dogsofmenace Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 I do a ton of biking, so I've been thinking about getting this or that to take my pups along with me. Who else bikes with their BC? If you do, do you have any advice or suggestions on it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PSmitty Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 Well, this is just word of mouth, but on another board, there are a couple of posters who have those bicycle attachments. I believe one of each, actually, and they seem happy with them. I have gone biking with Jack. He's very good about trotting along side the bike while I hold his leash (too busy of an area to let him off leash). In fact, my DH and I were just talking about getting back out there with him. I tried once with Lilly and after she almost killed us both, that was the end of that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grinning.girl Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 yeah, I know people with both, they like them, but I just hold the leash works great for me. I would be more afraid for my life if the dog was actually attached to the bike.... I can just see a small rodent or cat running by and then I go flying..... I have a bit more control with the leash in hand Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogsofmenace Posted July 11, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 I can just see a small rodent or cat running by and then I go flying..... I have a bit more control with the leash in hand That's what I'm worried about when holding the leash! XD Or that he'll dart out in front of the bike and I'll run him over or something I like the idea of them being at a certain distance from the bike and not being able to run into it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maralynn Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 If your dog is used to walking/jogging beside you it should be fairly simple to teach them to trot along with a bike. If you're having issues with walking nicely on a leash then you probably want to work on that a bit more before adding in the bike. I tried biking with Kipp today for the first time ever and he did great! I just use a harness and a leash, just not using the handle (I want to be able to drop it if need be). I start out on quiet roads and take it slow for a while. I did biking with Missy for a couple summers this way and never had any trouble. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bo Peep Posted July 11, 2008 Report Share Posted July 11, 2008 I had the 2nd one with the spring before I couldn't balance anymore. I gave it and my bike away. It comes with many plastic little ties that when or if your dog or YOU falls, both of you are safe. I would highly recommend the 2nd one. Now, I can't ride a bike anymore. Miss Lacey enjoyed it. Remember the pavement is hot on their pads. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrSnappy Posted July 12, 2008 Report Share Posted July 12, 2008 If you tie the leash to the seatpost of your bike, the dog cannot pull you over. It's all about geometry. Don't ever hold the leash in your hand; this is a surefire way to cause an accident as a dog can easily pull you off balance or what have you. You don't really need the attachments at all. Just make sure the dog can't get in front of your wheel (another great way to cause an accident). I don't bike with my dogs - there are too many of them, and I bike on the street where dogs should never be! But back in the day I used to bike every day with Briggs and we never had a problem. RDM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cvmthacker Posted July 12, 2008 Report Share Posted July 12, 2008 I use the Pyramid attachment to run my guy (Pyramid Bicycle Dog Leash). I researched both the Springer and WalkyDog attachments, but finally decided on the Pyramid attachment after consulting with my friendly neighborhood science geek. He said that from a Physics standpoint, you want the dog attached low on the bike so that they can't pull you over. My dog is 55 pounds of crazy and even when a squirrel crossed our path, he wasn't able to pull me over. The back tire skipped slightly, but no loss of control. I should mention that if your bike has disc brakes, this attachment probably won't work as it attaches to the bike at the rear wheel. My only warning about biking with your dog would be to be careful of loose dogs. My experience is that NO dog can resist a crazy dog pulling a bicycle past them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silhouettestable Posted July 12, 2008 Report Share Posted July 12, 2008 A lot of people bike-jor with their sled dogs if they want to exercise just a couple at a time when there's no snow. They don't use any special attachments except maybe a bungee bridle (to reduce any jerking on the dogs and the rider/driver) which attaches to the front of the bike below the handlebars I believe. The key is to teach the dog(s) to "line out" and keep the tug line (or leash) tight at all times so it doesn't tangle and use your brakes going downhill so the bike/rig doesn't begin to overtake the dogs and allow a slack line. I didn't trust my own balance on a bike well enough anymore so dh made me a 3-wheeled training rig for running my dogs. So far I've run 3 on it at a time and it works great. It has an area to attach the bridle on the front steering column, to which I just hook both ends of a black rubber bungee. There is a guide arm welded on that sticks out over the front wheel that has an eye bolt through which I thread the other end of the bungee and then attach my lines. Here's a picture, hopefully in the resized version you can see the attachment clearly enough: p.s. it's always good if your dog(s) know "whoa" and "leave it" or "on by". I've so far encountered a squirrel running up the trail ahead of me (and a friend's dogs who were scootering beside me cut me off to give chase since it was on my side of the trail and ducked down into the bushes), a few rabbits and the odd loose dog. We've also intentionally run behind a rider on my horse to really get the dogs moving, and just missed encountering a moose that my rider saw just before we got to that part of the trail. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grinning.girl Posted July 12, 2008 Report Share Posted July 12, 2008 That's what I'm worried about when holding the leash! XD Or that he'll dart out in front of the bike and I'll run him over or something I like the idea of them being at a certain distance from the bike and not being able to run into it. Yeah I forgot to mention that i don't bike w/dog w/o halti. and she has been hit once with the bike and now knows to stay clear of the wheels Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogsofmenace Posted July 12, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 12, 2008 Wow that sled rig looks like a ton of fun! I'm going to look into all these options. For now I'm going to just get him used to walking nicely by the bike and we'll go from there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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