Beginners Guide to Jogging with your Dog

Any dog owner will tell you that a tired dog is a happy dog.  (And happy dogs make for happy owners!)  One of the best ways you can keep you dog physically fit is to start a jogging routine.  Jogging tones muscles, prevents obesity, strengthens bones & the cardiovascular system, improves sleep, releases endorphins, and increases alertness.  For dogs, a jogging routine also provides added socialization opportunities with other dogs and humans. It’s also great time spent one-on-one with your best friend.  The best thing – you benefit from all of the above as well!

So where do you start?  First and foremost, contact your veterinarian.  Talk about your dog’s breed, medical history and past injuries to see if it’s safe to start a running routine.  Once you have the go-ahead from your vet, ease into the routine.  Remember when you started to run.  Could you hit the pavement and run five miles on your first outing?  Dogs will often not let you know how tired or sore they are.  Their natural tendency is to keep up with their leader and this might mask any type of discomfort they are feeling.  They are just thrilled to be out and about and will most likely overexert themselves before letting you know they need a break.

If your dog is overweight, take the added weight into consideration – it will put more stress on his/her joints.  Be sure to talk to your vet about safe weight loss.  (And remember – we control how much food our dogs eat.  Weight loss for dogs is sometimes as simple as feeding them a bit less food!)  If your dog is obese, it might be best to start a gentle walking routine first, and gradually work up to a walk/jog, and then finally a jog.

If you are new to running, then consider yourself lucky.  You have the best training partner around and you’re about to embark on a life changing journey!  Do not expect to be able to lace up your sneakers and run for 30 minutes straight.  Not only is that dangerous, it’s also going to lead to a very painful tomorrow.  Take it easy – your dog (and your leg muscles) will thank you.  Start with a nice five minute warm up of brisk walking, then ease into a walk/jog combo.  Some people advocate to walk for a few minutes, then jog for a few minutes. Every week you’ll gradually increase the jogging time and decrease the walking times until you’re jogging for the entire work out.  And don’t forget to cool down by walking for the last few minutes.

Some tips to remember:

• Establish a regular exercise routine.  You and your dog will be much less prone to injury if you keep it up 3-4 times per week, rather than trying to do it once a month.  Any exercise is wonderful, but keep in mind how OFTEN you exercise.  It will let you know how HARD you can exercise.  (Dogs tend to just give it their all.  You have to be their monitor.)
• Remember to let your dog sniff occasionally.
• Your dog will probably need to go to the bathroom at some point during the run.   Don’t forget to bring bags!  Bags that attach to the leash are extremely handy for running excursions.
• Keep your dogs nails trimmed short to prevent them from splitting during a run.
• Watch out for glass or sharp rocks.  You’re wearing sneakers; your dog is not.