The American Beagler Forum

just wondering if anyone has had any luck using a treadmill to condition a hound? i cant always make it to the field to run and get them in shape. any methods or past experiences that you could share? thanks,pat

I've got a friend who has about six treadmills and and puts dogs on them daily. He also generates his share of field champions.

I have three- they are great --run them each day 5-10 miles aday---theses are walker dogs --wouldn't be with out them --I just starting in BEAGLES --will be running them when I can come up with good one ---one thing it dose for you if you didn't get to hunt or run that day --it keeps them from barking and rasing heck in the kennel --it keeps them claim and layed back

My beagles were started on treadmills I now have the whole pack on stationary bicycles and stair steppers.

tiny wrote:My beagles were started on treadmills I now have the whole pack on stationary bicycles and stair steppers.

haha I hate the stairsteppers... they are the killers. im staring to get tired just thinking about them

how do u keep the dog on the treadmill?

Preacher get you a big treadmill and put a leash on the dog and run with him... I know you wouldn't want to leave the dog on the treadmill unattended.....LOL Just kidding... I posted a few months ago about how the place I used to work used treadmills to exercise dogs and they had us build clear plexiglass boxes and mount them just above the running surface.. They were about two feet tall. You could put the beagle over in the box without restraints and they would run til you cut the machine off.. With the moving surface under their feet they didn't seem to be able to jump out of the box...

Full Circle go to http://www.pawwws.com you can see a little clip of a dog on a treadmill.
After a dog gets used to going on a treadmill they look forward to it a get to enjoying it, they will jump on and get going by themselves.

Word to the wise: 1) make sure they empty out before hand, cause if it hits, it fly's! 2) Start off slow, and supervise! Had a dog slip and get skinned in a matter of 2 minutes. 3) start them at 5min, and every other day add 2 min. If you can get a dog not to freak out, its great for them and a great trick at parties!

thanks guys. i got one that i need in tip top shape for the ukc eliminator hunt coming in feb.

Here's an alternative should you wish to try. Jeff Brown told me he used it to reabilitate a hound of his that got attacked by coyotes.

Buy you one of the the large rubbermaid horse/cow water troughs. Put a bar across the top with an I-Bolt to snap a collar to. Buy you a life jacket for the dog as well.

Place the dog with life jacket on in the tank and snap his collar to the I-Bolt.

Let him start out at 5 minutes and work himself up to 20... Once you get him up to 20 minutes... He'll be hard as a rock.

The whol she-bang shouldn't cost more than $250 to $300... that's cheaper than most treadmills.

K-9 Life Vest = $25.00 to $75.00 depending on how fancy of a one you buy.

Stainless steel Bar, Snaps, Chain, I-Bolt = $10 to $15.00

100 to 150 gallon rubbermaid tank = $95 to $150

Below is the type of tanks I'm talking about. Don't have to worry about it rusting.

Very good idea Fuzz!