Jogging

[Mali]

Hi

 

So we've had our lovely girl nearly 6 weeks now and she is settling really well and has been a lovely addition to our family.

 

A quick question. I know they are not built for long distance running but someone advised that if I built her up slowly she would be able to run with me. Has anyone achieved this? I got her up to about 1.5 miles and then she just slows to a walk. This is all on the back burner at the moment as she's ripped a claw off and is on short walk rest. It's healing beautifully though and I thought I would try the jogging again soon. Have been doing it very gradually with her due to pads as well as muscles but any advice gratefully received.

[Roo]

I know one of our adopters jogs with her hound - he was young when she got him, so he really needed the outlet It took her a while to build him up but he'll go a couple miles with her now. Just be careful building her up, especially in the summer heat!

[RedHead]

Lots of greyhounds can jog if you build them up to it. I started with my guy when he was 3 (he is the type of greyhound who gets very antsy/anxious without exercise). He still jogs almost daily with me (he turns 10 in a few weeks) and does anywhere from 5-10 km (3-6 miles) usually. One word of caution though is to pay attention to heat...even minor heat is really hard for them to handle compared to other breeds. So be careful in the summer. I often have to cancel our runs or go really early in the morning now (plus he gets to take a dip in the lake twice along the way to cool off).

[Mali]

Thanks for those replies. I'll see how she goes and see if she seems to enjoy it. Our summer has already been and gone (we had a week of sunshine - UK based so limited on heat!) but I take your point. I'm also totally over-sensitive to the hot pavement (sidewalk) issue so I won't take her when it's hot. It's annoying we've had to stop with the claw thing but I will keep on keeping on. I'd like to get her up to about 3 or 4 miles ideally.

[krissy]

I jog and bike with my two younger hounds, but they don't love the monotony of roadwork. I usually don't do more than 5 km (because honestly that's about my own limit on the boredom of jogging), and usually within 1 km or so Kili starts to run at the very end of her leash behind me. She's got plenty of stamina, she just hates having to go one speed the whole way. I will sometimes take them out on the trails and then they can run off leash which they prefer. Off leash they can easily run with my bike for an hour... not even sure how many km that is, but it's at least 10. However, that either requires that you have somewhere fenced that is big enough, or have enough training that they are safe to be off leash, so it's not necessarily a feasible option for everyone.

[BatterseaBrindl]

Cindy (GTs Dante2Zoe) runs with her Fancy.

I'll try and point her in the direction of this thread...

[40MphMom]

I jog with Mackenzie several days a week. She enjoys it. I also defer to her when she stops to turn around. Some days she goes 3 miles and others she might want to go short. She is very communicative when she just wants to walk.

[Mali]

Yes, I'm not sure about the off-leash thing across trails. I fear she'll sight a rabbit and be gone for ever. Is this ever possible to train that well? She's three years old and an ex-racer (albeit a failed one). I am having one-on-one recall training lessons with a behaviourist and the first time I let her off she came back like a dream (but minus a claw so she hasn't been able to be let off since).

[racindog]

I have jogged/run with several of my hounds. Most enjoy it but some don't so I don't ask them to if they don't like it. All my hounds could easily run 1-3 miles and some ~5 miles or better. Now keep in mind I am a SLOW runner and I always take the weather into account. In hot weather it is a no go. My first greyhound Ivy (Dream Irish) loved it so much she continued to run with me after her leg amputation due to osteo. She looked BACK at me one day while we were jogging and said "I've only got 3 legs and YOU still can't keep up!". She really loved it. I had my vets blessing and he told me that when needed it was ok to supplement with some electrolytes with a pinch of baking soda in it if needed. But bottom line if they enjoy it-and most of mine have- they should easily be able to slow jog a couple miles with you. The biggest concern is being attacked by loose dogs IMO so be sure and take a weapon of some sort so you can defend your houndie. This was my experience when I ran in a large city for years with my hounds. And it goes without saying off leash is a definite NO as far as I'm concerned. I don't care how great your trainer/behaviorist is they cannot undue 5,000 years of genetic programming. Sooner or later no matter how 'obedient' the dog something will come up that is more important to them than any positive thing you can offer them-and that could be the last decision they'll ever make. It's just the way they are wired.

[dmdsmoxie]

It doesn't matter the breed there are no dogs that can run 5 miles the first time. All breeds have to build up to distance. A persons' running pace is not really a run to most breed of dog. So,if your dog enjoys it I say go for it and like others have said weather and hot pavement needs to be taken into account. Even a nice 70 degree sunny day will get the pavement hot.

[krissy]

Yes, I'm not sure about the off-leash thing across trails. I fear she'll sight a rabbit and be gone for ever. Is this ever possible to train that well? She's three years old and an ex-racer (albeit a failed one). I am having one-on-one recall training lessons with a behaviourist and the first time I let her off she came back like a dream (but minus a claw so she hasn't been able to be let off since).

 

It depends on the trainer and the dog. I don't recommend it for most owners/dogs, but there are plenty of people who are able to off-leash their greyhounds with relative safety. All 3 of mine go off leash, however they have lots of recall training and I pick my locations carefully. When we lived in Ontario we really didn't have a lot of rabbits, so most places without traffic were safe. Here in Alberta, however, we have jackrabbits everywhere which limits our locations since 2 of the hounds will chase. I also take them out to lure coursing practices and practice calling them back from the lure as it is the closest thing to moving prey. I would never count on being able to call a greyhound off a rabbit. I can call mine off of pretty much everything else though... birds, squirrels, other dogs. I don't let them off leash in places where I know there is a high possibility of coming across a rabbit, and the other locations are such that if we did happen to come across a rabbit they would be highly unlikely to go far enough to reach a road. We have several nature trails in/around the city that I use regularly where rabbits don't really frequent much. My oldest hound has zero prey drive. I don't mean low... I mean zero, so he's safe to off leash pretty much anywhere.

 

There are a lot of factors that go into a decision like that, and most owners don't do enough training to do so properly. My dogs do agility and disc competitively, and very rarely are those rings fully fenced, so it's important for me to have a solid recall with my dogs.

[dante2zoe]

Fancy and I jog. I have jogged with 3 other greys and she enjoys it the most, by far. We have gone up to 5 miles, but that is rare. We usually run 3-4 miles three times per week. She has been on injured reserve for the past month and we just got back this morning. She did 1.5 miles and then took a one mile walk with the other two. It is our time and I defer to her on where we go and how far. By that, I mean, that is she isn't into that day, we just walk and/or cut it short. She will be 8 (!) in August and we started when she was 4. We go slow - about a 13 minute mile, which is fine. Our current course is hilly and runs through very rural area and our small town, so she gets mostly asphalt, which is more forgiving than concrete. She likes watching for deer and other assorted wildlife. She stops when she wants to and I don't make any demands.

 

We did start slow and the 5 miles began when she was suddenly an only hound and this was her way of dealing with the loss. We run very early (5:30 am) and take shorter runs if it is too hot or humid.

 

Forgot to add that I use a harness for running since her speed can vary and I don't want to stress her neck. We also both wear reflective and lighted gear. She will be wearing blaze orange in the fall, too.

Edited July 5, 2017 by dante2zoe