Exercise Guide for Dogs with Arthritis

The foundation of arthritis exercise. Slow, steady walking on flat surfaces maintains muscle tone, lubricates joints with synovial fluid, and supports cardiovascular health. Use a harness (not a collar) to avoid neck strain. Keep pace consistent — let your dog set the speed rather than pulling them along.

Tip: Start with 10 minutes, gradually build to 20-30 minutes. Walk on grass or dirt paths rather than concrete where possible — softer surfaces absorb more impact.

The gold standard for arthritic dog exercise. Water buoyancy eliminates 85-90% of bodyweight loading on joints while providing excellent resistance for muscle strengthening. Swimming engages all four limbs and the core simultaneously.

Tip: Supervised access to calm water or a canine hydrotherapy pool. Start with 5-minute sessions. Use a life jacket for dogs unfamiliar with swimming. Warm water (28-32 degrees Celsius) is ideal — cold water can increase stiffness.

Available at veterinary rehabilitation centres, underwater treadmills allow controlled exercise with adjustable water depth and speed. The water level can be set to unweight specific joints — chest-deep for maximum hip relief, belly-deep for moderate support.

Tip: Professional supervision recommended. Typical sessions are 15-20 minutes, 1-2 times per week. Can be combined with land-based exercise on alternate days.

Short-distance fetch on grass (not hard surfaces) encourages natural movement patterns. Use a lightweight toy and roll it rather than throwing it high — this prevents jumping and the jarring impact of landing. Keep distances short enough that your dog walks or trots to the toy rather than sprinting.

Tip: 5-10 gentle retrieves on flat grass. Stop immediately if your dog begins limping or favouring a limb. Avoid repetitive ball launchers that encourage flat-out sprinting.

Exercises that challenge balance strengthen the small stabilising muscles around joints without high-impact loading. Simple exercises include standing on a wobble cushion, walking over cavaletti poles, and weight-shifting exercises where you gently rock your dog side to side.

Tip: Start on stable surfaces and progress to wobble cushions. Even 5 minutes of balance work per day builds significant stabiliser muscle strength over weeks.

Controlled sit-to-stand exercises are the canine equivalent of squats. They strengthen the quadriceps and gluteal muscles that support the hip and knee joints. Ask your dog to sit, then immediately ask them to stand — treat and repeat.

Tip: Start with 3-5 repetitions, twice daily. Build to 8-10 repetitions as strength improves. Perform on a non-slip surface. Stop if your dog has difficulty rising.

Walking slowly up a gentle incline (a grass hill or sloped garden) engages the hindquarters more than flat walking, building strength in the muscles that support arthritic hips and knees. The key word is slow — the dog should walk, never trot or run, up the incline.

Tip: Choose a gentle slope (10-15 degrees). Walk up slowly, return down at an angle (straight downhill puts more stress on joints). 3-5 repetitions is sufficient.