Conditioning a dog for hunting season

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Originally Posted by Ugo

Thanks Yellow Dog. I looked at the product albeit briefly. It wouldn't address my needs as a conditioning tool for a number of reasons. One being that, wearing anything of this nature when conditioning in the summer heat is counter productive for my personal training regimen. Secondly, I'm not sure - even in cooler weather - what this item accomplishes?
There are strategic muscle groups that I like to target when conditioning. That's why I mentioned that traditional roading produces massive neck muscles. Not really sure how that serves a bird dog's stamina?
Weight training is not predominantly about cardio. That is a completely separate process that I like to dovetail into the weight training. The ideal goal is to have a dog that is very muscled (which can actually slow a dog down). I then increase the cardio and let the intersection of the 2 find that dynamic peak for a given dog. Typically, as the weight training is weaned off, the cardio is ramped up. When you get it just right......it's something to behold! Power, grace, endurance which ultimately means your dog can use his olfactory senses more efficiently which usually translates into more finds!
If you look at my website "Photo Gallery", there is a Gordon setter - 2nd from the top that was one of the last CKC Open Field Trial Champions here in Ontario. Even though he has a medium coat, you can see the results of the aforementioned program by way of his musculature. This Gordon also had placements in OSD horseback stakes in American Field against pointers. The greatest challenge with him at trials was producing his finds. There were times when I would find the bird a LONG way from his nose. Not any easy task when you are trying to find a pen-raised Bobwhite.

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Hi Ugo, yes you are right and was thinking more for the fall addressing Sudsee question. It is a tool worn to aid in conditioning in the off season when typically sled dogs lay around(summer heat). For someone like yourself to train your dogs to a much higher caliber then no. I have competed against many dog teams and also trained dogs that were out of pointer bloodlines. The most famous and well known being the scandinavian english pointers. Fifty years of selective breeding went into to these animals and they set all the sprint racing speed records. The pointers are superior period ! Even the ones they are not trained and conditioned properly can still run circles around the traditional husky breeds.

Yes I am very aware weight training is not predominantly about cardio. It is a combination of weight training starting in the fall breaking down that old muscle and rebuilding it slowly and then switching over to cardio. I have done this many times over many training years. It is not productive to do weight training for months on end and then try to run a sprint race. My training methods are similiar to what you have described but I use a cart called a Risdon Rig . I then switch over to a much lighter Risdon for cardio training. We ultimately are are aiming for the same outcome as you have described, power ,grace and endurance. No different from a free running dog to many running in a dog team in unison . I always enjoy your posts.

Yellow Dog, I must look into that Risdon. I'm always learning! Thank you for sharing.
Yes, the key to my program is to ensure the dog NEVER lopes or runs with the weight training equipment. This is a sure-fire recipe for disaster as the stride can fall out of rhythm and if the leg is fully extended when the load is max, you are looking at anything from a torn muscle to ligament/joint issues! There is a great responsibility to my system and if you take your eyes off the dogs you are asking for trouble. You need to watch their stride, their breathing, their pads, etc. And, you cannot use this system on a paved or gravel road....at all.
The cardio workout is where they can let fly but no load here.
I remember being up north on holiday but I didn't want to lose the conditioning of my/customer's dogs in advance of the upcoming season. So, since my friend had an ATV (we were up near Sundridge), I jury-rigged a roading system - one more typical of the ones you see advertised in dog mags where the bars are secured to the ATV front and back and the dogs are secured through a harness via chains to said bars. I took them literally for miles on logging roads. I was SO excited at how well they were doing.
When I returned home and resumed my roading here with my system, I was devastated! They roaded about 35 minutes then were completely gassed!! There are systems and there are systems..... Man, did I have some catching up to do! Still it was better than nothing.
By keeping the dogs at a spritely walk, you get an even/balanced work-out on each individual leg/muscle group. In fact, some dogs pull so hard, they lean (dogs are left footed or right footed just like humans too and have a favourite side).

Just wondering regarding the swimming: What distance do you have your dog swim?
I have a nice setup where I throw from a cliff (to get the bumper farther out) and the dog has to run around to get down, swim and climb back up (exercise with a heavy dokken). Not too bad, but it's always the same (not that the dogs seems to mind).
Yesterday, I was wondering if there is any (cheap) alternative to a zinger winger?

I dont measure. I throw bumpers and all that but he also free swims. We were away at a cottage the past week and my dog loves to swim with everyone. We'd go out in the boat and swim in the middle of the lake for an hour or more and he'd be fine the whole time just swimming big circles around everyone.