Why it’s so important that your dog sits properly!

No, this is not about obedience training. Sitting is just like standing a normal basic posture of our dogs. But if you look around you will see that many dogs find it extremely difficult to sit down normally, or to stand up neatly. Dog seat

We humans are not better dog seat

You may also know that annoying phrase from your parents “Sit up straight, you’re slouching again!”. What annoyed us so unspeakably as children and teenagers made perfect sense. After all, always sitting slouched manifests itself in our movements at some point. And as correct! It is definitely a bad posture to sit with a crooked back. In the long term, it can cause damage to joints and intervertebral discs. The musculature also “adapts” to this constant posture. But back to the dog.

Our dogs also sit “crooked

Surely you yourself have seen dogs that when they sit down with the butt immediately slide to the side. A very crooked back or bent hind legs are also not uncommon. That’s not cute or a sign of relaxation, by the way. It is a bad posture. Dog seat

This bad posture also affects how your dog moves

If your dog now wants to get up again from the sit, which he has taken quite comfortably on one buttock, you can imagine that this cannot happen as the body has intended as a healthy movement sequence. Instead of pushing up from the hind legs, taking the muscles of the lower back and hind legs to do so, the dog pulls himself up using the front legs and his shoulder girdle.

Sitting incorrectly does not remain without consequences and damages the dog body dog seat

This in turn results in an overload of the muscles of the forelegs and subsequently in tension, blockages and possibly also overload damage to the articular cartilage of the forelegs. The muscles of the hind legs and lower back become weaker. Also in locomotion your dog will rely more and more on his front legs and the hind legs just run along. Dog seat

Stand Sit Transfer as an effective exercise in fitness and exercise training for dogs

Therefore, it is important that you do not train sit with your dog simply as a command. Also pay attention to how he sits down and specifically encourage clean sitting down and standing up. Dog seat

In my online courses, the stand-up sit training is an integral part of the exercises. For most dog owners the exercise sounds boring, because the dog can “sit”. But a large part of the dogs just do not sit cleanly and normally and with the help of the exercise you can animate him to work consciously on his “posture”. By the way, such a simple sit-stand transfer also strengthens the muscles of the hind legs and the lower back. Joint mobility of the complete hind legs is also promoted. A great all-around exercise that you can incorporate into your daily routine with little effort.

If you notice any abnormalities in your dog’s sitting position, such as bending of the hind leg, it always makes sense to have your veterinarian take a look. It is possible that your dog chooses this position as a protective posture due to back, knee or hip problems.