Running a marathon

engrish?

Hey,

I have decided to run a marathon and I am now in training for it. I have a golden retriever with loads of energy (3 yr old). I took her on an 8 mile run on Sat which she enjoyed at first, but at the end she was starting to drag. I stopped and gave her water half way and she ran through a few puddles at one stage which kept her cool!

My question is, is it bad to be bringing her on big runs?

Whispered

I'd be interested in knowing this too, my OH has decided to try run a marathon (despite never training before and the thing being on in 3 months :eek:) and is planning on bringing the dog training with him, tonight will be the start of it, a 5 mile jog. Is this too much for a (very athletic) 9 month old dog?

babystrawberry

helena.ryan wrote: »

I'd be interested in knowing this too, my OH has decided to try run a marathon (despite never training before and the thing being on in 3 months :eek:) and is planning on bringing the dog training with him, tonight will be the start of it, a 5 mile jog. Is this too much for a (very athletic) 9 month old dog?

From previous experience this would definitley be too much stress on the dog (particularly if it is a large breed of dog). At 9 months old, there is still a lot more development to go into the body, and a lot of stress caused from excercise can lead to problems with the hips and shoulders. There is the arguement that greyhounds are put into training at a young age but the training i slong walks and gallops a few times a week as opposed to a few miles of a run

If the dog was older he would manage a jog/run, i have often gone running with my dog, although most of my energy is spent trying to stop him from juming up on me lol

On the whole issue can a dog run a marathon, I would have though yes as long as your dog is fully checked over by a vet to ensure they are not carrying any old injuries and provided you build up their fitness gradually

Besides, wolves can cover up to 30 miles/50km a day when hunting!;)

peasant

Personally (and totally unscientifically) I think it's a stupid idea.

Even if your dog would be physically suited to running long distances (i.e it's not a Basset) it certainly wouldn't have the mental capacity and/or motivation to do it.

At some stage it will just (want to) stop and you'll have to drag/force it along.
At other points it will be going too fast/slow for you.

I'm pretty certain that it wouldn't enjoy it.

olaola

We bring our dog running, and she loves it! Usually ends up with a splash in the canal. Don't know if I'd bring her on longer than about 10k though. She'd probably keep going until she dropped, but I wouldn't want to push her that far. She's a lab x.

fatmammycat

I went running (10k) with my friend's spaniel/collie cross, 10k no problem to him and he had a swim mid way and a good snuffle about off lead. Its depends on the dog- this fellow has a comfortable trotting gait and could easily cover twice that at his fittest.

lightening

Don't forget dogs can't sweat, they could dehydrate very very quickly. Their ancestors would have only done these type of distances at night with a good few stops.

ISDW

OP, I would just be very careful at running a dog for that long at this time of the year. Maybe you could get a cooler jacket for the dog, they are dipped in water I believe and then this evaporates, keeping the dog cool. I would also suggest only running the dog in the early morning or the evening, I know that huskies and other northern breeds shouldn't be run in temperatures higher than 12 degrees.

helena.ryan wrote: »

I'd be interested in knowing this too, my OH has decided to try run a marathon (despite never training before and the thing being on in 3 months :eek:) and is planning on bringing the dog training with him, tonight will be the start of it, a 5 mile jog. Is this too much for a (very athletic) 9 month old dog?

I would say that 5 miles is too long for a 9 month old dog, as other posters have said, it could lead to hip and other joint problems.

There is a sport called Cani-cross, which is running with your dog and it is growing in popularity, the runner wears a special belt and then the dog is attached to it, and wears a harness.

kakee

I can remember seeing something on sky news a few weeks back. They had a report for someplace in England where they hold races for dogs and owners together. Check this site out http://cani-cross.co.uk/cc_whatis.shtml


http://www.staydoggy.com

babystrawberry

The Cani cross looks class, had a look at the website, seems that it is only being done in UK and some other european countries? Does anyone know if this is being done in Ireland??

kakee

Hi Babystrawberry I have not heard of it in Ireland but you could start a thread for people who may be interested. Unfortunately either myself or my little bichon would get too far. I would imagine there would be interest here.

ISDW

Can't say too much at the moment regarding Cani-cross in Ireland, but just watch this space;)

leopardus

Firstly the dog should be checked out by the vet to make sure there are no underlying problems.
Secondly, the general consensus on running with dogs is "not until they've matured", this can be anywhere between 10 -24 months depending on the source. Soft surfaces are lower-impact and are preffered to tarmac or worse, concrete.
Thirdly, the distance the dog should be expected to run should be built up very slowly.
Dogs are far less efficient at cooling down than humans and care needs to be taken to ensure the dog doesn't overheat; jogging earlier or later in the day, giving the dog a haircut, running past a pond/thes sea.

Your obviously not suggesting bringing the dog on the marathon itself, I would suggest building him slowly up to the 'daily' runs, and make a decision on the longer runs when you see how she's doing. My feelings are that you'll be able to get her accostomed to the daily runs, but on the longer runs I'd suggest just concentrating on your own running. You won't have to worry about the dog; and the possibility of having to stop if he starts to struggle.
Good luck

Poncherello

Have a cocker spaniel 3yrs old and have been running with her for over a year. She loves it but 8K is enough for her. I take her on my short easy runs nothing else.
Be careful too if your dog is not well behaved on the lead can cause nasty falls.

olaola

I run without the lead, lets her suffle about and dip into the canal if she wants.

engrish?

olaola wrote: »

I run without the lead, lets her suffle about and dip into the canal if she wants.

Cheers folks, yeah I will give her a hair cut and keep her cool. Dousing her with the hose and a dip in the sea halfway should do the trick.

Probably wont take her on anything over 10 miles.