# Teaching my V to run WITH me



## countrycruiser

I am a marathon runner and am hoping to get some advice

Miles turned 6 months old this month, too young to be putting in any sort of miles with me yet but I have been trying to introduce him to the running together concept. 
On our daily 1 mile walk we run for 1/4 mile of it. It is grass only running of course

What I am finding is that I am a very slow runner in Miles standard  --

I'm hoping to get some advice:

1) How do I teach Miles to run at my pace? 
_I currently say "My pace" while we are running and praise him when he "tries" to stay with me_


2)What type of equipment do you use to run with your V? Although it is to early for him to run any sort of distance with me I would like for him to get used to wearing any equipment we may need later
_Currently I am only using his collar and a regular walking leash
_

3) I live in the Midwest and it will, be getting cold here soon and could get snowy as well, what type if any of gear do you use for the winter? 

Miles has completed Puppy elementary class and will be starting a home companion class next week. he is doing well with basic commands although like most V's he does have a mind of his own. ;D

Any advice would be great!


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## gunnr

Countrycruiser

I was a USCF Cat II cyclist, and triathlete. Winters here in New England were spent on a mountain bike,and doing 10K training for speed. 
All of my V's have run, biked, swam with me. If I could have got them into a shell with me, I'd have given 'em a seat and an oar.
The best advice I can give you is to not restrict them to your pace except for safety purposes. Miles can already out run an Olympic sprinter and keep that pace for a long time before he needs water.
Once Miles is steady to the come and heel command, just let him cast out naturally and come back to you. He'll do it all on his own with very little effort on your part. Put him on an eCollar if you fell the need.
He will initially get confused following your scent trail if he casts across your back trail, but watch for it and help him differentiate hot scent from cold.

Take him to a safe place to run, and just kinda let him go a bit. Make the first few sessions with him fartleks and speed work. Throw in some hill intervals and be prepared to be humbled. V's don't slow down on hills.


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## Mercutio

Hi guys,

I am coming to this from a totally different perspective to gunnr: i have only recently taken up jogging mostly with the aim of giving Merc some extra exercise......

He usually looks surprised that I can move any faster than my normal walk and my flat out at the moment is a comfortable trot for him. We are running along paths that are in "on lead" areas so he has to stay at my pace. I just say "steady" which is a word I was already using when he was getting a bit ahead of me and is a warning that if he doesn't come back in the next command is heel and we're off in the opposite direction.

So anyway I just have him on his ordinary flat collar and leash. I think in some ways he is more focussed on me and less distracted by his surroundings when we're going a little quicker so i haven't had any problems with sudden stops / lunges / getting tangled up.

We don't get anywhere near as cold as you get in the winter (tasmania Aust) but I tried putting coats on Merc and he would just rip them off. Someone else may have better advice for you than me.


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## Crazy Kian

Country Cruiser, 
Just like Merc I have started running with Kian, he is pretty decent at keeping a good pace and not going too far ahead of me.
I run him near me about one or two feet ahead of me to my left, there is plenty of slack on the leash and he seems to get it. I can actually steer him if he starts to wander in front of me or to the left.
I live in the city and have a nice trail in my neighbourhood that is compacted granular and dirt. It's great for him. I will never run him on a sidewalk as I think the surface is too hard.

As for a winter coat (we live in Toronto, Canada)I found a great coat by a Canadian manufacturer... maybe you can give them a shot. Kian will wear it when it's very cold out. If it's just below freezing he could care less, if it's double digits below then he benefits from the coat.

Maybe you can find this brand at a local pet store in your area. It's fleece lined with a nylon shell, it does up under the belly and has a nice fleece lined neck liner.
Good luck.
http://www.chillydogs.ca/productGreatWhiteNorthAllBreed.html


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## jp

I love jogging with Penny, although she now doesn't like going with only me when the kids and wife are still at home (different story.) We also live in an area where off leash is not an option, so we had to work up to it. Once she was able to walk nicely next to me, heel, etc. it was easier to move to a jogging pace. We always have used a harness for long walks, runs. But everything came together nicely when we switched to a 18-ft retractable leash from the standard 6 foot. I keep it short when we are in the neighborhood or on trails that are heavy use. But when we get on a smaller path with no risk of other runners, or at least bikers, she gets the full length. She learned very quickly what radius she needs to keep from me and surprised me by learning how not to get wrapped around trees! 
We're also in the Midwest. We tried various sweaters the first two years, but she always tried to chew them off. We switched to a simple coat with a fleece lining that goes on top and straps underneath. Much better.


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## Kobi

Keep us updated on how this goes, it sounds like we're in similar situations but your guy is older. I also live in the Midwest and run marathons 

For equipment, a recent Runner's World article mentioned some good pieces. I think it was Sept '10. Check out the Cardio Canine. It is a leash for your hip basically instead of something you hold. It looks to me like it would be a good solution for hands free running with the dog.

By the way, where in MW are you? I'm in Central IL. Next marathon will probably be the Illinois Marathon in Champaign, IL in April.


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## countrycruiser

Update: Miles ran 5 miles with me yesterday 
He did wonderful, followed my lead and stayed at my pace. 
We did not plan to do 5 as the farthest he has gone is 1.5, but at the turn around I looked down and noticed that he is not really running, just a trot (I'm of course running) So we just kept going. 

Today is speed work on the TM and 3 is on the schedule for Wed. 

So now my question is how often & how far do you run your V's?

Kobi -- we are in ILLINI country  
We have run the Illinois marathon for the past 2 years, its a great race! This year is looking like the half for us, trying to work on some speed ----Gotta get faster if I'm going to run with Miles ;D


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## Kobi

Just curious, what has the vet said about increasing his running? I've heard it is bad on the joints when they are not fully grown. Isn't Miles about 8 months?

Are you in Champaign? Going to the game on Saturday? I should be there tailgating with Kobi! We are not going TO the game though, just going to watch it on TV while we tailgate (I'd leave the puppy at home if we were going to the game obviously).


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## minnere

My husband and I both run marathons but our vet and breeder told us we needed to wait until Pacer is at least a year old before we do the routine running thing. We live in Ohio. Anyone coming to Cincinnati for the Flying Pig Marathon in May? It's a tough one but a ton of fun! You should check it out and we could have a V reunion!


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## countrycruiser

HEY ...... ILL INI ;D

Yes I know I knew better : Everything I have read says not to do any high mileage till he is a year. I got carried away yesterday - My hubby had a fit when I told him -- I'm had to promise not taking him out any further then our usual 1.5 -- just a few more months, and its for the best for him. 

No game for us this week-end we will be running a 4 X 40 mile relay in Charleston. Hoping the rain holds off for both the game and the run. -- If we had not already planned to do the relay we would be going to the game - should be a good one! 

Minnere -- We ran the Flying Pig a few years back. We ran it the year there was a fire and they had to re-route us -- It is a great race!! And yes very Hilly!! 

We are currently training to run the RNR half in Vegas Dec. 5th. --- Told our girls we are either doubling or nothing their Christmas present money -- we of course found it funnier then they did ;D

Do you have any suggestions on a coat for this winter?


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## Kobi

Good luck with the relay this weekend. At first I thought it was 4 people running 40 miles each, I thought for sure you were crazy. I looked it up on the internet and it doesn't sound bad at all. I've never done a relay outside of track


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## vizslarunner

we have been running our pup up to 4 miles. It's all off leash running. looping through a retirement community where there are very few cars. do you guys think this is going to harm him? he's only 4 months old, i think last week we ran 2 miles two days and four miles one day


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## vizslarunner

scratch that, first week in january tucker ran two 3 mile runs. 

last week he ran one four mile run.


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## Crazy Kian

This might help you out....

http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-238-527--13603-0,00.html
_
Don't start too young 
Puppies shouldn't run with you until their bones stop growing, since their joints are prone to injury. This takes about nine months in small dogs, while large breeds may grow for up to 16 months._


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## countrycruiser

It really is best for them to wait till they get older

It is VERY hard to wait though -- Miles is only getting in his daily walks and any running that he does is on his own in the back yard, and in the house of course ;D

Good thing that helps right now is its too cold here for me to even want to run outside 


He will be a year old on March 20th. I keep thinking " Think Spring"


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## Crazy Kian

countrycruiser said:


> It really is best for them to wait till they get older


I couldn't agree more.
Pretty soon Miles will be your training partner, just have to wait it out a little longer.


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## raps702

I can't wait till Axel gets old enough to start running with me, just going around the block is a chore at times. I am sure with time it will be the opposite, in the mean time I will just have to continue using my cardio machines at home and the gym..


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