# History of the AD



## GranvilleGSD (Mar 28, 2007)

I understand what the AD is, having done it with Izzy. I know that it is required for Breed Survey, and that it is to test the endurance, etc. However I was asked today by my flyball team the history of the test and I had no answer for them. When did they start doing it, how did they come up with the distance? Anybody know?


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## GSDTrain (Apr 21, 2008)

I think I read somewhere in the past that it started in the 1990's but I could be wrong. I am interested in hearing about it's history too. Sounds/Looks interesting....


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## GranvilleGSD (Mar 28, 2007)

Really? Nobody has any history?


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## Castlemaid (Jun 29, 2006)

Don't know how or when it came about, but when we did our AD, the judge, who was originally from Gemany and had a life-long involvement with Schutzhund, explained that when herding, a GSD easily covers, at a steady trot, 40 to 60 kms a day running the border of those huge flocks, and the AD (20 kms) was designed to ensure that this work ethic and focused endurance is maintained in the breed.


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## Deejays_Owner (Oct 5, 2005)

A dog with a HGH title does not have to do a AD for Breed Survey.


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## Castlemaid (Jun 29, 2006)

> Originally Posted By: Deejays_OwnerA dog with a HGH title does not have to do a AD for Breed Survey.


I never said it did, obviously a dog with an HGH has more than proven itself.


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## mjbgsd (Jun 29, 2004)

Very interesting.


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## bergwanderkennels (Mar 26, 2009)

I will ask next week the training director of my club and see what he says is the history of the AD. I will post back then.


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## VomBlack (May 23, 2009)

Silly question..but how is the AD carried out? Is the dog kept running on its own or..?


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## phgsd (Jun 6, 2004)

Handler rides a bike and the dog trots alongside. There are 2 breaks of about 20 minutes each if I remember right. Paw pads etc are checked and dogs are allowed to catch their breath during the breaks.


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## VomBlack (May 23, 2009)

I don't know why a bike never crossed my mind.


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## RavenSophi (Feb 23, 2009)

My worry is...how do you get the dog to run along side you! I've imagined being pulled off the bike and losing skin when Blake sees or smells something more interesting! I suppose that is where 'heel' comes in but still, you're not on your feet, you're balancing on a bike and can be pulled over so easily. So what is the first step...how do you 'teach' it?


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## RavenSophi (Feb 23, 2009)

I suppose you can always jog if you fit.


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## Castlemaid (Jun 29, 2006)

> Originally Posted By: RavenSophiMy worry is...how do you get the dog to run along side you! I've imagined being pulled off the bike and losing skin when Blake sees or smells something more interesting! I suppose that is where 'heel' comes in but still, you're not on your feet, you're balancing on a bike and can be pulled over so easily. So what is the first step...how do you 'teach' it?


I started by making sure that my dog had a very solid and realiable heel. Start out slow, of course. I used a prong on my girl to correct her if she wanted to stop or pull me off to investigate something. I would not recommend this for most dogs, but Keeta was a pretty hard case when it came to stuff like that. She now knows to ignore EVERYTHING and to just keep trotting. 

Springer bicycle attachements are allowed, and when we did our AD, the judge actually prefered them, as they are safer. I was the only one not using one. For the actual AD, dog has to be on fur saver dead ring. 

Breaks are 15 min each, as per the rule book. The judge we had timed the breaks down to the second. 

Jogging is not allowed, regardless of how fit you are







(show off!!!). Only a bicycle. But you someone else can bike your dog for you if you can't bike for some reason.


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## RavenSophi (Feb 23, 2009)

Oh...wonder why jogging isn't allowed. And believe me...I can't jog 15 steps without huffing and puffing so I'd just slow the doggles down. No thank you...
I think I'll hand Blake and the bike over to someone who won't die after just 5km! Hehehe!


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## Castlemaid (Jun 29, 2006)

You have to maintain an average speed of 12 to 15 kms per hour. A bit tough to do over a distance of 20 km at a jog, even if you were in marathon shape!


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## RavenSophi (Feb 23, 2009)

I see your point. Ah well, it's not like Blake is going to do the AD soon, if ever! He's a couch potato and can't even play with another dog for 5 minutes then his tongue is touching his shoulder!


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## BlackPuppy (Mar 29, 2007)

Anyway. This is what I found. 

- AD is a prerequisite for a Korung evaluation.

and

- AD : Ausdauerprüfung: Shake-down test. The dogs carry out au.trot a course of 20 km split in three stages: 8 km, 7 km and 5 km. 15 minutes of recovery to the first stop, 15 minutes with the second. At the beginning of the test and for each stop, the veterinary surgeon consigns the heart rate of the participants like their capacity of recovery. At the arrival, 20 minutes separate the first statement of heart rate from the second statement (that which indicates the level of recovery of the dog). The purpose of this test is to highlight malformations or cardiac insufficiencies. In France, one now finds the initials TE (endurance test) it is a certified copy of the German test. http://www.mickaelfauvel.com/gb/lexique.htm


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## W.Oliver (Aug 26, 2007)

Can anyone tell us thread readers on what type surface the distance is covered? City street pavement/blacktop, or is it more like dirt bike path sort of environment?


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## phgsd (Jun 6, 2004)

It depends on what facilities the club has access to. I did mine on a paved bike path. I've known others to be run on roads, others on dirt paths. You can usually ask ahead of time what surface it'll be run on so you can get the dog used to it. For example if the dog is used to running on dirt, but the AD is on pavement, their pads might not be tough enough to make it through the whole thing. So even if the dog is in good enough physical shape, its paws can cause you to fail. That is usually the biggest concern - most dogs that are in good shape can run an AD, but the pads need to hold up!


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## umzilla (Nov 2, 2007)

Crushed limestone. Awful!


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## Castlemaid (Jun 29, 2006)

When we did our AD, we were emailing the judge a lot to ask for rule clarifications. I asked what "mixed terrain" meant, as per the rule book. His answer was a mix of surfaces: like grass, dirt, pavement. 

We biked on the road, but the dogs could run on the dirt shoulder along most of the route. So it was a nice mix of paved road and hard-packed dirt. 

Crushed limestone, umzilla!!! That is waaaayyyyy crazy!


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## majitrix (Jun 30, 2007)

> Originally Posted By: CastlemaidWhen we did our AD, we were emailing the judge a lot to ask for rule clarifications. I asked what "mixed terrain" meant, as per the rule book. His answer was a mix of surfaces: like grass, dirt, pavement.
> 
> We biked on the road, but the dogs could run on the dirt shoulder along most of the route. So it was a nice mix of paved road and hard-packed dirt.
> 
> Crushed limestone, umzilla!!! That is waaaayyyyy crazy!


Question, did you do an AD with your mix breed with the GSSCC? I am wondering if you can do it with an unregistered dog. Thanks


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## Castlemaid (Jun 29, 2006)

Yes, I did it through our Schutzhund club wich is affiliated with the GSSCC.


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