Running the Dog

Years ago a friend who kept a couple of overly energetic rescue dogs asked me if I would take her dogs out when I run. I declined. For one thing, I was in between being a pet owner and not, but I knew too well the responsibilities of pet ownership and wasn't willing to invest in someone else's dogs. In fact, at that time in my life, I wasn't thinking of ever owning pets again. Too much work.

Fast forward three or four years and my heart now belongs to a yard full of four growing, energetic, adolescent puppies. We've been learning to walk on a leash, better done two at a time than all four at once, something I've only tried once. The seemingly infinite possibilities for entanglement became immediately apparent as four leashes become braided into one. Even one dog on a leash can present risks of becoming tangled, inviting a fall. Of course, this is all managed by proper training, which is a never ending path.

This has now led me to undertaking training my dogs to not only walk on a leash, but also to run on a leash. Yesterday was the first real test as I chose the puppy I regarded as the most athletic of the four for a trial run. I've been told that Bert and his siblings are likely Border Collie mixes. Reading about the breed, I was immediately warned that these dogs like to run, requiring the owner to invest in considerable exercise time. I observe some of this already when the dogs are loosed into my backyard. They do burn calories. But would they be willing to burn calories on my terms, on a leash?

Yesterday's run was a short distance for me. I normally require at least 4 miles, but since my last run had been almost 10 miles I was willing to compromise in order to test Bert's endurance. We started at a modest trot and never really pressed the pace. I wanted Bert to show me a tempo he was comfortable with. In the end, we managed just over 2.5 miles, slowing to a walk now and then to allow Bert's heart to catch up. He did great, enoyed it, and I am sure we will run again soon. As a matter of fact, I think I created a monster. I anticipated this would wear him down and that he would be less likely to jump up on me and misbehave in his young ways. But instead, he seemed to come away even more energetic once he took a couple of long rehydrating drinks of water. This shouldn't really surprise me since most all of us runners are aware of the dividend of energy we get in return for our workout investments.

I am "dogged" in showing each of my four dogs equal attention. I believe they do keep track of who gets what. Besides, they are all so darned loyal that I would never imagine playing favorites. What this means, of course, is that now I need to test the other three and see if they are runners too. Already I suspect that Petey, the one female of the bunch, will rather walk or go for a ride in the car than run. She seems to have a weakness in her hips. But the other two brothers, I expect, will each want to run, though it is debatable without a road test how well Larry, the short legged one, will fare.

If you have dogs and are a runner, do you take the dog out when you run? I know runners who do and from their experiences I know the potential for risk. Once, as I ran with a friend whose medium sized dog often had a mind of his own regarding pace, dog and owner ended up choosing two different ways around a telephone pole. I could see it coming; they didn't; thankfully it was just a funny incident rather than an injury incident. However, my sister reported that one of her work colleagues, a runner, showed up for work one day with an arm in a sling and with bandages on various of her knees and elbows. "What happened?" my sister asked. "My dog got spooked when we were running and then tripped me with the leash," came the reply. Obviously, running with a dog on a leash ought to come with disclaimers and a fair measure of common sense.

The rewards of running with your pet can be substantial. You get that one-on-one time which is so important, your dog gets some great exercise (you do too!) and you just might find yourself browsing for the increasingly popular 5Ks for runners and their dogs. I know I am. Maybe I'll see you there and our dogs can sniff each other before we head towards the finish line. Bow Wow!