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Dogs with Passion

650K views 3K replies 961 participants last post by  socal_jack 
#1 ·
Not sure about yours but mine go bonkers when I say BIKE.
 

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#2,637 ·
Bicycle tire Bicycle frame Bicycle wheel Bicycle fork Bicycle wheel rim


First time that we had a fully successful ride together. She's only been partially off leash for walks and hikes so far. Today was fairly slow going, but that was more me taking it easy to monitor how she was doing. If it was up to her I think we would've gone about 10 times faster.

She definitely appears to have excellent "trail intuition", and I think she'll end up being a great trail buddy before too long.
 
#2,638 ·
I am in So-Cal and 99% of the trails are dogs on leash only. How do you all deal with this?

My boy is about 5 months old and I hope getting ready to join me on some rides. We did some hiking the this past weekend off-leash and he did very good for a first timer. We did have one instance where bikers passed us, I had a hold of him as they past, once they got out of sight around a corner I let go of his collar and he was gone like a shot after them. The bikers came to a stop so I could catch up and grab him. We obviously have more training to do but he seems to like the bikes. :)
 
#2,639 ·
You might consider starting out in places where you won't have so many distractions, then try busier places after he has learned to stay on track. Modeling ignoring other trail users by not slowing down helps make the point, and if you can ride with other WELL TRAINED trail dogs they can teach him as well. Choosing an appropriate breed of dog helps too, what is your dog like?
 
#2,640 ·
I used to walk my dog in an off-leash area which even though it had trails it was mostly just a big field. My dog went through a period where she would chase mountain bikes but she never was threatening when she did it and she fairly soon just stopped doing it on her own. Maybe take him walking on a leash somewhere that has a lot of mixed traffic including bikes and have him get used to just having them go by like it's no big deal. Most of the trails I ride on have a fair amount of dogs and they all just ignore bikes.
 
#2,647 ·
Thanks guys. Typically when bikes pass us I make him sit, either on or off leash.

I was told the Laguna Mtns are National Forest so he can be off leash up there also. Never been to Weir so may need to check it out this fall. Will likely look into the rattlesnake aversion also. I do need to work on recall with him. He was neutered Wednesday so no trails for this weekend hopefully get out again next week.
 
#2,649 · (Edited)
Finally took the pup out with the bike. He did get distracted by a tarantula for a moment and slowed in front of the front wheel once but all together, IMO, he did great. He fell behind once but a quick call and he pinned his ears back and caught up. One concern is bikes in the opposite direction will he chase after them.


I think he was having fun. Of course he also was sprinting to see his best friend, my oldest son. :)


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#2,650 ·
Mountain biking is Leela's absolute favorite thing in the world. She always has an ear-to-ear grin when she can run full-speed alongside me. Did our first mountain today and it went great. I was a little worried because it was her first time biking with other people and in areas that she's unfamiliar with, but she did amazingly.

We stopped for blueberries on the way up and she seemed to certainly enjoy that:


And at the top:
Sky Dog Cloud Collar Dog breed
 
#2,656 ·
Dog Plant Carnivore Collar Working animal


So I posted a picture of my chocolate lab Toots earlier in this thread. She's a great trail dog and now she has a friend. I got Roxie a few days ago from a shelter. They said she is a Vizsla. Maybe the V experts can tell me. She looks like one but her ears seem rather short. Regardless she did great today on a 10 mile ride. Here's to many more miles with Roxie.

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#2,657 ·
There's definitely a lot of vizsla in that pic, but the black on the tail and around the mouth indicates there's something else in there too. What ever she is she's lovely [duh, of course, she's part-V!!] and I'm sure she'll reward you immensely for your decision to rescue her. Good work!!
 
#2,661 ·
From what I have studied and been told Hip dysplasia is considered a "multifactorial trait." Meaning that its genetic (shallow sockets) than something they just catch or developed. My shepherd comes from a line of OPA Certified hips and elbows dogs. Besides... ANY large breed dog can get hip dysplasia if its in there line of breeding.

He can run...
 
#2,663 ·
My last German Shepherd was close to 100 lbs, and he lived to 15 and 1/2 years of age with no hip issues. He hiked and mountain biked with me, and was nearly impossible to wear out until he got older. My current GS is great on hikes, but he is not built for trail running or mtnb. He is too stocky and overheats. It depends not only on the breed, but also the specific dog. Since GS take a couple of years to completely fill out, you might start slowly and not let him do any hard trails. A GS will go way past exhaustion in order to be at your side.

As for keeping him on the trails, unfortunately anything less than a 100% recall is a fail. If you live in an area with wildlife, or there are other hikers/riders on the trail, you can get in trouble quickly if your GS takes off. And many GS have a high prey drive. Locally we even had a trainer lose her search and rescue GS for 3 days when he took off after a deer. Find a good trainer and work with a long lead on hikes until he is ready to mtnb with you off lead.

From what I have studied and been told Hip dysplasia is considered a "multifactorial trait." Meaning that its genetic (shallow sockets) than something they just catch or developed. My shepherd comes from a line of OPA Certified hips and elbows dogs. Besides... ANY large breed dog can get hip dysplasia if its in there line of breeding.

He can run...
 
#2,669 ·
Whilst riding at Grand Targhee this weekend before the bluegrass festival i was heading up,& could hear a guy yelling at his dog,who seemed to not understand "COME".
I thought how much it sucks when a dog wont listen.
I get to the ridge,& there is this beautiful golden lab about a year old with no tag panting like hell.The guy that was yelling shows up,& asks if he's my dog?
There's no water up where we were,& this boy is thirsty,& his heart was going a mile a second.
We realize there is no owner any where around,& calm the boy down.
The other guy pulls out his spare tube,& cuts/splits it into a leash,& we head back to the base area with a new buddy.We didn't find the owner,maybe the other guy took him home? I'm sure the dog ended up being ok.
The problem i have is that this beautiful companion was panic lost,& didn't know where to go,& was running himself into the ground trying to find his owner.
Very sad,& could have turned out much worse.
I hope the owner burned as much energy looking for him.
Kudos to the guy for altering his ride to help.
 
#2,674 ·
Perhaps an appropriate time to remind of the obvious. Make sure your dog is collared, tagged with a current phone number, chipped, and the chip registration info is active and up to date.

I have been able to return a few found dogs with the help of these tools.
 
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