Viewing 32 posts - 1 through 32 (of 32 total)
  • Puppy trail dog training.
  • imv31
    Free Member

    My puppy Molly is 21 weeks old now and as a Sproker she is happy with 40 min walk in the morning and the evening. Unfortunately she missed here walk this morning as my partner was unwell and couldn’t take her out. I know she is too young to go out for a spin with me on the mountain bike. But i think I will bring her on her regular 40min walk with me on the bike at a slow pace to get her used to the bike and walking alongside/ Around the bike. She will have loads of energy as she missed here morning walk. Relay looking forward to riding with her.

    I tried this with my parent Labrador when i first got into mountain biking and had a few issues with Roxy who was 2 at the time. Roxy would run out front and general wanting to take the lead and being faster (thinking she was faster) on technical tertian. Roxy used to be very tense when i used to have her ride next to the bike on the lead which is something that i would like to get nailed with Molly as i think this is a useful skill to be able to ride with her on the lead around livestock and for road sections and that.

    If anyone has tips or Lessons for me please pass um on. Molly and I would appreciate any STW coaching.

    monde
    Free Member

    Way, Way too much walking for a 21 week old dog and your dog shouldnt go near a bike until it is 1.

    Concentrate on training it properly for the next 6-8 months and you will have a healthy, happy dog. Carry on like this and the dog will pay for it in later life.

    wwaswas
    Full Member

    What monde said – walking with a dog is not the same as trying to get them to follow your back wheel for 40 minutes. They don;t have the concentration plus their bones and joints aren’t formed enough for constant running (which it will happily do however slow you cycle). Not sur eI agree on the ‘too much’ walking thing – ours is climbing the walls if he doesnt get a decent walk twice a day – we were told 5 minutes per month of life/walk so you have that about right.

    We have an 11 month old Vizsla – we’ve done a couple of trial walk/run walks with him to begin to get him used to doing cannicross (sp?) with my wife. I’ll begin going out with a bike and training him early next year and see how he gets on.

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    suburbanreuben
    Free Member

    Way, Way too much walking for a 21 week old dog and your dog shouldnt go near a bike until it is 1.

    Concentrate on training it properly for the next 6-8 months and you will have a healthy, happy dog. Carry on like this and the dog will pay for it in later life.

    What he said!

    nealglover
    Free Member

    80 mins walk per day is certainly a lot for a pup.

    5 minutes per month of age per day is a good rule of thumb.

    (No idea about trail dog training though sorry)

    scud
    Free Member

    We’ve had a number of Springers, at that age they just need a run around in the garden regularly, over do it now and as above they will have problems later in life and they’ll be lame. Usually start training as a gun dog about 8 months old

    willstaffs
    Free Member

    Waited until my GSP was over 1 year before I introduced him to the bike, practised on a few fields before finally at 15 months took him for a 5 mile trail ride, he is now 18months and we did 10 miles yesterday after slowly building the mileage up. He is a ball of energy though so he has been going on 6 mile walks everyday since he was around 7 or 8 months!

    Tried everything to get him to follow the bike and gave up in the end, he leads but he is rapid, 20mph yesterday on a trail and I wasn’t catching him! Only had 1 instance of him stopping dead in front of my because he saw a squirrel, fortunately I stopped before clattering into him!

    suburbanreuben
    Free Member

    It’s not too early to introduce him to cyclists though. Perfect age! All mountain bikers love bouncy puppies.

    fifeandy
    Free Member

    All mountain bikers love bouncy puppies.

    We do?

    sandwicheater
    Full Member

    Hold on sunshine, you come in here and start a puppy thread and don’t even include a photo, you asked for this;

    [video]https://youtu.be/sB4IbxW2V14[/video]

    As some have said, a tad early but get it used to the bike and the commands are no different than walking.

    Get it used to the bike.

    Heal – Try and get it used to healing to your left should you ever need to ride on/near a road.

    Back – Try and get a back command so the dog knows to get behind you should trail start to narrow and you want to get in front of the dog.

    Release – Handy to have a release command so the dog knows it can run in front.

    We’ve a lab-X and it would do anything for food so all this could be installed in a day or two.

    sharkbait
    Free Member

    Cockers/sprockers/whatever are not trail dogs.

    Yes they will run all day but they’re not built for that sort of mileage – they’re hunting dogs really and thrive on running around in the undergrowth looking for stuff to flush – not chasing after a bloke on a bike for miles on end.

    If that’s what you want then other makes of dog would be more suitable.

    As has already been said, 21 weeks is far too young – you’ll do a lot more damage than good.

    Rockape63
    Free Member

    Way, Way too much walking for a 21 week old dog and your dog shouldnt go near a bike until it is 1.

    Yep!

    Cockers/sprockers/whatever are not trail dogs.

    Yes they will run all day but they’re not built for that sort of mileage – they’re hunting dogs really and thrive on running around in the undergrowth looking for stuff to flush – not chasing after a bloke on a bike for miles on end.

    and Yep!

    she is happy with 40 min walk

    Of course she is, she’ll walk even further if she gets the chance. But you do have to be very restrained, difficult as it is, otherwise she’ll pay for it when she’s older.

    moonsaballoon
    Full Member

    we have a lab springer x who loves a bike ride . when she was a pup i used to ride around the garden just so she could get comfortable with bikes and me being on one . She wants to lead which is fine with me as i can see where she is .
    I think the thing with riding with your dog is you have to tailor the ride for them not you . I take her out for an hour maybe an hour and a half , no trail centers as the surfaces can make a mess out of their pads , dont go trying to set kom times on strava , lots of water stops. Pretty obvious stuff really but it is important not to over do it when they are young .
    Good luck with it , riding with a furry mate is brilliant

    Lazgoat
    Free Member

    We have a Duck Toller and followed all the advice about walking times/lengths when she was a pup. I treated every walk as a fun training session where we’d practice all the things we were picking up at puppy and obedience classes.
    The walks don’t have to be that long if they are fun and full of mental stimulation.

    joebristol
    Full Member

    We’ve also got a puppy called Molly – although she’s about to be one year old this coming week so I’ll have to stop calling her puppy soon.

    So far I’ve not tried biking or running with her – just mostly either road walking when dark, or when light I let her loose on the large field behind the house. Usually about 20 mins twice per day on weekdays. On weekends she still gets 2 walks per day, but longer and more fun ones.

    I’m recovering from shoulder surgery so currently running in a treadmill about 4 times a week but would like to do some road running soon. Thinking about taking Molly with me to save time on the evenings as wifey is about to have a baby so going to get very time poor imminently.

    Molly is a Cavachon (King Charles spaniel / Bichon frise cross), but she’s longer and leaner than all the other cavachons ive seen. She’s really rapid in the field and just doesn’t stop running around.

    So my question is can I start jogging with her? Maybe build up slowly a couple of km and see how she goes?

    I don’t plan to ever take her biking – that’s my fun time and I don’t want to have to worry about where she is / what she’s up to!

    supersessions9-2
    Free Member

    As the owner of a 11 year old rescue lab with arthritis, from 4 years old I strongly urge you to be really restrained and not over do it. It will break your heart to see her limping round the house after every cold weather walk and have to be on metacam permanently.

    I also have a 2 year old springer, the most important thing is shed loads of mental stimulation, not distance work. As your spaniel gets older and fitter it will physically always be fitter and go further than you can. Tire it mentally and it will be satisfied.

    When it’s old enough have fun, I bet a trail dog is great.

    GolfChick
    Free Member

    At 21 weeks the rule of thumb is that she should be walked for 25 mins a day, not morning and evening. Lets face it most kids would probably enjoy eating a happy meal every single day but we as adults/parents/doggy parents know that this is not healthy and I’m sure you dont want a dog to suffer later in life. I’m a big advocate of not planning a dogs life based on it living to 12 years or more old because not every dog gets there and that breaks my heart, however, going for almost quadruple the amount of time is IMO irresponsible or just mistaken, sorry about that!

    At 21 weeks I have to be honest you shouldn’t have the time while walking the 25 mins a day to be taking a bike and getting her used to it (aside of the fact she shouldnt be at that age etc. etc). You should be teaching her to walk properly on a lead, listen to what you’re saying in basic commands and generally get used to the world around her. To train a dog to walk correctly on a lead takes a HUGE amount of time and effort but in the long run will mean you can take your dog to the busiest places and it still be massively enjoyable. Teach her basic commands as others have said such as wait, steady, get on and those commands will related to the bike and trail abilities. Get the bike out and work on it around her, walk it around the garden so she’s used to it, pedal it around the garden where she can see you etc etc. concentrate on other stuff when you take her for a walk, that will tire her out far more than 40 min walks twice a day!

    sandwicheater
    Full Member

    Is sad, two days and no a single puppy photo (shakes fist in general direct of OP).

    Our old girl on her first day;

    [/url]Brambles first day by Phillip Dalton, on Flickr[/img]

    and now

    [/url]Untitled by Phillip Dalton, on Flickr[/img]

    windydave13
    Free Member

    Is that a toilet or a fireplace in the middle of that field??

    myti
    Free Member

    Can’t say I followed those rules as didn’t know them and my lab is a great trail dog 7 years on no issues and can happily run up to 15 miles. Everyone thinks she is a young dog as she is so bouncy and energetic. Think she would have been climbing the walls with 25 mins a day. First ride was about 6 months old though only a few miles.

    joebristol
    Full Member

    This is our Molly whilst on dog photos…..

    She’s not much of a dog really!

    mrlebowski
    Free Member

    All mountain bikers love bouncy puppies.

    Be wary.

    Not everyone shares your love of your fury best mate..

    myti
    Free Member

    Bog off the dog thread misery guts^

    DezB
    Free Member

    can happily run up to 15 miles

    Blimey. Competition is it? Never taken my pointer more that 5 or 6 (not that I was measuring) and they more built for running than labs. Hope that lab will be ok when it gets to 10yo+.

    To the op – lead training on the bike is pretty easy – best with a harness rather than a collar. Hold the lead loose on the little finger of your weaker hand so you can steer with the good one and release easily if dog bolts or runs the wrong side of a tree/lampost!

    oldtalent
    Free Member

    Bog off the dog thread misery guts^

    Not just a dog thread though is it? Its a dog on a trail thread and although dog owners probably think this is great, those without dogs really dont want them tearing around crapping in the woods and getting under your wheels.

    johnners
    Free Member

    Not everyone shares your love of your fury best mate

    I have to (sort of) agree. I love dogs but an unknown dog bouncing round me when I’m on a bike is a PITA and a bloody liability, there’s a real chance one or both of us could end up getting hurt.

    Loving the photos though!

    myti
    Free Member

    Bit like those miserable walkers who don’t want us bikers around. Live and let life for goodness sake

    myti
    Free Member

    [/url]07012010214 by My Ti, on Flickr[/img]

    myti
    Free Member

    [/url]HPIM0377 by My Ti, on Flickr[/img]

    myti
    Free Member

    [/url]beech1 by My Ti, on Flickr[/img]

    PePPeR
    Full Member

    Both mine ride alongside me, need to get them used to walking at heel, and learning how to stop when you say stop, lots of You tube videos.. before you can start doing this, both of mine walk at heel on my right, and when I’m on my bike they ride on my left, they know the command for which side to be on and where to be, the other conmmand I use a lot is wait,

    tenfoot
    Full Member

    At 21 weeks the rule of thumb is that she should be walked for 25 mins a day, not morning and evening.

    Kennel Club recommends the below :-

    “A good rule of thumb is a ratio of five minutes exercise per month of age (up to twice a day) until the puppy is fully grown, i.e. 15 minutes (up to twice a day) when three months old, 20 minutes when four months old etc. Once they are fully grown, they can go out for much longer.”

    Does this not mean that the OP can take his dog out for 25 minutes, twice a day?

Viewing 32 posts - 1 through 32 (of 32 total)

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