Influence of type of enclosure on exercise fitness of dogs
Clark, J.D.; Calpin, J.P.; Armstrong, R.B.
American Journal of Veterinary Research 52(7): 1024-1028
1991
ISSN/ISBN: 0002-9645 PMID: 1892257 Document Number: 381196
The effect of various confinement conditions on physical fitness in dogs were evaluated. Eighteen 9.5- to 10-month-old female purpose-bred Beagles were maintained individually for 3 months at a time in 1 of 6 confinement conditions: Condition A-an outdoor housing area with a conventional dog house and free access to a 6.1 .times. 9.1-m pen; condition B-outdoor kennel with a conventional dog house and free access to a 1.8 .times. 6.1-m run; condition C-indoor environmentally controlled 1.2 .times. 3.66-m run; condition D-0.9 .times. 1.2 .times. 0.84-m conventional laboratory cage in an indoor environmentally controlled room; condition E-0.9 .times. 1.2 .times. 0.84-m conventional laboratory cage in an indoor environmentally controlled room with treadmill exercise (7 km/h at a 10% grade) for 30 min/d, 5 d/wk, condition F-0.71 .times. 0.86 .times. 0.69- conventional laboratory cage in an indoor environmentally controlled room. During the final week of each 3-month interval, muscle succinate dehydrogenase enzyme activities and submaximal exercise heart rates (during treadmill exercise) were determined to estimate physical fitness. Also, 5 days afer being moved into a different housing condition, blood samples were collected for plasma cortisol determination. The type of confinement condition for dogs had little effect on muscle succinate dehydrogenase activity, but had a modest effect on submaximal exercise heart rates of dogs. At the fifth and tenth minutes of the treadmill exercise period, heart rates of dogs maintained in the smallest cages (condition F) were higher than those of dogs maintained in outside pens and runs (conditions A and B), indicating decreased fitness in the dogs maintained in the smallest cates. Differences in heart rates were not detected amoung dogs in other conditions. The confinement conditions used in this study had no detectable effect on plasma cortisol concentrations. We concluded that neither cage or pen size nor a regular mandatory exercise program substantially impacted on physical fitted of laboratory confined dogs, as long as the cages complied with federal standards and guidelines. Dogs maintained in substandard cages did have modest decreases in fitness.