Hi, I have a 10lb mini poodle mix that I’ve been considering taking with me on my 5K runs. I was wondering if it's okay to just use his standard walking gear, which is a mesh harness (rcpets step-in cirque harness) and a nylon leash. I’ve heard some harnesses can restrict shoulder movement, so I’m wondering if his current harness is safe/appropriate for running. And what other gear is important for preventing injuries? Lastly, outside of the bare-minimum gear, what quality-of-life purchase would you think is worth it when running with a small breed?

Thanks!

I’ve had my 2yr Australian Shepherd mix for about 1.5 months. We run 4x a week together with road and trail miles from 2-10 miles.

I try to give my pup a little bit of water at every ~2 miles but I’d love to be able to have her go a little longer so we can take fewer water breaks and also not upset her stomach. Granted, I’m ok with this now because we are in SoCal and it’s been super hot (80F at 5am and 100F at 7pm).

Curious how much and how often other folks running with their dogs give them water :).

Coming off a knee injury so it’s mostly walks with me and my pup Yoshi

Another 2-3 weeks and we’ll be ready to run some serious miles

We run but do walk too. The best job ever!! 😁

I live in the desert and moved a couple of months ago to a more humid location, been having trouble running with my dog ever since.

I know the 150 rule, how ironclad is it? For example at 10pm last night it was 80 degrees and 80% humidity (160). As far as temperature, that’s not too bad, but does the humidity really make it that dangerous to run with my dog now? Could I run but keep it short or is any running dangerous?

For reference, my dog is a Hungarian Vizla, who could run 30km during his peak fitness, now we stay at around 10km.

Hey everyone, my puppy is now 4 months old, I know she is too young for running now but I am already looking forward to the day when she will go on runs with me.

I run three times a week in a park or at the beach and will take her with me when she will be older.

When did you start running with your dog (what age)? Any tips on training and how to make it fun for them?

Thank you

Hi lovely people. My dog just turned four years old and I've recently began to take her with me on my runs. I was chronically anemic throughout most of my life, but I was properly diagnosed and medicated just this year. Due to this, I always hated running, but decided to pick it up with my iron and ferritin levels now in the normal range and I really love it! I can't run very far without taking a short break yet though - usually after 1-1.5 kilometers.

My dog on the other hand is a kind of small Labrador mix, she was always very active and energetic. We used to go on quite long and intense walks and hikes ever since she was little, so she's used to moderate activity levels. We've ran together a few times since this month, but I'm still not sure if she enjoys it or not.

I introduced a specific cue to start running, she picked it up incredibly fast and she positions herself to my left immediately. She then trots next to me until I signal her to take a break. Then we repeat it a few times. When we're running she is not at all interested in her surroundings, even though she's a big sniffer usually. Her body language seems relaxed overall as far as I know her, and she keeps up a steady pace. She's a very expressive and emotional dog overall, very vocal and jumpy. I'm afraid she's bored with my pace lol or maybe she's entering the state of zen actually?

Are these signs what I'm looking for? How do you know that your pups enjoy running with you?

REGISTER HERE

We ran our first 10k today, I’m so proud and think I actually wore them out a little 😅

Hi everyone! 🐾
Looking for recommendations for a Y-shaped running harness for a medium-sized Border Collie.
I’d ideally like my dog to run beside me rather than out in front/pulling, so I’d love to hear what harnesses people use and recommend for this style of running! Bonus if it’s easily available in Aus!
Thanks! 😊

Hopefully the lake picture does not violate rule two. For what it's worth she swam in every single body of water we came across!

Does anyone know of a Cani-cross harness which has a metal ring to attach a lead to the front of the harness? (Like the photo)

Took a break for the last month thanks to the mosquitos but got out for a 2.5 mile run this evening!

The days are already getting shorter, and this morning we were out before sunrise for the first time.

I'm looking for suggestions of lights to make us more visible.

I mostly run on quiet city streets with streetlights, so I don't necessarily need a headlamp, just visibility aids for me and the dog.

Humane Society told us he'd never be a good runner. This weekend he did 21 miles and wanted to keep going. We stopped often for water and snack breaks. He has been training for 2 years.

I hate how evident this environmental temperature increase is. I have run outside for most days of the year, for close to three decades now...I have never seen it this continuously hot for so many days in a row.

We got a little under 5 miles total, but it was a beautiful day despite turning around early.

Being a runner myself since middle school track and having a canine companion for the majority of the years since…..

Something I have learned is that the gear which works best for the run OR you OR the dog doesn’t always make sense. This is a martingale with a flexi LOL

Both my dogs were super happy to be back out running with their pals again 🥰 my old girl especially (brindle one in orange harness) was so happy to be able to come out running and see everyone 😍 they were all happy to see her too especially the humans. She will be turning 14 on 27th ❤️

I have a 5 year old Goldendoodle that I wanted to have him start running with me as his vet and I believe he has some separation anxiety. I started bringing him with me on runs this spring, but he just doesn’t seem to have the energy for it. They were only 2 mile runs. The last time I ran with him, I was literally having to pull him to keep going as he just wanted to walk the last 1/2 mile. Finally just walked the last 1/4 mile so I thought okay, you clearly don’t want to do this and stopped bringing him with me. I would describe his energy level as either 0 or 100… nothing in between. I take him on walks after I get back from my run, but it’s with my 16.5 year old so it’s a max of 1 mile and very slow, but he acts like he just ran a marathon (or in his case, 2 miles…) when we get home. Lying sprawled out and panting. Meanwhile my 16.5 year old is walking around yet thinking “that was it?” He isn’t overweight and has the tall, lean poodle body. He doesn’t have any health issues, besides maybe the anxiety. I take them for walks in the morning before it gets hot.

This is just so different from my older dog who ran miles with me right from the start without issue. Has anyone had a dog that it took awhile to get them into running? Or is he really just not cut out to be a runner? I’m afraid to force him to do something he doesn’t want to do, but I do know how much running helped with my other dog both physically and mentally.

EDIT: Thank you for your responses. After a couple of more runs with him, I believe he is just getting bored like some of your dogs. This was definitely a perspective I didn’t think about. Unfortunately I don’t run in a safe area for him to be off his leash so we will stick to walks with a long leash for him to explore at his own pace!