[babyblues]

What are your opinions on treadmills and what are some decent treadmills?

[maryellen]

treadmills are awesome exercise machines for when its raining, too hot, too cold, for dogs to exercise (and humans to). the most important part is to ALWAYS be there supervising the dog, and to teach the dog how to use it properly.

[fearlessknight]

To add a little to that...please make sure the dog is old enough, puppies are not required a great deal of excercise, and can be harmful to them.
Also, make sure when you do start, you start out slowly and let them work up on their own pace....they will enjoy it more.

[babyblues]

Thanks for the replys

To add a little to that...please make sure the dog is old enough, puppies are not required a great deal of excercise, and can be harmful to them. Also, make sure when you do start, you start out slowly and let them work up on their own pace....they will enjoy it more.

like what would be an appropiate age for the dogs to start the treadmills?
got any good websites for them?

[bahamutt99]

Just wanted to add, you might want to check your local laws before you get a treadmill. In some places, owning a mill and a Pit Bull will get you branded a dog fighter. It doesn't make any sense whatsoever since people with show dogs (non-bullbreed) exercise their dogs on mills. But I guess they figure paraphernalia laws don't have to make sense, since Pit Bull owners are all criminals anyway.

[fearlessknight]

Originally Posted by babyblues Thanks for the replys like what would be an appropiate age for the dogs to start the treadmills? got any good websites for them?

Around 1 is good to start slowly....some people do start earlier, sometimes it depends on the dog.....but 1 is always (usually) a safe bet...just go slow.....a couple of minutes a day and let her/him work up from that.....

[babyblues]

ok thanks for the advice

[wheezie]

i want slate mill but cant afford one right now so i bought a cheap e mill. got my dog used to it in about 2 days and now he loves the thing

[maryellen]

this is how mine works out on the treadmill, its my treadmill, so i sometimes share it with the dogs..

jesse trying to motivate rufus...come on rufus.. no pain no gain!!




its really not working- you want me to what??? exert myself???




no way.. sorry, i dont exert myself for anything

[wheezie]

this is him learning how to walk on the mill



this is him after knowing what to do

[Galadriel]

LOL! Holy crap! He's a moose! Very cute =)
I'd love to get Hera on the treadmill at work when she's old enough, but I think she'd probably pee herself =)

[wheezie]

yeah hes a big guy lol.. definitly not a APBT. after the treadmill i usuaally do some firtpole or let him play with his spring pole.



i find this to be a good work out plan for him plus the spring pole is like a treat to him

[EDOGZ818]

Electric mills require close supervision. They all do, but electric even more so. If the dog gets to tired, they could hang themselves. Overwork is the #1 cause of injury on electric mills. Free turning (IE: Slat & Carpet) afford the dog the oppurtunity to stop on thier own, whenever they see fit.
Just my $00.02
P.S. - Its a good practice to massage the dog afterward, as well as give them a long walk afterward. The walk and massage helps out the muscles, after the work out.

[wheezie]

i agree with doing a rub down after every workout also. and use comon sense when it comes to how hard you are working your dog you should be able to see if the dog is tired or not. another thing to do in the begining is to check your dogs pads to see how worn they are. Make sure thet are not cracking at all.

[EDOGZ818]

Yes, pads are a definate problem, most will encounter when working with a noob. (APBT or OWNER) They sell a commercial pad toughener, not sure what its called. Gradual, consistant work, will toughen the pads accordingly. Also, on a slatmill, dog placement is critical. To far back, the dog slips off. To far forward, toes can get pinched in the slats. The dog moves forward and back, depending on his speed & momemtum, so knowing the dog and mill is very important.

[wheezie]

theres many iffernt types and brands you can use to toghen up your dogs pads here is one example

http://www.coldspotfeeds.com/product...44794&idBasket=

[DivineOblivion19]

My Corgi is treadmill trained. She has anxiety issues from a demented puppyhood and she blames her parents. Ok, so not really, but kinda...

Anyway, she is my running partner. The exercise really takes the edge off. But with the harsh winters in the Chicago area I wasn't running outside let alone make my dog run in that. But she still needed her exercise (otherwise she'd start peeing all over the house). So I put her on the mill! It only took a few times for her to really get used to it. So once she was fine with it I got on the elliptical next to her and we worked out together!

I love my treadmill, it keeps me from killing my foster dog , the old adage a tired dog is a good dog definitely applies to her.

I prefer a real treadmill, they have softer decks which are much easier on the joints (mine and theirs!) and a longer base which prevents fall over.

But supervision is always a must with any electric treadmill, accidents can and do happen even when you turn your head for a second!

[demo-dog]

This is a great thread, with solid info. Thanks to everyone who's contributed!

[tat2stuff]

here's a good article on tread mill work

http://www.pitbulllovers.com/trainin...mill-work.html

here's a few links to some quality mills

http://www.colbypitbull.com/treadmil.htm

http://www.grandcarpetmill.com/deluxe.htm