Stops dead during bike ride??

Pareeeee

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#1
I go biking with Fidget, usually just two blocks in town.

The problem is, she poops EVERY time I go on a bike ride, and there is absolutely NO warning. She just stops dead! It's not very compatible with a bike that is going forward...other times she will just stop dead to sniff a leaf...

How do I stop this??? It's bad because she just stops without warning and it either is going to end with me falling off my bike or her getting dragged a few feet because it takes a sec for me to grab the brakes and stop...She has already had a toe skinned because of this.

Do I have to stop biking with her or can this be fixed? I don't want to stop cuz it's really fun for both of us.

PS: It does NOT matter if she just went poo right before the bike ride, she WILL go again during it. (why?)
 

SaraB

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#2
Classic does it too... but not to sniff a leaf, but to poop. No warning, no slowing down, doesn't matter if he pooped right before we left, he will slam on the breaks sometime during every bike ride to drop a pile. 135lbs of sudden dead weight on a bike that's traveling at a good clip does not end well for the rider. LOL.

For him, I started to give him poop breaks and put it on cue (the best I could, LOL). Maybe giving her a couple sniff breaks would help?

ETA: didn't see that she was pooping too!! Weirdos. LOL
 

mrose_s

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#3
Quinn I'm just starting to bike with. My rule is when we are walking she can stop and sniff all she likes - on the bike the has to keep moving, I'm lucky that she doesn't like to toilet outside the yard and doesn't mark. but we've had a couple of incidents where she has stopped dead to sniff. I always hold the leash in my hand over the handlebars so if she does I can give her a bit of leeway before I drag her. I do just keep going though and expect her to keep up.

From memory isn't your pup still pretty young? Careful biking with a og before 12 or even 18 months. Quinn didn't start untill 12 months old and even now I won't go more than about 2km's and 90% of that has to be on grass not concrete to protect her joints.
 

MafiaPrincess

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#4
I wouldn't be forcing a dog under a year into forced exercise. It's one thing to romp in the park, it is another to run or bike with a dog. They may be willing to keep up with you even if it isn't the speed they are comfortable with and possibly beyond their level of exertion.

The pooping could be stress or excitement. Cider on a simple walk goes multiple times. It used to be some excitement, it has turned into additional marking. I rollerblade with her, and ask her to go on command. There are usually cues that she is thinking about going again and I slow down and wait for it. I also never loop my leash on me so if the worst happens I can drop it and not cause her neck to be forced to a halt.
 

Pareeeee

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#5
I thought that small dog breed's growth plates closed at 6 months? Fidget is almost 10 months old now, therefore shouldn't her skeleton be fully developed? I know it's bad for large-breed dogs to have endurance exercise at this age since they grow more slowly and their growth plates don't close until 14(I think) months? but I was sure it was different for small breeds.

mrose_s: The thing with Fidget is that it wouldn't matter if she's allowed to poop on walks or not, she just SUDDENLY realizes that she can't hold it and just starts going. (she has done this in the house in the middle of some hard play. Seems excersize just makes her poop without warning!!!)

MafiaPrincess:
They may be willing to keep up with you even if it isn't the speed they are comfortable with and possibly beyond their level of exertion.
Believe me, it's not beyond her level of excertion...she wants me to go faster...I never get any excersize when I bike with her because she wants to be a sled dog the whole time, and PULL me down the road...I have to force her to stop and take a rest during a bike ride because she doesn't want to stop.

I LITERALLY have not seen another dog with as much energy as Fidget. JRT's couldn't keep up with her LOL! I have to take her on bike-rides and do mental training/tricks etc. with her and she will still be crazy hyper...
 

Dekka

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#6
Nope, they tend to close at 9 months, but the risks are not just to open joints. (and your dog could early or late with closing)

Energy level has nothing to do with it. Dekka was really fit last year. She is not high energy in the way that most people think, but could keep going steadily. (we conditioned her gradually) Or you take a dog like Cider who will go till her paws bleed and is stiff/injured... I just remebered Kaiden wore down his paw pads playing ball on a rough surface not worked up too. He was leaving bloody foot prints and still wanted to play....

As the owner its YOUR job to make sure your dog isn't over doing it. ESP with high energy dogs, they often go far beyond what is healthy.
 
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#7
At 10 months I would not be going very far just yet. It's not as black and white as "at 6 months they are done growing" it really is different for every dog just like it is with people. That and this is new to her, you have to slowly build up how long you bike with them. Not saying you are doing it all wrong, because you never said how far you have been going. ;) There is nothing wrong with starting her on the bike now, just start with a slow pace and don't go very far for a couple more months. 10 mins tops for now is what I would do. Do you have a grassy area for her to run while your biking? Pavement/cement is very tough on their joints and paws...

The pulling thing is going to put more stress on her joints than running, if she is good a loose leash walks then you can transfer that over to bike rides by training her the same way but with a bike.

I've did a bit of research on this subject and apparently most dogs WILL have to poo after about 1/4 mile. That running has a sort of laxitive effect. It seems true for Lacey, she does the whole *dead stop* and has me frantically ripping the leash off of me so I can drop it (and braking at the same time) so I wont drag her. I either clip the leash on my waist or more reccently I have been clipping it and wearing it over my shoulder and over my head (think of the way people wear messenger bags). I don't go fast anyways, she just trots most of the time but I still don't want to jerk her neck lol.

One thing that I do that helps her is I stop every 100ft for the first few mins so she has the chance to poo, and by the third stop she usually poops and I can just keep going from that point on without any poop breaks. Since I started doing this she rarley does the *run run run runnning* *stops dead in tracks to poo* thing.

I do feel your pain.

Crazy dogs.
 

Pareeeee

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#8
Thanks for all the answers. DogKisses: Actually, the first sentence I said that I usually go two blocks. I don't think our little village blocks are a big as a huge city block lol.
 

Lolas Dad

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#9
If you want to go biking with your dog and keep it safe get one of these.





They make them in two different sizes. This is the medium size and they have a larger size also. This way you can have your dog with you but not have the dog get injured. You could also ride as far as you want without the dog getting tired. They also fold flat for easy storage.
 
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#10
If you want to go biking with your dog and keep it safe get one of these.
She's biking with her dog to run off some of it's energy and exercise it, that contraption in no way would lead to either of those being accomplished.

Can't help sorry! Mine have never quite learned that pooping and running along a bike don't go well together though yesterday Traveler decided to just poop while running and never slowed down :rofl1:

I agree with the frequent stops until they poop after you start. I find mine poop in the same place every time usually so I always just stop there and it works. Even if they didn't think they had to go they do and that cuts out any sudden poop stops usually
 

Dekka

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#11
A few comments. One if you are doing it to run off energy, beware of increasing fitness. Its a common issue on JRT lists. People keep getting their JRTs fitter and fitter trying to wear them out physically, only making them need more and more exercise to settle.

Also you may want to be careful as your dog is from brachycephalic origins. Her face isn't as short as a pug but still...
 

Aleron

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#12
I really don't think that 2 blocks is too far to bike with a 10 month old puppy, especially not a 10 month old small breed. Most research suggests that hard exercise is actually good for growing bones any way :)

Try to see if you notice her tending to go after a certain time frame like she usually stops about a block and a half into it or after 15 minutes of running. It's not unusual for dogs to have to poop after they have been running. LOL at Traveler pooping while running - he must have heard that's how sled dogs do it!

This is an interesting article about conditioning for the AD, a soundness test for GSDs that requires the dogs cover 12.5 miles beside a bike at a pace of 7-9 mph. SiriusDog.com - Conditioning for the Ausdauerprfung (AD)
 

Dekka

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#13
Hard exercise IS good for bones (it helps build denser bone). Forced exercise less so. And bones are not the only worry. Soft tissue damage is harder to heal and can have life long consequences.
 

Danefied

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#14
Can't help you with the pooping thing - just learn how to deal I guess LOL.

Just wanted to echo what's already been said about forced exercise - however short the distance. You will hopefully have this dog for 10 to 15 years, PLENTY of time for many, many bike rides. Waiting a little longer for full maturity might save you a lifetime of orthopedic issues and NO bike rides...

There's so much fun stuff you can do with a pup to wear them out that doesn't include repetitive motion on pavement. Swimming, fetch, playing with other safe dogs... And don't forget plain old obedience and training will wear 'em out more than anything - using the noggin' is hard work!!
 

SaraB

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#15
Just thought I'd throw out a suggestion if you are uncomfortable with the repetitive motion on pavement; I run my dogs on grass. They are trained to stay on grass while I bike on a side walk or on the street. I don't bike anywhere that doesn't have this option.
 
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#16
I really don't think that 2 blocks is too far to bike with a 10 month old puppy, especially not a 10 month old small breed.
Ditto. Especially if like SaraB suggested and the dog is running in the grass. I think it's a good start for teaching the dog how to run next to a bike, great way to start pairing commands with actions and building up a little endurance and muscle for later on when she's older.

LOL at Traveler pooping while running - he must have heard that's how sled dogs do it!
My friend was biking behind me and just goes "Umm your dog is pooping" :yikes: He never even slowed down stupid dog. Makes me feel bad.

People keep getting their JRTs fitter and fitter trying to wear them out physically, only making them need more and more exercise to settle.
This does happen but I believe paired with regular exercise (that I believe all dogs should be getting as long as they don't have a medical issue that disallows it), house manners, teaching a settle and not allowing a dog to demand it most dogs will learn they aren't allowed to demand it. At least, that's how it's worked for me.
 

Pareeeee

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#17
No, she is not running on grass. I cannot bike on grass as I don't believe people would appreciate it, lol. Plus I can't even do it in the park since my bike is a road bike and not a mountain bike.
 
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#18
No, she is not running on grass. I cannot bike on grass as I don't believe people would appreciate it, lol. Plus I can't even do it in the park since my bike is a road bike and not a mountain bike.
Can you ride next to the grass on the sidewalk but have her run in the grass? Because I'm pretty lax on this kind of stuff but I wouldn't run my dog on pavement for extended periods of time
 

Shakou

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#19
We've never had this problem with Charlotte, although she get's tired very easily and slooooooows way dooooooown.
 
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#20
I ride on pavement but she runs next to the bike in the grass. Is that possible?
 

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