Not like we wouldn’t have achieved varying degrees of success since his adoption, but I felt it was time to take a bigger step after I witnessed the triumph of a male dog over him again.

We had similar problems earlier too, because he was being attacked by other dogs regularly, as if they sensed had felt his irresolution, his anxiety taken over from his owner. I thought we were going to be off the hook after his sterilization, but this wasn’t the case. It still happened, just not that often.

Anyway, after the last such situation, one of the experienced owners told me: "The confidence of dogs can be improved a lot by doing exercises and sports. As a healthy body holds a healthy soul."

This statement is definitely true for people, I had some opportunities to experience it when I was down. The aerobic, Zumba and dancing lessons worked wonders even during the worst times, and they made me happy again. But doing sports with my dog? I didn’t have the best memories about it, because thanks to running in the morning and in the evening when he had separation anxiety, and due to his diarrhoea at that time, he lost quite a lot of weight. This was the reason why we stopped doing exercises, since fortunately both problems were solved within a few weeks, and I thought he should gain some strength.

But on this occasion I became ecstatic. I knew I also had to be fitter, because in that case I could help him too, and it was better for everybody if we did most of our development together. So first of all I went to the gym, then I ordered a leash for running and made a workout plan, and finally I went to run with Foxy.

Soon we both started to become stronger and had an appetite again.

Dogs are mirrors. They feel the joy and frustration of their owners. If you are calm, your dog will most likely be calm too, and if you are stressed, your doggy will feel the same. And on the whole, doing exercises reduces anxiety, and it helps to reach and to keep the physical and mental health of the dogs and their owners.

(The Hungarian translation is available on www.onbizalomfejlesztes.hu.)