exercise for COs
We walk a few hours a day, Baco goes with me to my work and I think , we can go there by bike :lol: ( it's 25 minutes by bike) but Baco must see everything, so it take more than a hour, in the evening it goes better than he is a bite faster. :o
Els
Replies (15)
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how do you exercise or condition your dogs? what all do you do and what do you suggest about training and conditioning?
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I let mine exercise at their own pace, checking pasture perimeter, playing with each other, hunting mice or wild turkeys for fun. No special conditionning required. Weekends and any other days off usually spent going off property for walks, visits to friends, or taking a dog on a chore or two with me. They get a little chubbier in the winter, but so do all animals - to keep warm.
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well, i think cycling and jogging are definitely not for dogs like these.. right?
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Probable not if you want to do it on a leash - they just get bored running a straight line on a path and will get stubborn. If you can let the dog follow you off leash - it is perfectly fine and enjoyable for the dog. Of coarse your dog should be structurally healthy to be able to keep up. I wouldn't do it with a small puppy still in a fast growing stage (untill a year old, maybe), and one to two years dogs - I would watch and stop if I notice that they wanted a break. After that age a normal healthy CO will outrun you and your bicycle. LOL I have taken mine on 5-6 hours hike, after I am dead tired the dogs still want more fun, a friend who likes to mount bike is constantly takes his CO with him. The dog is running off path, but stays within a few seconds access to the owner, so a few times he made a surprise appearance when some shady characters were trying to stop his owner. LOL Two of my puppy owners are avid joggers, they both women and take their dogs with them every day for safety. Dogs love it. So I would say - it is between you and your dog. Just make sure he is well bred structurally, and start slow to build up stamina.
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ya.. sure.. things which say 'jogging would be hard on dog's joints' scares me.. i have TMs.. but still, i think both are more or less the same as far as structural characteristics as far as health and maintenance is concerned.. i never do anything more than walking him till he is 18 months old.. but i'll let him play how much ever he wants with other TM puppy and my german shepherd.. and after he is full grown, i am thinking of doing something interesting with him.. like cart pulling or weigh pulling or something like that. there is nothing for these sports in india.. i have to import all the accessories and products to start these things on my own unfortunately.. but for my dogs, i'll spend any amount. :D
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A while ago we started running again too after a stop.Inar goes with us because we like to walk in an area with no people.Inar loves it as long he can runn trough the woods like a maniak.So fast that sometimes i think he come out with damaged eyes :D but nothing of that.So indeed they love it and funny that i read the same about yuor friends dog that he stays off the path but very close because inar does the same. I) havent tried it on my bike but i guess he fallows easily off lead trough the woods.On leash no way i think he block me everytime he wants to see something and that is very often. We runn but not much much harder than we walk :D just started again and it is more difficult for us to get a good speed than for Inar. -
thanks for your opinions!
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We walk a few hours a day, Baco goes with me to my work and I think , we can go there by bike :lol: ( it's 25 minutes by bike) but Baco must see everything, so it take more than a hour, in the evening it goes better than he is a bite faster. :o Els -
@ arun let us know how he is doing in weight pulling, as i think most LGDs will not have much interest in it or lack the drive.
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[quote=manager]We walk a few hours a day, Baco goes with me to my work and I think , we can go there by bike :lol: ( it's 25 minutes by bike) but Baco must see everything, so it take more than a hour, in the evening it goes better than he is a bite faster. :o Els[/quote] seems like you have a cool job, if you can take your dog with you. :)
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[quote=bright]ya.. sure.. things which say 'jogging would be hard on dog's joints' scares me.. [/quote] I would stay away from breeders that say stuff like this. Yes, you need to be careful not to overextend a growing pup, but a dog like that can over run a human and a bicycle without much effort.
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with my first CO I did a lot of trail/woods running w/him. I also had him swim as much as I could. Also I had a weighted harness for him that I would have him wear when we would go for walks (few miles). With my new pup (only 7mo) I just have him walking with me and playing with my other dogs
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LGDs should be built for stamina and endurance. They can trot or run at the slowed pace (easily with a jogger or a bicycle speed) for hours. That is what they made for. I doubt a shepherd moving 1000 or more sheep to mountain pastures would stop on a road because his doggie was tired. LOL When the sheep are being moved - it is often 3-7 days of walking or horse back ride for a shepherd, slow moving for a bunch of sheep and a whole lot of running back and forth for a few dogs that monitor the flock and make sure not a single one will fall from a side somewhere into a wolf's teeth. LOL
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I have no problems taking my CO bitch on jogs while I ride my bicycle. At a moderate pace and she has easily gone for the better part of an hour with no fuss or difficulty. Additionally, as far as joints, I also do agility jumps with her. In fact, she enjoys them so much that when working in obedience with her, I use the jumps as her reward.
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I am of the view that weight training for dogs is simply unnecessary or even wrong, basically for 2 reasons: Firstly, because dogs exercise just by running and playing adequately with the addition of good quality dry food and secondly because your dog might suffer injuries or simple inflammation by such training. Weight training is a human activity which I also enjoy, however CO's have never in their long history been used to lift or drag weight around so their already heavy skeleton and muscle tissue is not accustomed to any such activity. Could it be some of us project our own images on our dog? Basically, I really envy the fact that some of you can take your dog on walks without a lease! Unfortunately, my CO can be...naughty with aggressive stray dogs or strange looking passers- by or even noisy vehicles so for us, its out of the question. I'd love to be able to do it though!
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