Does anyone cycle with their dog?

Just wondered who takes their dog out on a bike?

Do you go slowly for most of it and have short bursts of speed or keep a steady pace?

Do your dogs seem to enjoy it more/less?

How often do you take the bike out?

Anyone tried cycling on a foldable bike?! (I am thinking of getting one and storing it in my car but not sure if that's a silly idea or not!)

Kestral enjoys bike rides, every now and then she will speed off and I think she likes the fact I can keep up and she can really stretch her legs. Most of the time I just bumble along at walking pace on it though as I don't want to over do it..

Haven't gotten around to it with Louie as he doesn't run anywhere - it's either walk fast or sprint..

Sadie loves it, used to do 20-25 miles a day (once a week)

Benjie - took him on it once and he refused to acknowledge our existence when we got home - he hated it

Do you go slowly for most of it and have short bursts of speed or keep a steady pace? I go the pace I can do, down hills are faster and if I feel a burst of energy we go faster - lots of stops too for the dogs..

Do your dogs seem to enjoy it more/less?
Benjie - hates it, Sadie - Loves it, Louie - haven't tried

How often do you take the bike out? Not very often these days..

You may be interested in the article below. I do not do more than 10 miles in one session and both my dogs have the AD

The Ausdauerprufung (AD) award was originally designed for the show and breeding requirements of the GSD and is a part of the scheme of versatility tests for working dogs on the Continent and elsewhere. The purpose of the endurance test is to demonstrate that a dog is able to perform physical exertion of a certain level without manifesting substantial symptoms of fatigue afterwards.

Prolonged aerobic exercise is exacting and places increased demands on the inner organs, especially the heart and lungs, and on the locomotory system. The ability to endure sustained physical effort is tangible evidence of health and the presence of desired characteristics such as spirit and toughness which are prerequisites for the performance dog in sports such as Schutzhund (Protection Dog).

Temperature is an important consideration and during the summer, the test is carried out only in the early morning or late afternoon when the temperature is not above 22˚ C. (72˚ F).

The age at which dogs may undergo this test is no sooner than 16 months and no later than 6 years old; they must be completely healthy, as well as in superb condition. Sick dogs, bitches in season, and pregnant or nursing bitches may not compete. Dogs of all sizes and breeds may participate in this test.

The distance varies according to the size of dog as does the speed at which it must be completed.

• Small dogs (up to 35cm tall) must run 5km at between 10-15 km/hour.

• Medium sized dogs (up to 50cm tall) must run 10km at between 10- 15 km/hour

• Large dogs (over 50cm tall) must run 20km at between 12 – 15km/hour

The dog must run on lead on the appropriate side of the handler at a normal trot next to the bike; a fast pace is to be avoided. The lead must be held at an appropriate length so that the dog can adapt its stride to the speed. Light pulling on the line (forging) is not penalised; however, constant lagging behind of the dog is faulty.

During the test the judge will observe the dogs for possible signs of fatigue from either a bike or from the vantage point of a car. Severely fatigued dogs are disqualified from further testing and may be transported in the car if necessary.

The medium and large size dogs have a 15 minute break after they have completed 8km before they continue.


After concluding the running exercise the dogs are warmed down at a walk and the dogs are examined for signs of fatigue and/or sore paws etc; if the dogs are pronounced fit to continue then they are “passed” and awarded the AD title.

It goes without saying that careful preparation is required in order to minimize the possibility of injury to your dog. Distances should be increased very gradually to protect the integrity of the paws and so the surfaces on which the dog is run must be considered both in terms of type and temperature.

Also owners must be very prudent on where they bike their dogs; the public highway is NOT the place to carry out this activity. Cycle paths, canal towpaths, disused airfields etc are often safe venues.

I do with mine occasionally Poppy loves it, it's just a big race for her Kiara's not that impressed but then she's heavier boned and quite chunky Bailey adores it, he's so focused on moving forward and keeping up and away from the bike that he ignores everything else even other dogs although me singing my head off whilst cycling propbably doesn't do much for what people think of my mental stability however I have to make a noise so Bailey can know where I am and not bump into me etc
I think it's the only time Bailey's ever done a full out sprint and that sends him loopy, we always have zoomies afterwards as he's so excited

I tend to go at a Bailey trot pace then occasionally have a short burst of speed - Poppy goes at a 100mph constantly anyway so don't really need to take her speed needs into account

I'm always off road in parks etc and the dogs are off lead

I cycle with mine along the roads and canal. Between 5-8 miles per day at least 5 times a week. They do a fast trot, no quicker, which for a Border is about 6mph.

Yes meeeee, I cycled every day during the summer months, early in the mornings, it's just fab and Zena adores it, coz she's a dog who likes to trot on and I'm sure she hates having to keep stopping and waiting for her old mum who lags behind on a walk!

Don't bother with those fold up efforts, you'll find it's hard work peddling coz I think they have smaller wheels. You want a proper mountain bike, with PROPER tyres for rough terrain, otherwise you'll be getting punctures every 5 mins like I used to on my old bike. I bought my bike for £40 out of the local rag from an American chap, and it's taken some abuse along the rough tracks I sometimes have to ride on with lots of sharp flints, and I've never had a problem with it.

You want to get a carrier from Halfords or again, check out the local paper for a 2nd hand one, which goes on the back of your car, and you just lift the bike up and slap it on, not forgetting to strap it on!

You can't ride on footpaths, you have to go on the tracks and bridleways, otherwise people will be complaining about you, but I'm lucky where I am, as I know lots of places where I wouldn't see anyone to report me I'm in the middle of the South Downs so I'm in heaven for places to go, although a lot of it is up some seriously steep hills which I end up pushing the bike up, but it's fun coming back down the other side!

I don't use any contraptions to fix Zena to my bike, she just got the hang of it as they always have, and yours will too. It's great for polishing up on your commands because you need to be in full control of your dog, with lots of waits, rights, lefts, and come on's if they've stopped for a long sniff somewhere, and recall off those squirrels, pheasants and foxes too!

I can't use mine at the moment, it's lethal out there in this slippery, wet chalk, I'd end up in casualty, but it's coming back out in the spring or if we get some really frosty mornings.

I just keep at Zena's pace on the flat, she's usually a few feet in front, and if she stops to sniff, I carry on and she catches me up. I only stop if I'm knackered pushing it up some of the hills. I never, ever go fast, because I don't want to run the risk of running her over or getting her tail caught. On narrow paths I just keep sending her on if I'm coming downhill and the brakes are failing!

Oh you MUST do it, your dog will love you for it

We take Cain cycling from time to time. Liam does it as I'm afraid I'll get pulled off. We do short spurts as Cain gets fed up and tired pretty quickly and starts lagging behind, but he enjoys it for the first 10 mins or so. I usually walk him to warm him up, cycle at steady speed till he starts lagging, walk to give break tten a final cycle for 10 mins or so, he cant fo for any longer. He also doesnt like not being able to stop and sniff so he loses interest. It would be easier if I didn't have to have him attached to my bike.

Not on a bicycle, no, but I take Pereg out on my big scooter. Her leash is attacked to the rear of the canopy frame so she cannot get either in front of the front wheel or behind the rear wheel [obviously she is on the nearside of the scooter].

The scooter's top speed is 12 km/h [8mph] and I vary between slow walk, trot, and full speed, but keep the full speed to just short bursts as I think [possibly incorrectly] that it is better for Pereg to keep to a fairly regular pace.

She is happy just going around the Moshav with just a bit of a detour on the tractor paths, but mostly we have to go on the roads at the moment. Only little roads though.

I have taken the dogs out to run alongside me whilst I ride on a few occasions. There is quite a good cycle network round here away from roads so we could go for miles quite safely.

I'm totally unfit so my pace is quite slow (which Flynn finds frustrating as he likes to view it as some kind of race!) and that pace suits Jed as he isnt the most active of dogs. I do mix the pace up though so they dogs have to sprint and I make sure I rest them regularly and they get chance for a drink.

Once I get a way of transporting my bike on my car then they'll go out with me more regularly. I did have a cycle carrier but it didnt seem safe and scratched my paintwork so I binned it.

I used to take the family dog on bike rides, she loved it. We would go at varying speeds because I let her set the speed. I didnt have a set pattern, just went when I felt like it.

I plan on taking Jin when shes older. I'm making her a harness the has a D ring on the front and side to have better control over her, and not enough power for her to pull me over