Running with Dogs

If you follow me on twitter you might be familiar with my pup run tweets.
It’s what I call it when I run with my dogs. They’re not puppies anymore, but they’re still my babies. Alas, all runs with them are pup runs!

Lakshmi is a Labrador mix, and Theodore, Theo for short, is an Australian Shepherd mix.
Lakshmi is very mischievous, and her favorite past time is stealing our socks or underwear and prancing around the apartment with them to get us to chase her.
Theo is more serious and very intelligent. When I say that he understands English, I’m not exaggerating.

Both of these love-buckets were rescued as puppies and are dealing with some emotional issues. Fear aggression for one, which means that they can’t meet other dogs or play with them.
Theo especially had a very traumatic puppy hood and came to us at 10 weeks with three kinds of emergency medications and shaved front legs after IV needles. He suffers from fears and phobias that makes life a challenge both for him and us sometimes.
But running helps with all these issues, it calms them down and lets them burn off nervous energy. And most of all, they love it! Luckily for them, their mama does too 😊

I usually bring both at the same time, one on each side of me, holding a leash in each hand.
I use front-clip harnesses which has a sliding buckle in front that gently guides the dog sideways if it tries to pull.
 
Running is a time for us to bond as a pack and work together. At least Theo agrees. Lakshmi likes to stop and either run around in circles in front of us in pure excitement or stop and bathe in puddles.
She insists by planting all four feet in the ground when she spots a particularly nice puddle. No sane dog would pass such an opportunity especially if its warm outside, she thinks. At first, she splashes and then she lies down in it. 
Theo hates this! Running is isn’t the time for playing or silly bathing, he thinks. And no matter how much Lakshmi tries to get Theo to play and get into the puddle with her, he won’t, he wants to keep running.

Beginner tips for running with your dog or dogs.

If you plan to run with more than one dog, begin practicing with one dog at a time.
Hold a treat in your hand and pick up the pace, let your dog see the treat but don’t give it to them until they have settled into a trot next to you, once they do, then give it without stopping, keep going a little longer, give another treat, and so on. It’s important to keep running, if you stop when you give your treat, your dog will think it’s getting rewarded for stopping, you want to reward running.  
Only go for very short stretches the first couple of times and then gradually increase the distance. Keep in mind that your dog is a beginner runner just like you were at one time.
Run slowly, your dog should trot next to you, not gallop. Keep an eye on your dog as you run, he or she should look comfortable and be just ahead of you or next to you. If they start to lag behind you, you’re running too fast and may have gone too far.
I don’t run further than 5 miles with Lakshmi and Theo. A normal run for them is about 2-3 miles once or twice a week. 5 miles is a special occasion. If its hot and humid I don’t run with them at all.
Warm summer runs can be fine, but I keep them short and make sure I bring enough water for all of us.

These are fun runs for all of you, not one of your training runs. Enjoy your time with your furlings, they'll love you extra much for it.