Use of pedometers to measure physical activity in dogs.
OBJECTIVE
To determine whether pedometers can be used to measure physical activity in dogs.


METHODS
Cross-sectional study.


METHODS
26 dogs.


METHODS
To determine pedometer accuracy, number of steps recorded with the pedometer as dogs walked, trotted, and ran for a distance of approximately 30 m (100 ft) at each gait was compared with actual number of steps. Dogs and owners then wore pedometers for 7 to 14 days, and dog pedometer output was compared with body condition score, owner-reported activity of the dog, and owner pedometer output.


RESULTS
Most owners classified their dogs as active or quite active and indicated that their dogs exercised 3 to 7 days/wk. For all dogs, body condition score was 5, 6, or 7 on a scale from 1 to 9. At a walk, pedometers overestimated actual number of steps by approximately 17% in large and medium dogs and underestimated actual number of steps by approximately 7% in small dogs. No significant differences between pedometer-recorded and actual number of steps were detected when dogs trotted or ran. Number of steps per day for the dogs was significantly correlated with owner-reported activity of the dog (r = 0.305) and number of steps per day for the owners (r = 0.469) and was inversely correlated with body condition score (r = -0.554).


CONCLUSIONS
Results suggest that pedometers can measure physical activity in dogs with reasonable accuracy. A lower number of steps per day was associated with a higher body condition score, and less active owners generally had less active dogs.
Department of Biomedical Sciences, Atlantic Veterinary College, University of Prince Edward Island, Charlottetown, PE C1A 4P3, Canada.
Catherine B
CB
Chan
Marguerite
M
Spierenburg
Sherri L
SL
Ihle
Catrine
C
Tudor-Locke
D000818:Animals; D001824:Body Constitution / Q000502:physiology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004285:Dogs / Q000502:physiology*; D016552:Ergometry / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods / Q000662:veterinary*; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D018670:Monitoring, Ambulatory / Q000662:veterinary; D010805:Physical Conditioning, Animal; D012420:Running / Q000502:physiology; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D016138:Walking / Q000502:physiology