I wasn't walking a pooch with that, (I have cats), but i sure did get around. How big is your pooch?



http://blog.goodbyecrutches.com/knee-scooter-relief-next-day/?wspapp=8941390487&gclid=CPnZvIav6a8CFUkaQgodVlGJ3Q

Otherwise, .... google on "kneewalker". They come in a variety of prices for purchase or rental. I recommend the type shown in the above pic.

local high school and talk to the Track Coach (explaining your situation) to find out if it is possible to find a member of either the track team or cross country team that could be a running buddy for your dog for a week or two?

I should have also added - Would your dog chase a laser light. My little dog loved to chase the laser light and when the sun went down I would take him out in my backyard and move the laser light around the backyard and let him chase it. His little sister loved to chase him do I was able to exercise two dogs with little effort. You don't have to move around much, just your arm.

I do have a few friends who run. Maybe I could entice them into taking Ziggy (my dog) out with them. Hmmm... I will think about it.

I thought about a laser light, seemed like a perfect answer, but Zig is a Border Collie. They can be very OCD, and I have read that you should not do laser lights or anything that has blinky lights with them to avoid an unhealthy fixation. Sigh. But excellent suggestion.

Not nearly as nice. Mine does not turn and it does not have the handy basket, but it is still a huge help doing basic things around the house. I am able to brush teeth and put makeup on in the morning easily since my hands are free and it is great in the kitchen. This is my second ankle mishap (I am gifted like that). Last time I ended putting an office chair in the kitchen and kicking myself around on it when I need to do simple food prep or even just make a cup of coffee.

I thought about harnessing the offending canine to it so he could help pull me around the house! Kill two birds with one stone, but on the other hand, that might be a bit dangerous.

A bored BC is among the worst things I can imagine, pet-wise.

No ideas here; 2 earlier suggestions sound pretty good to me.

Dog-baby is stealing random things off the counters and eating or chewing them, which he rarely did before. And he has a delicate tummy, so if it is weird and goes in, it comes back out quickly and in an unpleasant manner. He is so athletic and intelligent that there is no place you can put something that he can't get it if he wants it. I watch him bunny hop onto the table on the deck to check something out from a standstill. It look like he simply levitated himself off the ground. It is a wonder he stays in the yard with a jump like that.

Like they do with horses so you can run him around in a big circle to drain off excess energy? It would also be training for him, too, teaching him to turn and go the opposite direction and going at different speeds on command. Parlor tricks are fun, but they don't really teach a dog anything useful. You could also teach him to respond to hand signals instead of voice commands (probably because dogs are so body language oriented for communication). I do more hand signals with my dogs. It's really convenient for times that you need to be quiet or you're on the phone or in the middle of a conversation face to face with someone. It also teaches them that they need to look to you all the time for directions which really goes a long way in securing your alpha position. You just have to chose simple hand signals and be very deliberate and consistent in delivery. Start with combining the hand signal with the voice command then gradually use just the hand signal... it's amazing how fast they get this.

You could also try playing fetch with him up and down the stairs because all you would have to do is sit at the top and throw the ball, but running up and down stairs is a REALLY good workout for a dog and drains energy REALLY fast. I did that all the time with my first Akita since we lived in apartments so he had no yard, and if it was raining or hot outside he didn't want to leave the house. He HATED getting rained on though he loved water that wasn't showering on him, and being a thickly furred beast he wasn't going to stick one single paw out the door until night time when it cooled off (all of my Akitas hate summertime and want to go into hibernation then... from the first high 70's degree day they just decide "That's it Mommy - wake me when it's October!&quot . I always had access to a staircase like the back stairs of an apartment complex building I lived in that no one ever used, and I also had two apartments that were bi-level, so I had my own staircase. I love being able to exercise them with this game because I don't need much room, don't have to be outside and he does 99% of the work. LOL!

If you're interested in a lunge line I'm pretty sure that Leerburg.com has them. I don't recall ever seeing them in pet stores, but they might have them. I suppose in a pinch just an ordinarily thick long rope would work just as well and just tie one end to his collar. Could you stand up and move slowly around in place while he runs in a wide circle using just one crutch?

Use it to teach recall. Probably could use it as a lunge line. Maybe when I am in the boot, but right now I am not even allowed to stand on the injured leg. It would be too hard to do right now, but not a bad skill to have in the future.

We have stairs in our house, but they are wood and uncarpeted. Not sure if he will slip or scratch them up too much. After what the kids do to them, the scratching probably would not matter. The hard thing would be getting me to the top. Maybe I can get the kids to do it.

I take Zig to a training place to do agility. I forgot, but they have treadmills for the dogs. I would have to train him to do it first, but he is a smart boy so that should not be too much of an issue. Then I can take him there once or twice a week to burn off some of the energy. Luckily I hurt my left ankle so I can still drive!

That would work out really well since you are able to drive him there.

Yeah, I wouldn't do the stairs if they aren't carpeted. They'd likely scratch pretty bad and the dog could slip, too. I didn't think about your being able to get upstairs either (DUH!). What a drag to be trussed up in a cast and not be able to do much of anything. I'm so sorry you're going through this.

The treadmill idea sounds really great. Most dogs figure it out pretty quickly, so I doubt you'd have any problem with that. I wonder if that's something that you could rent and have in your house while you're waiting to get off the crutches? If you don't mind doing the drive though than that could certainly work out well.

Maybe on the days you don't take him to the treadmill you could just play fetch with him in the yard like you did before if that's not too difficult for you.

You know, if there's a park or something near you that has a steep hill you could play fetch with him up and down the hill, too, and that would be just as good a workout as a staircase. Can he be off-leash somewhere like that? Maybe that's something you could have the kids do, too, so you don't have to. If you do that don't forget to bring water for him to drink, too.

The kids do it too. He is weird about bringing me the ball while I am seated. It is like he doesn't understand if we are playing or not. He will retrieve, then drop the ball outside of my reach and wander off. Oh well, hopefully he will learn.....

I ordered some new toys on Amazon. I got one of those puzzle treat balls and a chew toy that allows you to screw a few small pieces of rawhide onto it. Not enough for the dog to choke or get sick, but enough for them to stay interested in the chewing. And a clicker training book. I have done clicker training with him before. I think that will be easy to do from a seated position. At least it will keep his mind occupied a bit.

I am crossing my fingers that the treadmill will work for exercise. I don't mind driving if it is only for a month or so.

exercise my dogs when I can't walk them. One has figured out how to wait and just jump up to catch the fox when it goes around in a circle, but he can hear and lets it go when I tell him to. The deaf dog chases and chases the fox and never tries to actually catch it. It's a lifesaver around here because both of them get tired out afterward and take a nap. You can buy one ready made for $25 or $30 online, or you can buy a lunge whip for six or seven dollars and tie on a fox or raccoon toy that you buy at your local store for four or five dollars and it's exactly the same thing.

with a toy or ball on it.

She prefers 50s and 60s beat poetry. I caught her reading "Howl" the other day.

I can't figure out her attraction to that particular piece.

You might try calling a local working dogs club, see if someone would like to volunteer, especially if they can run him through some agility work. If you buy your food at a local specialty store they might know someone as well.

HS and colleges often have needs for volunteer work, though I would be very anxious about placing my dog in stranger hands unless I was there to watch. But there are some good folks/kids out there, and you might be able to teach them about agility as well.

Doggie daycare (what's it cost there?) is not only expensive but sometimes the more successful they get the less attention they have for individual dogs, though the group setting in trained hands is usually quite good for the pups.

If he is ball oriented you could get one of those plastic throwing arm things, assuming you also have room to get it out there, give him some room to run it off.

BC's usually aren't much on yanking toys around, like the terrier types do, so I am not sure how much a lunge line would help, though the idea of the remote controlled car might be worthwhile. Espcially if you could glue a sheep or duck doll to it.

Does he herd you to dinner when you are a bit behind? They don't really care that we are on crutches sometimes, do they?