Arielle Pechette Markley

• Doctor of Veterinary Medicine
• Director of Research at Red Sage Integrative Veterinary Partners

Objective To develop a web-based tool for daily use by agility handlers to log rating of perceived exertion (RPE) for dogs as an aid in quantifying daily exercise and training load and to improve training and conditioning strategies. Procedures Focus group meetings with small groups of handlers were conducted via internet—based video conferencing...

Introduction During agility performance, dogs complete a preset obstacle course. The teeter, also known as the seesaw, is the only dynamic contact obstacle. Dogs handle dynamic obstacles differently than static obstacles due to the need for increased coordination and postural control. No studies have been performed evaluating dogs’ abilities or bio...

ntroduction: Canine agility competitions are run on a variety of surfaces. Surface composition has been correlated with speed and injury risk in humans and equids, but has not been evaluated in the context of dog agility. The objective of this study was to evaluate types of surfaces found in agility competition facilities and estimate correlations...

Objective The aim of this study was to identify the type of veterinary care sought by handlers of injured agility dogs, the types of treatments the dogs received, and the timeframe for return to training and competition. Procedures Owners of agility dogs completed an internet-based survey. They were instructed to report injuries that had kept the...

Simple Summary Injuries in agility dogs are common. Border Collies are the most common dog breed participating in agility and their reported injury rate is notably higher than that of other breeds. Understanding the risk factors for injury allows for improved education and awareness and the development of injury prevention strategies, as well as im...

Introduction Canine agility competitions are performed on a variety of surfaces. In the equine and human literature, surface type has been associated with speed, performance, and injury risk. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of general surface type and time of day on calculated speed (yards per second over a measured course distance...

Introduction: The weave pole obstacle has been implicated in agility-related injuries and it has been speculated that changes in agility obstacle performance could indicate an injury. It is currently unknown how much variability in obstacle performance exists within a single dog. Wearable sensors have been developed to detect performance of specifi...

The objective of this study was to describe paw placement patterns for canine athletes completing the dog walk obstacle during canine agility trials. It was hypothesized that dogs would demonstrate defined sets of paw placement patterns as they complete the dog walk obstacle and that those could be classified based on end contact behavior. Videos o...

Objectives Our aim was to determine risk factors for developing stifle injuries in canine agility athletes. We hypothesized that increased weight, increased frequency of competing, and greater number of runs/day would increase risk. Study design Internet based survey, n = 4,197. Methods Individuals with at least one dog who had competed in agilit...

Injury rates of up to 42% are reported for agility canines. Biomechanics and performance variables have been minimally evaluated during completion of agility obstacles, all of which could influence injury risk factors. No studies have evaluated any of these variables with regards to the teeter obstacle. The objective of this study was to quantify t...

Canine sporting activities, such as agility, have grown in popularity. Rules differ between different governing organizations, but these differences are not rooted in evidenced-based studies that balance canine performance vs injury risk. Development of (semi)automated markerless motion capture methods of obstacle performance opens options for expl...

Patient-centered care is increasingly advocated in human physical therapy and musculoskeletal rehabilitation to improve quality care and patient outcomes. Veterinary physical rehabilitation is an essential aspect of veterinary care and is inherently multidimensional. Historically, rehabilitation focused on physical aspects and omitted components cr...

Introduction: Increased training load is associated with increased injury risk in human sports. A similar correlation has not been evaluated in canines. Our aim was to quantify the reported training load in agility dogs and evaluate correlation to injury. We hypothesized that as training load increased so would injury frequency. Materials and Meth...

Introduction: Agility dogs compete on multiple surfaces, but effect on injury risk is unknown. Our aim was to evaluate the effect of surface, run order and number of runs on performance. We hypothesized that surface type would affect speed and that more runs/day would decrease speed and performance. Materials and Methods: Data from all runs of the...

Introduction: Increased training load is associated with increased injury risk in human sports. A similar correlation has not been evaluated in canines. Our aim was to quantify the reported training load in agility dogs and evaluate correlation to injury. We hypothesized that as training load increased so would injury frequency. Materials and Meth...

Introduction: Agility dogs compete on multiple surfaces, but effect on injury risk is unknown. Our aim was to evaluate the effect of surface, run order, and number of runs on performance. We hypothesized that surface type would affect speed and that more runs/day would decrease speed and performance. Materials and Methods: Data from all runs of th...

Agility is a physically demanding sport, and injuries are common. An understanding of the common clinical presentations, frequent injuries, and risk factors for injury is critical when seeing this population of patients in practice. Shoulder injuries and other soft tissue injuries including iliopsoas muscle strains are commonly seen. The Border Col...

Objective To understand relative frequency of adverse health events, defined as injuries or infectious diseases, in dogs participating in agility and to determine health research priorities of agility dog owners. Procedures An internet-based questionnaire distributed to agility dog owners included items related to experiences with infectious disea...

Introduction: Border Collies (BC) are the most commonly injured agility dog breed. We aimed to identify demographic, training, and competition variables associated with injury risk for BCs in agility. We hypothesized that higher jump heights and competing at the national/international level would increase injury risk. Materials and Methods: An int...

Agility is one of the most popular dog sports worldwide. Competitions have evolved with the addition of more technically challenging courses, which in turn have increased physical demand on canine athletes. A recent survey on injuries sustained by agility dogs found that nearly 42% of dogs sustained an injury, which was a notable increase compared...

Objective To describe risk factors associated with demographics, training, and competition for iliopsoas injury in dogs participating in agility competitions, as well as describe owner reported treatment and return to sport following injury. Procedures An internet-based survey of agility handlers collected risk factor data for dogs participating i...

Objective The purpose of this study was to compare previously identified demographic risk factors for injury in agility dogs, and explore other potential associations with demographic risk factors in new populations, and across different levels of injury severity. Procedures An internet-based survey of agility handlers was conducted. The primary o...

Introduction: Border Collies (BC) are the most commonly injured agility dog breed. We aimed to identify demographic, training, and competition variables associated with injury risk for BCs in agility. We hypothesized that higher jump heights and competing at the national/international level would increase injury risk. Methods: An internet based s...

Objective: To describe risk factors associated with training and competition in relation to frequency and severity of injuries experienced by agility dogs. Procedures: An internet-based survey collected data on competition level variables and training level variables. The primary outcome was history of any injury and a secondary outcome considered...

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate and define paw placement patterns for canines completing the weave pole obstacle during canine agility trials. The secondary objectives were to determine the most efficient running style and completion percentages and provide a basis for future studies to evaluate the long-term implications of varian...

Objective: To describe the frequency and types of injuries experienced by dogs competing and training in agility and identify breed and geographic differences in frequency and types of injuries. Sample: Surveys completed by owners of 4,701 dogs. Procedures: The study involved an internet-based survey. Participants were asked whether their dog had...

In a recent survey of agility dogs, lumbosacral injuries were reported in 7.1% of dogs. No previous studies have investigated lumbosacral injury in agility dogs. Our aim was to determine potential risk factors for development of lumbosacral injuries in canine agility athletes. We hypothesized that competing more frequently and doing more runs per d...

Stifle injuries are reported to make up 4.4% of agility injuries. As in humans, knee injuries can be career ending. No risk factors for development of stifle injuries in agility have been reported. Our aim was to determine such risk factors. We hypothesized that increased weight and competing more frequently and doing more runs per day would increa...

In a recent survey of injuries in agility dogs, iliopsoas injuries were the second most commonly reported injury. No studies have evaluated iliopsoas injuries specifically in agility athletes. We aimed to determine potential risk factors for developing iliopsoas injury in this population. We hypothesized competing more frequently and doing more run...

Introduction: The aim of our study was to describe the association between competition-level variables and injury risk in dogs competing in agility. We hypothesized that an increasing number of trial weekends per year and runs per day would be associated with increased injury risk, that planned time off would be associated with decreased risk, and...

Introduction: The aim of this study was to describe associations between agility training practices with injury history to determine risk factors for injury. We hypothesized that early jump training would be associated with increased risk, and that there would be a difference in injury risk between types of contact training. Materials & Methods: A...

Introduction: Popularity of canine agility has significantly increased in the last decade, but no updated assessment of risk factors has been published. Our objective was to assess such risk factors for injury in agility, focusing on handler and dog demographics. We hypothesized the Border Collie breed, higher dog weight:heigh ratio, less experienc...

Introduction: Shoulder injuries are reported to be the most common injury sustained by dogs participating in agility. We aimed to determine potential risk factors for shoulder injuries in canine agility athletes. We hypothesized that earlier contact training and weave training, along with competition at the national or international level would lea...

Introduction: The aim of this study was to evaluate and define paw placement patterns for dogs completing weave poles during canine agility trials. Secondary objectives were to determine the most efficient running style, determine completion percentages, and provide a basis for future studies to evaluate long-term implications of variants in weave...

Agility competitions have evolved to be more challenging, placing increased physical demand on canine athletes. Previous surveys assessing injury were conducted over 10 years ago. Our aim was to describe the frequency and type of injuries experienced by agility dogs, and to determine if there are breed differences in injuries experienced. We hypoth...