10/09/2025
It's a topic that's come up a number of times over the last few weeks, and I think it's one worthy of a discussion.
👉Your dog's age should never dictate whether they retire or not
👉 Your dog wanting to still participate also should not dictate whether they continue or not
That 2nd point might have you scratching your head, so let me expand on that...Just because a dog enjoys a sport does not mean they should continue on in it if their body and mind aren't up to scratch.
I'd like to give you some examples of clients over the years....
🐾 6 Year old Flyball dog - I recommended retirement as the dogs pasterns and wrists were not healthy enough to continue safely.
The dog was from the era when box turns were not valued highly by everyone and the dog was a box smasher. Had the dog had a good technique and good fitness then it could have continued on for many more years, but it didn't and if they did continue then it's likely that the dog would have been in a lot of discomfort in just a few years time.
🐾 8 year old Agility dog - I recommended phasing out over the next 12 months because the dogs feet and wrists were getting arthritic, and it would have been detrimental to continue on.
🐾 11 year old Agility dog - Owner was considering retiring the dog because of its age; however, the dog was in amazing condition. The owner keeps the dog fit and flexible, the dog doesn't have any physical signs of discomfort or restriction, and is participating in agility with total ease and pulls up good - the dog does not need to retire because of its age. The owner will continue to monitor the dogs form and fitness.
🐾 7 year old Agility Dog - The dogs form was off, and various professionals were unable to rectify - to save the dog from serious injury from poor form, the dog was retired.
🐾 9 year old Flyball dog - Frequently lame but wants to continue to participate in flyball. Owner did not have the funds to get a diagnosis by way of imaging. I recommended retirement, as the dog wanting to do it was not a good enough reason to continue to run a dog with such an issue.
🐾 10 year old Agility Dog - great condition, no issues. Checked out by a sports medicine vet also, no issues. Dog was given the go ahead to continue and the owner will have the dog assessed every 6 months to check for any potential red flags.
🐾 4 year old Agility dog - frequent Iliopsoas issues. Potential underlying hip issues, referred for imaging, and moderate hip dysplasia was discovered.
Owner worked with a sports medicine professional to get the dog strong and pain managed over the course of a year and returned to agility. The dog is currently 9 years old is still doing Agility and still working with a sports medicine professional to ensure it is safe and appropriate to continue - the dog is probably in better shape than alot of younger sports dogs because of all the work the owner does with it.
⭐ Age doesn't mean anything in a performance dog - its physical mind and body does, and we should look at the dog in front of us when deciding when to retire them.
If you have an older dog participating in sports, I would recommend having them checked over every 6 months to get on top of any potential issues and it also gives you an understanding of where they are at.
