love our Avalon fountain in red!

We love the Avalon Fountain from PetSafe. It comes in both red and white and continuously recirculates and filters your pet's water, keeping it cleaner and fresher the a normal water bowl.  You can read our review of the fountain here.

For interactive play


Play is one of the most important things you can do to build your bond with your pup, and besides, it's just plain fun! We love these interactive toys to help stimulate and enrich the life of your dog… and you too!

We love Nina Ottosson toys at The Company of Animals for fun, interactive games you can play with your dog. The Dog Magic is a perfect way to start. It's relatively easy game for any dog to play, where they have to dislodge bones to access hidden treats. Treats can be placed under one, several, or all the bones to vary the difficulty.  We're also including a bag of Coachies Training Treats from Company of Animals, a perfect pairing with the Dog Magic.

Dog Magic and Coachies, the perfect pairing from The Company of Animals

We also love interactive toys that can be used for rewards, fetch and find it games! Two of our favorites are the Busy Buddy Rip 'n Tug Lotus and the Busy Buddy Rip 'n Tug Hammerhead Shark.

The Lotus is perfect for rewarding your pup for a job well done!  Fill the fabric pouch with your dog's favorite treats, close the fastener and use the toy as a fun reward. We like using it after an agility run or for throw and chase games! 

We've used the Hammerhead Shark for tugging, find it games and for attaching it at the end of a line for chase games.  We stuff it with tasty treats or kibble and Rocco goes to town with it!

The Rip 'n Tug Lotus and Hammerhead Shark are two of our favorite treat-stuffing toys!

Rocco LOVES his Tennis Tail. It's simply a Tennis ball and fuzzy squeaky toy all in one bundle of toss and fetch fun! He loves to chase it, bring it back and carry it around.

The awesome Tennis Tail

For conditioning


Rocco's been busy building out his dog gym and one of his favorite pieces of equipment is the K9FITbone from DogTread.  It's incredibly versatile… use it alone for balance and stability training or combine it with a second FITbone for even more challenges. It's a great way to build confidence and body awareness in younger pups too. 
Rocco has fun balancing on the K9FITBone and he likes to include it as part of an obstacle course too!
And, if you're feeling adventurous, you can use it for yourself to do planks (rest your forearms on the bone) or for glute lifts (place your feet on the bone and raise your hips while engaging your abs and glute muscles).


For grooming

Grooming is not one of Rocco's favorite things, but Earthbath makes it easier by making a whole collection of wipes you can use between baths.

This entire collection of convenient Earthbath wipes are included in Rocco's Big Birthday Bash giveaway!
I love using this variety of wipes for everyday grooming, and I also pack them in my bag for travel or for day trips. Even when we go hiking, I'll stash some grooming wipes in my bag for easy cleanup -- a necessity for a long-haired dog like Rocco!

These smell fresh and clean and they are made with all natural ingredients like Hawaiian awapuhi extract, aloe vera and vitamin E.

Treats and chews


Perhaps Rocco's favorite things in the world are his treats and chews.  He's assembled a few of his favorites to add to his Big Birthday Bash prize pack.

I've used Zuke's treats ever since I can remember. We love the healthy, natural ingredients and Rocco loves the taste. We're including three bags of Zuke's Supers and three bags of new Zuke's Genuine Jerky in our prize pack! 

You can read more about Rocco's love for Zuke's  Genuine Jerky and Supers in these reviews. 

Rocco will do anything for Zuke's Supers and Genuine Jerky!

There's nothing like settling down with a good chew and Best Bully Sticks has some of the finest. Included in Rocco's Big Birthday Bash prize pack are:
Best Bully Sticks offers a variety of healthy long lasting treats and chews

Every dog needs a good dental chew, too. So Rocco's adding Merrick Brush Bones to his Birthday Bash prize pack. Merrick Brush Bones dental chews are available in a variety of sizes and are:
  • Grain-free and gluten-free
  • Made with all-natural ingredients, without sorbic acid or sodium copper chlorophylin
  • Made in the USA; no ingredients from China
  • Available in innovative shapes and textures to combat plaque and tartar and support fresh breath

For making you feel good

Getting out for a dog walk and doing something good for others are two things that can help make you feel great.  You'll get both from this adorable Paw It Forward matching set: collar, 6-foot leash and bandana. 

The Paw it Forward movement celebrates great dogs that are changing the world throughout their unconditional love, heroic actions and powerful inspiration. You can get involved by sharing great dog stories and by purchasing Paw It Forward merchandise, where 10 percent of all net profits support the specific causes of each individual dog or merchandise collection. 

Paw It Forward collar, leash and bandana set
Rocco wants to help make your pup a Paw It Forward Ambassadog by adding this cute set into his prize pack.  Collar and leash are available in Green or Blue webbing, with reflective ribbon for night walking. You'll be able to choose a collar size in small, medium or large and a bandana size in x-small or one size fits all.

To accessorize your walks and training

You need something handy to store treats, poo bags, keys, your phone, clicker and a little cash. We love the Treat Pouch Sport from PetSafe. Everything fits in this nifty little pouch and you can either strap the adjustable/removable belt through your belt loops or just clip it onto your pants.

We use the Treat Pouch Sport on all our walks!

Because everyone needs a little extra cash for pet essentials

Rocco's including a $50 gift card to Petco in his Big Birthday Bash prize pack so that you and your pup can take a little shopping spree for anything we might have missed! While you're there, check out the Petco Halloween selection filled with cute costumes and toys and the fun Star Wars toys!

We can think of lots of things to buy with a $50 Petco gift card!

Enter to win Rocco's Big Birthday Bash Giveaway! Value $500+!

One lucky winner will walk away with this entire multi-brand haul, a $500+ value from the folks at PetSafe, DogTread, Paw it Forward, EarthBath, Petco, Zuke’s, Best Bully Sticks, The Company of Animals and Merrick!

Keep it all for yourself or parcel out the items for all your doggie pals. You're sure to be the most popular dog in the neighborhood! 

Enter via the giveaway widget below. Enter as many or as few ways as you like. Just enter… or you won't have the chance to win!

Good luck!
Special thanks to PetSafe, DogTread, Paw it Forward, EarthBath, Petco, Zuke’s, Best Bully Sticks, The Company of Animals and Merrick for providing the prizes for this giveaway. All prizes will be shipped separately from each participating brand.