Equipment for the Senior Dog Course
This course uses versatile training props designed to support alignment, body awareness, and controlled movement.
The exercises within this course use:
All equipment should be stable, non-slip, and sized to your dog’s proportions.
Household substitutes are often perfectly acceptable as long as safety and stability are prioritized.
Platform
The platform is the primary piece of equipment used throughout the course. The physical boundaries of a platform provide clear tactile feedback that helps dogs understand where their body should be positioned, making platforms especially useful for promoting good alignment during canine fitness exercises.
Refer to the Platform Sizing Lesson for full measurement instructions.
Standard Feet Targets
Feet targets allow us to train a dog how to coordinate their front feet or rear feet for body awareness skills and good alignment during canine fitness exercises.
Refer to the Feet Targets Lesson for detailed sizing instructions.
Individual Foot Targets
After building our dog’s skills with the standard feet targets, we can progress to using individual foot targets to further refine the boundaries for the dog’s feet. This is one of my favorite ways to build proprioception in senior dogs!
Refer to the Foot Targets Lesson for detailed sizing instructions.
Elevated Target
This item will be used for exercises that create a height difference between the dog’s front and rear limbs, including Front Feet Elevated, Pivot, and Pivot + Step Up.
This prop should be:
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Square or circular
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Wider than the dog’s shoulder width
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Measure your dog from the outside of one front paw to the outside of the other front paw while standing in a neutral stance. Multiply that measurement by 1.5 to determine the appropriate width.
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Stable and non-slip
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Tall enough to elevate the front feet between the height of the dog’s carpal joint and elbow joint
Prop Ideas
Common options include:
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Yoga blocks with a reduced height to length/width ratio: foam chip yoga block
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Stable step stools:
Note: Traditional yoga blocks are not recommended, as they tend to tip during movement.
1 Cone
We will be working on a skill I’ve coined “Conditioning Cones” that teaches a dog to independently move around the outside of a cone. This skill can been really beneficial for movement independence and confidence!
Cones can be substituted for other household items if needed.
Equipment Safety Notes
When setting up your equipment:
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Ensure all surfaces are non-slip
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Confirm props do not wobble or tip
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Place equipment on stable, non-slip flooring
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Choose sizes appropriate for your dog
Stable equipment allows the dog to focus on movement quality rather than balance recovery.
Summary
The Senior Dog Fitness Course uses simple equipment to support progressive exercise learning.
These tools work together to help dogs develop strength, coordination, and body awareness through controlled movement.