# treadmill or not?



## cptduke (Aug 22, 2012)

I'm thinking about training the pup on our new treadmill. We go on 2-3 walks per day plus a lot of running around the back yard several times per day and it still just isn't enough, I need to add more to his daily activity level. Plus, winter here = very cold! 

To those of you who have treadmill trained: Does it do damage to the belt thing to have your pup (and his claws) on the treadmill? 

To everyone: Why or why not do treadmill training?


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

I run Lucy on the treadmill when there's a lot of snow/ice on the ground or it's raining really hard and she's driving me nuts. I always prefer getting her out, but I use it when I don't have any other options.

The belt doesn't really get damaged, but don't expect it to stay clean. Lots of dog drool dripping from her tongue as she runs combined with her fur flying around. You're going to have to constantly clean it unless you really don't care about the thing. Do you keep his nails short? The shorter the nails... the less it's going to come in contact with the belt. 

And you mentioned he's a puppy... how old is he exactly? I don't think I started mine on the treadmill until she was about a year and a half. Takes a little time to get used to so start slow and don't expect him to like it right off the bat.


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

I would love to do it but most human treadmills aren't long enough for the stride of a GSD and I don't want my dog's stride "cramped" by the equipment since he is also a performance/working dog and I do show him as well. If I could get a real dog treadmill, I'd definitely use it!


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## cptduke (Aug 22, 2012)

Lucy Dog said:


> I run Lucy on the treadmill when there's a lot of snow/ice on the ground or it's raining really hard and she's driving me nuts. I always prefer getting her out, but I use it when I don't have any other options.
> 
> The belt doesn't really get damaged, but don't expect it to stay clean. Lots of dog drool dripping from her tongue as she runs combined with her fur flying around. You're going to have to constantly clean it unless you really don't care about the thing. Do you keep his nails short? The shorter the nails... the less it's going to come in contact with the belt.
> 
> And you mentioned he's a puppy... how old is he exactly? I don't think I started mine on the treadmill until she was about a year and a half. Takes a little time to get used to so start slow and don't expect him to like it right off the bat.


He's just over 7 months old and he weighs 90 pounds, because of that I know running is not an option right now. I was thinking maybe 1/4 or 1/2 mile every other day.. once he gets used it of course. I would still take him outside like I normally do, I just feel like he isn't getting as much exercise as he needs. 

If I need to wait until he is older I definitely will. I just want to make sure I'm doing everything to keep him happy/healthy. 

Good to know about the belt not getting ruined. I don't mind cleaning it frequently.


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## onyx'girl (May 18, 2007)

Is there anyplace you can swim him? That would be better than running, especially w/ his size.


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

That's a pretty big boy being that big at that age. Is he overweight?

Just do some light jogging or fast walking at this age. Definitely don't push him and see how he takes to it.

My dogs is about 24" and 75 pounds and I have no problem with her having enough room for a fast jog stride. I don't run her full speed on the thing though. It's probably not long enough for that.


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## Liesje (Mar 4, 2007)

Nikon's 24.5" and 75 lbs and I doubt he'd fit on any human treadmill I can afford (key phrase there being "I can afford" lol), but like I said I show him so I might have a different idea of what it looks like running him at a comfortable gait. He's not extremely angulated but does have decent reach.


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## cptduke (Aug 22, 2012)

Lucy Dog said:


> That's a pretty big boy being that big at that age. Is he overweight?
> 
> Just do some light jogging or fast walking at this age. Definitely don't push him and see how he takes to it.
> 
> My dogs is about 24" and 75 pounds and I have no problem with her having enough room for a fast jog stride. I don't run her full speed on the thing though. It's probably not long enough for that.


Vet says he has perfect health and not overweight at all. We're pretty surprised about it too! He's our gigantic baby.  And thank you for your input. I really appreciate it.

Where on the dog do you measure how tall they are? Shoulder height?


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## TaraM1285 (Sep 24, 2009)

Tara's stride is too long to trot or run on the only human treadmill I have access to. I think it is an inexpensive one with ~4' belt. I can only walk her on it. She is 23.5" at the withers (yes, shoulders) and 64 lbs. She does not have a long reach at all, either.

Training him to walk on the treadmill can take a little time and can be a little extra mental stimulation in addition to the physical benefits. It wore Tara out pretty well till she got used to it even if we only worked on it for 5 minutes at a time.


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## cptduke (Aug 22, 2012)

Ok, assuming I measured correctly, right at the tip of his shoulder blade, he is just under 26". I have a big dog. Lol. Our treadmill has a 5' belt so that should help give him a little more room. I didn't even think about the mental stimulation. Bonus! 

Next question: How did you train them to walk on the treadmill?


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## TaraM1285 (Sep 24, 2009)

There are tons of ways to do it...

I clicker trained Tara to walk on the treadmill. I shaped it by first having her interact with the treadmill while it was off, then run across it like a dog walk in agility (still off), then turn it on to condition her to the noise. Finally, started click/treating for paw touches while it was on and then got her to jump up and run across it. In the beginning I didn't care if she bailed off the front or sides since she was still getting used to it. I kept the speed very slow in the beginning to let her get used to it and only very slowly increased. 

She got to the point in this video in maybe 3 sessions of 5-10 minutes, but I think I should have gone a little slower with her.





A few tips that I had sent to some folks while we were training...
- Before the dog tries to get on while the treadmill is moving, make sure he/she will get on while it is still. Dogs will probably be more comfortable if they can walk across the treadmill while it’s stationary before trying it moving.

- This treadmill is relatively quiet, but it is a good idea to make sure the sound isn’t an issue before trying to get the dog on the treadmill.

- 0.5 is the lowest speed this treadmill will go and a nice slow starting speed.

- If you train with food/toys (and even if you don’t normally but want to for this), either would make for a good lure to keep the dog’s head forward and body centered on the treadmill, so using their favorite toy, dinner or lots of small soft treats is a good idea. I actually used baby food to give something to Tara to just take a lick every now and then. I found that she had the most trouble when she would walk like a drunk person and veer from side to side and put her paws on the stationary part, so keeping her centered was important. 

- Just learning to walk on the treadmill was exhausting for Tara, so go slow and give them plenty of breaks.

ETA - I think there is a thread somewhere with more info and details, if I can find it I'll come back and post it later.


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## TaraM1285 (Sep 24, 2009)

I used a pretty similar process to the video in this post.

http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/equipment-how-use-where-find/152401-new-treadmill.html#post2324578


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## Syaoransbear (Sep 25, 2008)

I've never seen a human treadmill long enough for my dog to use. I think our belt is 68" and it still isn't long enough for him to do more than a slow walk. Any faster and his feet fall off the back.

One thing you have to watch out for with treadmills is that when a dog is exercising it stimulates their bowels. Don't be surprised when your dog squats mid-stride and drops some poops on your treadmill, which get flung off the back of the belt .


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

Syaoransbear said:


> One thing you have to watch out for with treadmills is that when a dog is exercising it stimulates their bowels. Don't be surprised when your dog squats mid-stride and drops some poops on your treadmill, which get flung off the back of the belt .


HA! I can definitely vouch for that. 

I learned very quickly to make sure the dog has already done his/her business prior to going on the treadmill.


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## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

I have not done it because of the length concern but I sure would like to. I can walk the dog on my own and I need the excercise and he can chase balls but I want him on a stready trot and he is a long dog and really racks out when he moves.

Got a used scooter to try road work but it won't pull the hills in the neighborhood [even a bike would be a challenge for that]


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## Sunflowers (Feb 17, 2012)

We have a large size JogaDog and Hans uses just about all the space on the belt. I like having the gait bar and the railings, too.
People think this is over the top, but I tell them the treadmill is for me.
It came in handy when I was sick or could not leave the house, or it was so hot or rainy that it was not feasible to go walking.
This was yesterday. He did a total of 90 minutes, one session am and one pm.


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## NancyJ (Jun 15, 2003)

I have thought about a carpet mill / slat mill but can those work for aerobic conditioning? They are certainly more affordable.


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## Grizzpup (Aug 4, 2012)

My GSD loves the treadmill! He could walk on it for hours on end. It is also one of his favorite sleeping spots! I would highly recommend getting one


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