"Old age is like everything else. To make a success of it, you've got to start young.
I am not an expert, nor do I want to become one! But, I am an unwilling participant and so are my dogs. All of us are trying hard to beat the odds, and deny that age is affecting us. I have no idea if I am doing it well, I haven't done this before. I have no wisdom to fall back on, no prior experience. So I am going along for the ride, without a seat belt and hanging my head out the window so I can get the full experience!
Seriously, I find with human or K9 the hardest part of the aging process is doing it gracefully, both mentally and physically. I think the mind ages slower than the body most of the time, and trying to keep the mind learning while you are being gentler on the body is an art worth learning.
Things that I have learned on my aging journey.
- Practice only 10 minutes at a time and make that time really count
- Spend more time watching your videos, learn what you do well and what you need to improve, it will make your 10 minutes really count
- Reward often, both yourself and your dogs. Loving what you do can actually help block pain.
- Exercise helps reduce pain in people and dog's with arthritis. Keep it moderate but do it.
- Spend more time building your relationship with your dog, laughter is the best medicine.
- Not all training has to be done on actual agility equipment, be creative, it stimulates the mind and helps keep you young. It can have a lower impact on the dog.
