When I sold my practice in the UK in 2013 and moved back to Canada, one of my goals was to adopt a dog and move to the country. It was a part of my big juicy goal to practice online full-time as a posture doctor.
Because I always try to practice what I preach, I wanted to make sure that I was posturecising daily and spending as much time outdoors as possible.
In 2015, I’d been checking dog adoption sites regularly, when I came across Milo on Speaking of Dogs.
I melted! How could Milo be available for adoption?! His description said he was loving, good with cats, dogs, children, a non-barker and active. Whattttt??? And then I saw WHY he was still available.
Milo was still in foster care and ‘not yet ready for adoption’. Milo had been taken from his owners (he was 3 years old) as he was underweight, limping and neglected. Speaking of Dogs fostered Milo into a family home, while several specialist vets investigated his limp – including x-rays. He was diagnosed with a dislocated right hip. His profile suggested he ‘may need a future surgery’ in the event of arthritis.
I went to meet Milo and he was pretty darn cute, but not very focused and I was worried that at just 9 lbs – he still had weight to gain – with a dislocated hip, he wouldn’t be an active enough dog for me.
The vets decided not to operate. The dislocation likely happened early in Milo’s life, and the dislocated hip had formed a new joint higher up in the pelvis. Essentially, Milo now has a short right leg with an associated lumbar scoliosis (curvature). EXACTLY LIKE ME!
I was still unsure about Milo – not because of a potential hip replacement down the road, but because he seemed unfocused and I was concerned he wouldn’t be active enough with his dislocated hip.
That weekend when I told my mum I wasn’t sure about the adoption, she said: “Oh, but who will adopt him if you don’t?” Well, as you can imagine, that finished me off. A week later, Milo came home!
Oh, and by the way, Milo is the fastest, most athletic dog I’ve ever loved. He is my 4th dog, but my 1st small dog. He is just brilliant and I adore him. I think the feeling is mutual.
So why am I telling you this story? Well, besides being a huge part of my life, and making several camio appearances in my posture videos, I believe Milo’s incredibly active lifestyle, excellent health and our shared bond, is largely due to the Healthy Touch Techniques I use with him ever day.
Healthy Touch Techniques
Recently, I had the idea to share my touch techniques with other small dog owners – not necessarily dogs with medical issues like Milo, but small dog owners who want to learn how to touch, move and handle their dogs to improve their health and deepen their bonding for a long and happy life. In other words, I thought it would be amazing to create a Doggie Posture Course for you and your small dog; to help unleash your dog’s potential.
I’m only at the research phase right now – that is how I begin all of my courses. I’m considering doing something very different with this course – opening it up to a group of beta student testers – 100 students that will get in at a massively discounted price, in exchange for feedback as I build the course.
Anyway, I’d love to hear what you think about this. Would you be interested in such a course? Would you mind a small diversion from people posture for a little bit? Do you have any issues with your small dog that you think this course might help to address? Care to share a picture of your little guy?
Please leave your comments below – I’m keeping an eye out for an enthusiastic group of small dog lovers – Is that you?!
Further Resources: Dog Posture – Small Dog Healthy Touch Techniques
Yours in good doggie posture,
Paula and Milo x
