Gun Dog Forum

Some of you may have already received this, but for those that haven't, Dr. Chris Zink is doing an annonymous survey to better understand what we do for our canine athletes.

Here is her email : "To all my friends with canine athletes: I have designed an anonymous survey to help people learn more about the needs of canine athletes. It seems hard to believe to those of us who are passionate about canine sports, but there is hardly ANY research being done on injuries and conditions specifically affecting canine athletes. One of the big reasons is that the demographics of canine athletes and their people are not well known. This survey will start to change that."

Here is the link to the survey : https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/CanineAt ... mographics



.

I can see the definition of Athlete being pretty wide spread.....LOL.


i envision couch potatos leaping off the couch for a pork chop fallen from a kitchen counter......

birddog1968 wrote:I can see the definition of Athlete being pretty wide spread.....LOL.


i envision couch potatos leaping off the couch for a pork chop fallen from a kitchen counter......

So you didn't do the survey?

birddog1968 wrote:I can see the definition of Athlete being pretty wide spread.....LOL.


i envision couch potatos leaping off the couch for a pork chop fallen from a kitchen counter......

Part of the survey is about your dog's activities.



.

I started and then found there was no catergory for hunting. Guess that isn't a sport anymore, but it sure would change the results of the survey so I quit.
Hard to believe you have to do something other than hunt with a hunting dog to be considered an athlete, which I question if the term even applies to a dog.

Ezzy

When my setter had surgery , the vet referred to her as in the "athlete category" - .. lean, muscular, strong cardio system , skilled. He predicted that she would rehabilitate 2 weeks sooner than most dogs; he was right.

I was just kidding with the comment....yes i did take the survey.


As Ezzy noted no category for hunting or a dog that works for a living like guiding........

birddog1968 wrote:I was just kidding with the comment....yes i did take the survey.


As Ezzy noted no category for hunting or a dog that works for a living like guiding........

There wouldn't be anything to be gained at this point from including a hunting dog or a dog that works as a guide dog. Or, for that matter, a working stockdog or any dog that doesn't perform specific physically demanding repetitive tasks. Dr. Zink is the person who determined that dewclaw removal could be detrimental to dogs who performed Agility. Her research requires specifics and grade working dogs of any type simply cannot provide the data.

birddog1968 wrote:I can see the definition of Athlete being pretty wide spread.....LOL.


i envision couch potatos leaping off the couch for a pork chop fallen from a kitchen counter......

Wellwith that definition at least I know I am an athlete.

Cajun Casey wrote:

birddog1968 wrote:I was just kidding with the comment....yes i did take the survey.


As Ezzy noted no category for hunting or a dog that works for a living like guiding........

There wouldn't be anything to be gained at this point from including a hunting dog or a dog that works as a guide dog. Or, for that matter, a working stockdog or any dog that doesn't perform specific physically demanding repetitive tasks. Dr. Zink is the person who determined that dewclaw removal could be detrimental to dogs who performed Agility. Her research requires specifics and grade working dogs of any type simply cannot provide the data.

Malarky

Ezzy

There wouldn't be anything to be gained at this point from including a hunting dog or a dog that works as a guide dog. Or, for that matter, a working stockdog or any dog that doesn't perform specific physically demanding repetitive tasks. Dr. Zink is the person who determined that dewclaw removal could be detrimental to dogs who performed Agility. Her research requires specifics and grade working dogs of any type simply cannot provide the data.

Why?

Hunt test are not done every weekend, trials are not done every weekend etc. Most of the stuff listed is not done every weekend.

Ruffshooter wrote:There wouldn't be anything to be gained at this point from including a hunting dog or a dog that works as a guide dog. Or, for that matter, a working stockdog or any dog that doesn't perform specific physically demanding repetitive tasks. Dr. Zink is the person who determined that dewclaw removal could be detrimental to dogs who performed Agility. Her research requires specifics and grade working dogs of any type simply cannot provide the data.

Why?

Hunt test are not done every weekend, trials are not done every weekend etc. Most of the stuff listed is not done every weekend.[/quote]
The dogs who participate in those activities often have a more structured conditioning routine than those that don't. As the introductory e-mail stated, it's only a starting point.

Cajun Casey wrote:

Ruffshooter wrote:There wouldn't be anything to be gained at this point from including a hunting dog or a dog that works as a guide dog. Or, for that matter, a working stockdog or any dog that doesn't perform specific physically demanding repetitive tasks. Dr. Zink is the person who determined that dewclaw removal could be detrimental to dogs who performed Agility. Her research requires specifics and grade working dogs of any type simply cannot provide the data.

Why?

Hunt test are not done every weekend, trials are not done every weekend etc. Most of the stuff listed is not done every weekend.

The dogs who participate in those activities often have a more structured conditioning routine than those that don't. As the introductory e-mail stated, it's only a starting point.[/quote]
Scientific test are not done on an assumed basis such as often, sometimes, might be, they are often more structured. Are you the one that decided these possibilities or was someone else involved? Hunting and guide dogs are probably doing what hunt test dogs do only they do it all day and many times a week. Hunt test are a 30 min. to an hour walk in the park no matter how structured.

There may be something to be learned with a true test but not so much from the questions being asked on a faulty premise as explained by someone without any real knowledge of the whole project.

Ezzy

The survey gives the option to write in an activity so I simply added hunting. I've done most of the other activities listed on the survey but, hunting requires the most athletic ability by far and is the only one that has ever caused injured my dogs.