Walking Your Dog May Be Dangerous

David Trammel's picture

I work locally with an animal shelter and know first hand how some dogs, especially larger ones can be a real chore to walk. Untrained animals often pull and lunge at things that attract their attention. this can be hazardous for older people who use walking their pets as a way to exercise and keep up their mobility.

Walking dogs is sending older people to the ER, study says

"Maintaining an exercise regimen as you age is important, and having a pet who requires daily physical activity can be motivation to go for a walk. Unfortunately, walking a leashed dog can increase the risk of fractures in older adults, new research finds. An injury from this simple activity can result in life-altering circumstances -- and such accidents are increasing, according to a study published in the medical journal JAMA Surgery."

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If you are older, be aware how an injury can cause lasting damage. Take steps to have you and your dog do training or seek out pet walking options that don't put you at risk.

"There are many reasons why older populations may already be more prone to fractures, such as reduced bone mass as patients age and increased fall frequency. Older women who owned dogs in need of walking were especially at risk of associated injury. Being female is already a risk factor for fractures and bone disease, such as osteoporosis. Since 78.6% of fractures in the study occurred in women, "older women considering dog ownership must be made aware of this risk," the researchers wrote."

What is your thoughts about the use of pinch collars for such dogs. I have seen very large and rowdy dogs become docile and tractable when their owners use these collars? I think some believe these collars are cruel, but if the dog doesn't pull, it doesn't pinch. It was explained to me by a dog trainer that the pinch collars are similar to bites by more dominate dogs that they used to keep less dominate dogs in line. Since I also understand that dog owners are suppose to be the dominate dog in their pack, this makes abundant sense to me. If older owners who are in danger of physical injury would use these collars, and maybe get some training, these injuries would be reduced.

Blueberry's picture

The prong collar is standard use in training service dogs and therapy dogs. I work with a group helping train dogs for vets. Mrs B and I have 2 dogs both are therapy dogs. Our 2 are over 85 lbs each and a special needs child can handle them with no problems at ages of 4 an 5 no longer use the prong collar. With proper training most dogs no longer need the training collar past 18 months.