Dog Yoga (DOGA) part 2

After I posted yesterday's article about Doga (yoga with your dog) I found this other great article and had to post it as well.

Downward-facing dogs for upwardly-mobile pets: How 'Doga' (that's yoga for your pooch) became a hot New York trend

By Hannah Rand

Last updated at 8:02 AM on 11th January 2012

Forget fetching a stick, the hottest new way to exercise with your pampered pooch is dog yoga.

'Doga', which is said to appeal to your pet’s natural instinct to stretch, has become a new fad among New York dog-owners who believe it creates a unique bonding experience.

Classes involve stretching, massage and even chanting – at a pitch the dogs can mimic.

Ruff relaxation: 'Doga', or yoga for dogs, is said to appeal to your pet's natural instinct to stretch, and has become a hot trend in New York

Suzi Teitelman has been teaching doga in New York and Jacksonville, Florida, since 2002. 


She started the classes after noticing that her cocker spaniel Coali liked to lie beneath her when she practised traditional yoga at home.

 

She told MailOnline: 'Just as dogs pick up anxiety and negativity, they benefit from being a calm, happy environment with their owners.

'The owners often say that they've never see their pet so relaxed.'

The animals take part in the classes either by acting as weights to help balance their owners or by doing some of the moves themselves.

Read more HERE

New Year, New Workouts...Doga

Have you heard of this? Yoga with your dog! Doga. Charlie comes with me to yoga all time. But it is normal yoga, this looks too fun though.

By BETHANY LYTTLE

 NY Times

IN Chicago, Kristyn Caliendo does forward-bends with a Jack Russell terrier draped around her neck. In Manhattan, Grace Yang strikes a warrior pose while balancing a Shih Tzu on her thigh. And in Seattle, Chantale Stiller-Anderson practices an asana that requires side-stretching across a 52-pound vizsla.

Call it a yogic twist: Downward-facing dog is no longer just for humans.

Ludicrous? Possibly. Grist for anyone who thinks that dog-owners have taken yoga too far? Perhaps. But nationwide, classes of doga — yoga with dogs, as it is called — are increasing in number and popularity. Since Ms. Caliendo, a certified yoga instructor in Chicago, began to teach doga less than one year ago, her classes have doubled in size.

Not everyone in the yoga community is comfortable with this.

“Doga runs the risk of trivializing yoga by turning a 2,500-year-old practice into a fad,” said Julie Lawrence, 60, a yoga instructor and studio owner in Portland, Ore. “To live in harmony with all beings, including dogs, is a truly yogic principle. But yoga class may not be the most appropriate way to express this.”

Read more HERE 
see fun photos of Doga HERE

Photo: Stuart Isett for The New York Times

Charlie on A Diet

So Charlie has been on a diet in hopes that he can shed a pound or two. (he has already lost half of a pound since August 1 so way to go).

Here is what I have done for Charlie so he sticks to his diet

1. No more table scraps (he still gets healthy human food as treats like carrots and sweet potatoes)

2. Feed him on a schedule

This has worked wonders for Charlie and my sanity. He now eats at 9 am and 6 pm. My vet said I can put a spoonful of sweet potatoes on top to help his GI track and keep all things moving and he loves the sweet potatoes. He actually will eat his dog food finally.

3. Exercise

He already gets a fair amount of exercise cause he goes everywhere with me and I try to walk lots of places, but I have kicked up his walking routine and try to get my butt out of bed at 7 am to walk him and our other dog Jack with my husband.

I guess diet and exercise really does work. I guess no cookie diets for me.