3X3

Walking all four dogs at once has now become a manageable task, though Larry tugs at his leash, driving forward with those stout back legs of his. Now and then I have trotted with all four dogs leashed, but anything much beyond a brisk walk is outside of Miss Petey's range. I think she may have a bit of hip displasia, which in turn makes it more difficult for her to be as athletic as her brothers. Of course, I could also conjecture that she is simply more "feminine" and is more comfortable deferring to her tuxedoed siblings. She is definitely no Annie Oakley, though lately Petey has shown some dance moves which are beyond anything her brothers can do.

Larry's tendency to pull ahead when we walk suggested that I try him one more time running on a leash. My intentions this afternoon were to go out alone with Larry, just to test what he would do, but the leashes have now become a signal to them all that there is some activity planned and they all become giddy with anticipation. Petey, being aloof as she sometimes is, was into her own world in the back yard, such that I decided to go ahead and see if we could manage a little jog as a foursome, three dogs and their master.

Leashes attached, the brothers tore through the front door, tugging in anticipation. I think they almost enjoy more this participatory activity than running willy-nilly free, though I would love to eventually be able to control them without the leashes. For now their attitude is "no leash, no obey" and it puts them into dangerous situations I would rather avoid.

Walking 3 or 4 dogs on leashes has been a learning experience for us all. The first time we tried it I was desperate to keep the leashes untangled. Now I have concluded that the leashes are going to tangle, become braided or plaited together, and that's alright. This same process works when we are running. The only rule I try to enforce is that they walk, or run, to my left, such that they are between me and the curb. This is my own runner discipline in play since I run on the left side of the street, facing oncoming traffic 99% of the time. I figure if I keep the dogs next to the curb there is less likelihood of their getting into the way of oncoming cars. It was a struggle at first to train them to this way, but they've now picked it up pretty well. The lesson there is to be consistent in my expectations and they eventually come around to my way of thinking.

To my pleasant surprise today all three of the tuxedo brothers found a pace they liked: my pace. No one complained, though Larry did tug a bit at first. My next question was what sort of endurance they would have since Larry was new to this. Pepe and Bert have run with me several times and can now manage 3-4 miles. I kept an eye on Larry and he just kept going, not seeming to tire. Bert is still the one who will finally fall back a little bit. I slow the pace and he does fine. They all still get curious about what's going on around them, but I try to keep them focused on running and they are becoming more attuned to that with each run. They are good dogs and will eventually run some races with me. Today we managed 3 miles.

The San Antonio Roadrunners (SARR), sponsors of the Turkey Trot over at McAllister Park, allow dogs at that event. In fact, I saw one runner with a Greyhound, I would guess a racetrack rescue dog. I wouldn't want to keep up with him, nor am I sure my dogs are ready for that either. Also, the crowd of 2 thousand plus would spook them and they are still not ready to be around other dogs. That's a hurdle I hope we can clear soon, perhaps through further visits to the dog park.

As I write this all four of my pooches are chowing on the biggest bones they've seen yet. I gave each of them a pig's femur. I hope this activity will keep them occupied for awhile, though I see that Pepe has already worked through one of the ball joints on his bone and I hear the others all dutifully gnawing away. I'm still more amazed at the power of their jaws than the power of their running, though bit by bit their running athleticism is emerging. Like master, like dog, at least I guess that's what they say.


Pepe meditating.

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!