Runners Help Fat Dogs Shed Those Unwanted Pounds

The dog-eat-dog competition for pet care dollars in New York has become even fiercer with the recent launch of Ruff Runners, a service that matches competitive runners with slovenly Manhattan dogs in need of shaping up.In a city that already has canine spas, doggie gyms, and pet shrinks, Ruff Runners might seem like the latest overindulgence by New Yorkers. But there are dog owners who fear that city living, and tiny Manhattan apartments in particular, are making their pets stir-crazy, unhealthy, and fat. And they swear by it.Kelcey Folbaum owns Martini, a 3-year-old Labrador retriever mix who runs 20 miles a week with her Ruff Runner trainer. “Either I had to find her a home outside the city or find a way to get her to do some exercise,” the Greenwich Village resident said. Her hyperactive dog used to bounce off the walls. And now? “She’s happier now, calmer.”An Upper West Sider, Susan Butler, put her 5-year-old German shepherd, Yette, on a training regimen under veterinarian’s orders. The 65-pound dog now runs twice a week with Justinia Holiat, the founder of Ruff Runners, in order to get the pooch to shed five pounds. “If German shepherds get heavy, it’s hard on their hips,” Miss Butler said. Unlike Yette the dog, she does not have a personal trainer of her own.Miss Holiat combined her love of running and dogs to found her company in July after graduating from Baruch College with a master’s in higher education. But she is taking on a well-established competitor, Running Paws, that offers the same running services, and dog sitting and day trips to the country for cooped up dogs. She has five employees, all accomplished runners.There is no doubt that success in the pet care market can be lucrative. In 2005, Americans spent $18.2 billion on pet care, and that didn’t even include pet food. Of that amount, $887 million was spent on training services, making it the fastest-growing segment of this market, according to a study in August 2006 by Packaged Facts, a publishing division of MarketResearch.com.Ruff Runners wants a piece of that pie. Its rates range from one 30-minute session with another dog a week for $30, to $250 for six individualized 45-minute sessions a week. Miss Folbaum estimates that she spends $135 a week on Martini, or $7,000 a year.And with American pets getting fatter alongside American humans, this might be a market niche just getting started.About half of American dogs are overweight, according to Marty Becker, the Idaho-based resident veterinarian on “Good Morning America” and author of “Fitness Unleashed,” a guide to pet fitness. “The problem is we equate food with love,” he said of an attitude that results in fat pets.A veterinarian specializing in exercise physiology at Ohio State University’s veterinary hospital, Ken Hinchcliff, cautions, “Consult your veterinarian and make sure your dog is healthy enough to start an exercise program.”Two-legged runners have shin splints, sore hip flexors, and sore knees to contend with. But dogs have worn out paw pads, intolerance for heat, and arthritis to watch out for, he said, adding that exercise is not a panacea for a dog’s health, but should be combined with a healthy diet. So that means no feeding Fido table scraps this Thanksgiving.Miss Holiat applies the same principles to developing the training regimens of her canine clients as she does to her own. “I don’t think it differs much,” she said of the concepts of strength building, interval training, and variety in routine.Of course, like people, dogs are not always so keen on getting their workout when there are more interesting things to do — and chase.On Tuesday, during her 1.6-mile run around the lower loop of Central Park, Yette become captivated by a squirrel and could not be coaxed back on to the road until the squirrel fled up a tree. And later, with only a few hundred years to go, she hit the dog’s version of the runner’s wall and refused to budge until she could carbo-load on a doggie biscuit.Despite these occasional road bumps, Miss Holiat has found that it takes dogs about three sessions or so before learning how to resist the temptation to deviate from the workout and go sniff other dogs.The secret to keeping their attention, she says, is “you make it playful for them.”

Runners Help Fat Dogs Shed Those Unwanted Pounds

Runners Help Fat Dogs Shed Those Unwanted Pounds

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