Life size statue of Mrs. Pumphrey and Trick Woo in a museum in Yorkshire England.  Frankly I find it a little creepy but there is a whole industry based on the books.  World of James Herriot museum in Thirsk, UK — Life size statue of Mrs. Pumphrey and Trick Woo in a museum in Yorkshire England. Frankly I find it a little creepy but there is a whole industry based on the books. *World of James Herriot museum in Thirsk, UK*

Our little female Jack Russell has this habit of going "cracker dog". For those of you who may be James Herriot fans you might recognize that expression. That was the description of TrickyWoo, the pampered pooch of Mrs. Pumphrey. Every so often, Tricky would run around like a crazy dog expending as much energy as possible, going cracker dog.

Our dog Millie does that too. She will tear around the backyard, taking tight turns around the hydrangea bushes. She races on the top garden, down the slope, through the lower garden and up along the fence. On and on she will go until at some point she will just flop down panting loudly.

Every so often I feel a cracker dog moment coming on myself. I think it is what in human terms we call cabin fever. Last week I had a moment of it. I was tired of being cooped up in the house and felt I just needed to expend some energy. I had a window of time so I suited up (putting multiple layers on as it was freezing cold) and walked into the town center to complete some errands. It felt so good to put one foot in front of the other and to get some fresh air.

I remember times when I felt cabin fever even at work. I would use my lunch break to either walk on the road surrounding the building or head to a local hiking path to walk as fast as I could for about 15 minutes.

Do you ever feel penned in? Like you are going to explode if you sit one moment longer? What do you do about it?

Here are some other suggestions of going "cracker dog":

Go up and down your household steps (or office building steps) multiple times- try and go as fast as you can (but please, don't fall)
Do jumping jacks for two minutes (or longer if you can)
Run or march in place (always preferable to have an office with a door when attempting at work)
Walk around your neighborhood or work building during lunch time
Stand and do the "heads, shoulders, knees and toes" song complete with actions for two minutes (again, best done in an office with a door)

What about you? Are you going "cracker dog"? What techniques to you employ to expend that energy?

Our little cracker dog doing what she normally does- snoozing under multiple blankets. — Our little cracker dog doing what she normally does- snoozing *under* multiple blankets.