amstaffy
Posted : 1/4/2007 8:35:02 AM
How far are you running and how fast do you feel you might be going?
I'll assume these girls are crated during the day when your working?
If they are crated then of course they'll want to get out and burn some energy off and they should, you just want to be careful of how much stress you put on them conversed to how much they need. I tend to use a long training lead (30 or 50 ft) to let my guys work out the bugs with their zoomies that way you can watch for when they are getting run down a little to work on some basic training comands since they like to think, work and play and play and play [
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Some times we think of how we feel when we are out and our energy levels and know when we need to turn back, as you said that Smokey ran harder I would say she was still full of herself so you must be judging the exercise well, just watch for lagging as you run as that will be the first sign that the girls are tiring and of course I know you already know that each one will use their energy differently.
I started road working Markie this past summer when we got serious about his showing this year as a beginner specials dog. It was very clear to my son and I when he was feeling full of himself or a little on the down side in his workouts. We did not run him daily, in fact one day was a workout ( 3/4 mile at a full trot) and the next day would be lunge line playing giving his body and muscles time to heal and still stay active. Keep in mind he is 4 not a pup.
Excercise is an important key to a well behaved dog and can be one of your best advantages to allow concentrated training time and always end your traing with play so the girtls look forward to working out and playing. The days are short now but you'll have more fun with this as we get into spring/summer.