Injury Factor #2 in Puppies
Growth plates are located in the long section of the bones just above and below the joint (shown by the orange markings). When puppy’s body takes the pressures of high impact activities, the stress points are through the joints (which act as shock absorbers)!! Immature, soft bone is incapable of enduring multiple high impact without suffering micro-injuries! THIS is why – Rule #1: all 4 on the floor until 14-16mos of age! No jumping / no high impact / no slipping / no rough-housing… Rule #2: 2mos -12mos – “exercise” the most important part of puppy – HER BRAIN! Calmness (which most puppy people desire) is a state of mind – not the result of physical exhaustion!! Not to mention the critical importance of enhanced body awareness for over-all wellness. Rule #3: progressive strength exercise starts at 10/11 mos – endurance must NOT begin until puppy is 18 mos. At first glance this is really restrictive – it’s meant to be; life doesn’t give us many “do-overs”; I can tell you that everyone who has taken our puppy program leaves with 2 things – an Exercise/Activity plan for 18 months AND the reasons why!
The full course:
http://www.e-trainingfordogs.com/2011/03/all-fit-dog/
Good to know. I knew they weren’t supposed to do jumps…. but no ‘rough-housing’? How does one prevent that with more than one dog / puppy? Do people really keep everybody separated all the time — unless supervised?
I also think we (Craig and I) need to look at how we are playing ball / fetch with the little guy. I’m afraid he is doing some jumping when we play. I guess it is all ‘grounders’ for a while.