How Much Exercise?

[stroller 341]

After watching a few dogs collapse or just jack in working This season (Mentioned in an earlier thread) How much daily exercise do you give your dogs to keep them fit and do you do anymore on the build up to the season?

 

I must admit i exercise my dogs a lot (We home board and do day care for dogs so we are constantly exercising mutts) I vary the terrain just to stop us getting bored but the working dogs run beside the bike and do a fair bit of swimming in the summer. I know that they do get a lot fitter during the season my big dog feels like he is made of steel by the time the grouse is finished and we go onto pheasent.

[greenshank1 407]

Hi stroller

 

I did increase the exercise on run up to the beating season to make sure she was more than fit enough to handle a full days beating. At 16 months she was pretty fit anyway but did do a lot more roadwork on the lead and my wife runs so she took her running in the forest to do 5 mile runs and that made a big difference to the dogs fitness. Roadwork on the lead works for lurchers so is definitely good for labs.

 

Swimming is also a brilliant way to keep them fit in the summer when it's too warm . I take her for retrieves out the loch and the shore so I can do plenty of retrieves and keep her cool.

Some dogs you see you wonder if they are out the kennel in between shoot days .......

[stroller 341]

I know what you mean usually those are the poor dogs that are getting a kicking because their owners expect them to do everything perfectly even though they have had no training during the off season!

[ftm 3,357]

i take koda out for 1 & half hours in morning and about 2 after tea every day rain or shine & if im out shooting he accompanies me & never seems to get tired ,he can do a few days beating on the trot no bother -billy

[loumic 47]

I walk all my dogs the same all year round which a good couple of hours but my spaniels when not on the leads are training so they know no differents when the season come and i also up there food.

[RubyTex 1,957]

I just increase distance in the run up to the season, now it's over i'm down to about a 3 mile walk twice a day then let them off on the fields to muck about and swim in the ponds.

 

In the run up to the season i try to get them down the beach as often as i can, lots of running and proper swimming especially if it's a hot summer, we usually walk up the coast for about 4/5 miles, then back again. Hoping for a nice day tomorrow actually so i can have a wander down the sea front for a look out!