goodwin

I have seen a few people out on the trails mtbing with their dogs, and this got me thinking maybe I could train my dog to do the same. She is a 5-year-old lab/poodle mix (a labradoodle) and loves to hike, run, and generally be in the wild. So, my question is, has anyone ever trained a dog to go with them while mtbing? If so, how did you do it and does it restrict how far or fast you are able to bike, or does the dog just happily run along the entire time? On a sidenote, my saddle is killing me. Any recommendations for an inexpensive yet comfortable xc saddle?

Chone

My dog likes to follow me on the bike, though I have never taken him on trails, he has this habit of biting my leg (hard enough to inflict pain but gentle enough not to create any wound) and barking at my bike so... it would be dangerous.

But yes, if your dog is used to walking with you and following commands then its totally feasible, if not, then maybe your dog is a bit old to learn.

willtsmith_nwi

My dog just happily runs along. Very little training was ever required. He's a herding dog, so he just likes to run after you and "herd". I have a much harder time getting him to stay still when I stop.

Depending on your dog's disposition, your mileage may vary. Though, with a lab/poodle I don't think you'll have much difficulty. If you're the Alpha, your dog should follow pretty reliably.

The people who will have trouble are those with "nosy" dogs like Beagles, bloodhounds, etc... trackers. They are likely to smell a trail and take off after it.

Rocket Dawg

I have a Jack Russell who runs while I bike. He very quickly learned "left", "right", "slow", "stay" and "go get it!". If I say "slow" once that puts him about 10 ft. in front. If I say it twice it brings him within a few feet. One last time puts him at my side.

Those guys are simply amazing animals. You do have to remind them who the Alpha is though. They are quick to try and dominate.

Chuck

iamlucky13

I haven't tried it, but from how hard dogs will exert themselves when having fun, I'd be careful not to push your dog too hard. Try a short ride on an uncrowded trail and see how she behaves and keeps up.

konaguy1123

my dog would never be able to run along next to me she is a bloodhound and has the shortest attention span ever. but it would be cool to be able to ride with your dog.

OldNick

Be very careful about how hard you work the dog. A dog has a natural speed that they can maintain for a certain time and distance, depending on the dog and its age and fitness etc. If you force the dog to run along, you may make them slow down at some times (although except on very steep hills, you will probably be able to at least keep up with the dog's normal trot of maybe 10-12 Km/H), and then work them flat out at others.

The dog can't "holler nuff" and the ppor bastards often kee up with you (doggedly is a word that comes to mind) because they are _yours_. They can get hot (or cold and wet), dehydrated, and get sore feet, among other things, if forced to run too hard and far. A younger dog will usually get a lot fitter with time, but still has its limits.

Make sure you have water to give the dog, and even a bit of food if you are going to work it harder than it usually works. Be prepared to maybe have to walk back from some point if the dog shows obvious discomfort. As everybody is saying, you should be in charge (aloha and all that) but with that comes responsibility.

Look at it this way. When you walk the dog, it is asked often to respect _your_ slow boring old pace, not allowed to run about and search stuff. Return the favour.


Our 5 year old dog is quite fit, and loves to hunt about a lot, even though she will trot with you if requested. But on a warm morning, and as we increase our cycling distance, she will start to slow down and just lag behind if it's too much. I have enough control of this dog to keep me happy, so I do not want to be absolutely dominant. If I see her slowing down like that, I am very careful to respect her wishes and slow down too.

I read about a guy who had a kayak and paddled several kilometres each weekend in the river. He made his dog come along as well. He seemed to think that the dog enjoyed it, but I was very iffy. They _can_ do it, but they can't float.

Again, the dog has very little choice.

I would also strongly suggest you start the training somewhere quiet, and also teach any needed commands (such as my "Stay with me" for our dog and which side of you to be on at command) while on foot, not on the bike. Then be prepared to have to do some of it all over again when you start on the bike. When you are walking you have more leisure to pay attention to the dog. You may find that its behaviour alters quite a bit if you change the paradigm.

If you go to public places where there are other dogs or bikes or pedestrians, then be prepared to start again on foot, and ride nice and slow, paying a lot of attention to the dog and how it behaves. This means you have to modify your riding style at least for a while, probably. Ours has learnt to get out of the way of a bike quite quickly. There is nothing that bothers me more than my dog wandering across the path of a bike.

phoebeisis

Make sure you bring plenty of water and a spray bottle to cool the dog.Hard to believe,but a fit human can take the heat much,much better than a dog.
Phoebe is greased lightning,but she really has a tendency to overheat in fairly cool Flagstaff(we live in New Orleans) when I take her for a long walk.The altitube doesn't help of course.
Bring plenty of water-watch their breathing-if their breathing remains high-fast for very long(2-4 minutes) after you stop you had better start cooling them(water-fan etc)
Start slow and short-say 1 mile 5 minutes.Luck,Charlie
PS In general greyhounds are leash only mutts-zero attention (to human commands) span.They are very fast(easily out run Lance-and out accelerate the faster track racer),but their change of direction is even more impressive.They can turn almost as sharply as a Jack Russell(which has maybe twice the IQ-smart little suckers),and they are going a lot faster!

DnA362

I'd love to bring my dog out riding w/ me, but I think he would scare most people , as he is very friendly, and eagerly approaches strangers to say hello and give them a lick . I usually walk him at the local flea market where there are lots of folks walking their dogs (great socialization) and many people jump in fear just from the sight of him. He is such a big goof ball. The nasty public image that American Pitbull Terriers have gotten is terrible. As a breed APBT's are absolutely great w/ people, just not so much w/ other dogs.

OldNick

HAH! Sorry Hawaiians! Nothing personal! That's "alpha".....<GG>

OldNick

And the thumbnail you post with your messages is meant to set our minds at rest I assume....? <G>

DnA362

The media has already ruined it for the breed, i couldve posted a picture of my 12lb Jack Russell terrier dragging the 70lb Pitbull around the yard, but that's just embarrassing

I'd be more worried about LowCel's vicious pooch biting someone than my muscle headed softy...

but maybe this will put your mind at rest...

TextileWolf

Cute pics, I'll say.

phoebeisis

Shame about pit bulls-they can be very sweet with people if they are brought up as people dogs.However a lot of owners around here-NO-buy them to have "mean" dogs or literally breed and train them to fight.
There is a case making its way thru the courts here in Louisiana involving a famous fighting dog breeder.I hope this MF gets some serious jail time;dogs have been mans best animal friend-protector-helper-game catcher etc for 50,000+ years.This AH will whine about"his cultural heritage" being dis-respected-F that any culture that does that deserves to die out;and the same goes for cultures that eat dogs.
My neighboor has a pit bull his wife found downtown;very sweet with people,but pretty twitchy with other dogs.Phoebe cleared her throat near him,and he lunged at her.Luckily I grabbed his collar-dense Phoebe never knew she dodged a bullet-very luckily the pit didn't mind my grabbing his collar,and he settled down immediately and started licking me and insisting on being patted-sweet dog.Oh well-nice looking dog(BIG HEAD!!AND MOUTH!).Thanks.Charlie

dminor 

I want to train a dog to pull me on my unicycle like Kris Holm did in NWD (or was it Kranked?). Then again, I'd like to train myself to coast a uni without my feet on the pedals like that

OldNick

hmmm.....that is not "very sweet with people" to me. I am not entering an argument about pit bulls, but _that_ dog sounds dangerous, not sweet, unless you were vastly overreacting (and it sounds as if you are OK with dogs).

BCBike

I got a Russell Terrier who also runs with me when I ride. Really is amazing how these dogs can lead your way 10ft ahead of you and then stop and stay when commmanded. I have problems at times and have had some accidents. I have hit my dog, as well had the leash and things tangled up in the wheels and stuff. Also didnt train the dog and didnt start riding with it until last year when I got my bike. The dog was already almost 3 years of age but caught on really fast and has a blast. The big flaw I am having is me being able to outride the dog [ dog gets to tired ]. There is definitely a risk involved while riding with your dog and I would hate to see something terrible happen. IF you run your dog often it will be in excellent shape so I figure its worth the risk, dog enjoys itself as well!

BCBike

OH I forgot to mention that mine rides with me through trails, streets, parking lots ETC. Just about every where I can ride I have tryed to bring it [ tryed ]. I ve had a share of problems so I limit what I do now.

phoebeisis

OLDNICK,the behavior I described is very typical pit bull behavior-and probably what DNA was alluding to when he said,"just not so much with other dogs." They are usually ok with dogs they have been raised with but "just not so good with other dogs." If a strange dog makes a sudden move-like a dog sneeze-pit bulls will lunge.They- even properly raised ones-are known to be not good with strange dogs.I was a bit surprised when this mutt suddenly lunged-no growl-no warning-nothing-just zoom from about 4 ft away.It ran directly under my hand or I wouldn't have had time to catch it mid leap.I was also surprised that it immediately settled down post lunge!The lunge must have been purely instinctive.They have been bred to react immediately and aggressively to any quick movement by another dog-useful for a fighting dog-not so good in a pet,or guard dog.In fact pretty useless for anything but fighting.
The greyhounds are also very twitchy,but in a different way.They startle very easily-sounds -movement etc.They also react to fast movements by small animals and they give chase.They are very gentle-timid in respect to humans.Many are cat-small dog safe-Phoebe is-but many aren't.They are great with kids etc.
Pit bulls are scary.They have been bred for aggression and jaw-head size.They can be sweet, but they have been bred -for 100's of years-for aggression.You can't ablate those genetic instincts with training-just isn't possible.Pit Bulls give me pause.Thanks.Charlie

OldNick

HAHa! When I started to read this, I thought "That will require training you! Any dog can pull something!! " <G>

Flak

I'd love to take my dog out with me, but shes lazy as hell. See her in my avatar? she does that....alot! Its not that she cant run, she can, fast and long...but she doesnt like it. She'd prefer to run back and forth while me and a mate kick a footy or something than just run in a straight line with me either running or riding. So i think you should test the waters and see if they even enjoy it. If they dont, i wouldnt make them.

Regarding pitts, i dont want to get into an argument, because although im sure they can be good dogs (actually i know they can, ive seen it), they have a decidedly shorter fuse than most other breeds and tend to be unpredictable. Even well loved family pitts with no prior attacks have been known to snap for no apparent reason. My brother in law can attest to that. They are selected as fighting dogs for a reason. Not all are like that...many are gentle as a lamb...but thier breed has a natural unpredictable aggressive streak that cant always be controlled.

OldNick

This is a very important point, borne out by the statements about certain breeds. It's nice to have the dog trotting along beside you, but if it's not nice for the dog, then it's not really "nice" at all.

I have not taken our dog on a long constrained run yet. She runs with us and tears around when we ride in the bush on our land. But I am not sure she will be happy doing a "bike path run", etc.

I am actually thinking of a trailer so we can let her run as far as she is happy, then it's our fault from then on! <G>

DnA362

Absolutely wrong!! and this is the problem that ABPT owners face (public ignorance). As a breed they are among the most stable and predictable dogs. They have been bred to be DOG aggresive for most of the breeds history. When put in the wrong hands and bred for money w/out regard to temperment, is when you get poor examples of ANY breed.
https://www.workingpitbull.com/
https://www.richardfstratton.com/
If you are interested in learning about the breed, those are some very informative sites.

phoebeisis

DNA-as you say,they have been bred for 100's of years-many 100's of generations-for dog-animal aggression.This can't be trained out,it needs to be bred out,and this will take many generations of selectively breeding "gentle non dog aggressive dogs" with gentle dogs?Is anyone doing this?Inbreeding will almost certainly happen with all the problems asscociated with inbreeding.
Pitbulls problems aren't public ignorance-they can be much more dangerous than a greyhound or Jack Russell,or even a Doberman(I would prefer a 80lbs doberman attack to a 70 lb pitbull attack).Their problem is breed by folks for aggression and headsize(jawpower more or less).Who cares if a Jack russell with a 1 lb head goes crazy-it can barely bite thru your sock!A 70 lb pit-with a 12-15 lb head-can take a chunk of your foot off.
Folks need to change the breeding of pits-that isn't happening.They can be extremely dangerous.Shame,but breeding has made them what they are(not all of them,but many of them are really twitchy around strange dogs-cats etc).Thanks.Charlie

DnA362

Dog aggression has absolutely nothing to do w/ human aggression.