Hard to believe that the 3 weeks of K9 Kamp are already over! A special thanks to Kol’s Notes and Peggy’s Pet Place for working like dogs in putting K9 Kamp together! It sure has been fun, but I am also ready for a break! We have kept up with the additional 30-40 mins, 3 times a week challenge which wasn’t too hard to do. Before I get ready for my nap I do have a few more tips that have to do with dogs and running.
If your human is not one to exercise, remember us dogs can easily use a treadmill. They are super boring but to make it fun you can have a toy out front that you are trying to get like my stuffed squirrel, or for you Retriever types, a tennis ball! You need to start going on the treadmill when it is stopped first and then have your human slowly start it moving. You should also have your human with you at all times in case anything goes wrong. The treadmill is really just for those dire situations where there are no other fun options for exercise. A side note – not to worry about that stuffed squirrel and my killer look eyes…he survived and is doing just fine with my other stuffies 🙂
Now for the fun stuff – making running more fun for us dogs. My sister and I have logged lots of miles running with mom, especially Katie, and to be honest, sometimes it does get really boring, so how can you motivate your pup? How about some interval/speed training or hill training. Humans hate this kind of training but surprisingly we dogs love it!
Mom ran the Twin Cities Marathon in 2011 where miles 20-24 are pretty much strong uphill. She said that it was during those 4 uphill miles so late in the race that people dropped like flies and started walking but she was able to keep running because she kept thinking of us dogs and how we all attacked hills together and it kept her going! Next time you come upon a hill with your dog, charge it with them, they will love it!
I personally love speed training. You can set your stops using lamp posts, mile markers, times or whatever works for you. Mom and I use street lamps. Mom says “speed” and we race each other to the next lamp, then she says “relax” and we go back to normal pace until the next lamp post. This is great for cardio and it helps build up your overall speed. I love racing mom and beating her!
As with any running, your dog needs to work into a running program gradually as a human would do just starting out. Another benefit to running with your dog is that your human has something to focus on and pay attention to besides how much longer until the run is over. You can count squirrels or wabbits together, run through sprinklers together or so many other fun things – great bonding stuff!
Fitting to the end of K9 Kamp, my package that I won from Park Day 2.0 arrived the other day! A big thank you to Gizmo and Finn for the idea of Park Day 2.0 and another big thank you to Deidre’s K9 Naturals for supplying my prize. I won a “spa” package which includes Working Dog Wash Shampoo, Puppy Breath Wipes (watch out mom, more kisses coming your way), Cleaning ER for my ears and fitting for me having lived on the North Sea Coast, North Sea Omega Chews! This is just what a pampered pup needs after K9 Kamp!
Time for this K9 Kamper to crash! Wonder when the next K9 Kamp will be…zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…the word on the street is that it will be in the fall…I will be there with all 4 paws on!
Since K9 Kamp is all about staying fit, I am of course joining in the FitDog Friday blog hop sponsored by SlimDoggy, Peggy’s Pet Place and To Dog With Love Stop by and see what other dogs are doing to stay fit!
You sure are fit and photogenic, Emma! Have a great weekend!
Thanks, mom keeps us moving lots and I do love to be in the spotlight 🙂
Emma – you and your mom are so dedicated – you are an inspiration. Great tips on the running. We like to do sprints too – hills….hmmm not so much, but I think it’s more mom that hates them, not me. Thanks for being a regular on our Hop – your pretty face always brightens it up!
You just have to race the humans on the hills, they will never love it but they will learn it which will come in handy for them at some point 🙂 Love the FitDog Friday hop!
Hi Y’all!
If you’ve got it available, doing stuff in the water is a good way to exercise on hot days.
Y’all come by now,
Hawk aka BrownDog
Water is hard for us here as many lakes are not that clean looking and there is blue algae to worry about but I do go for a dip when we find a nice spot 🙂
Wow, this is so impressive. Finn isn’t much of a heel-er so when I pick up the speed, she tends to drag me along. I wonder if we did hills if that would be the case.
Us dogs are amazing on hills…give it a shot, if nothing else Finn can pull you up the hill 😉
Emma that picture of you on the treadmill is great…you’re a real athlete…You , Katie and your mom are inspiring…Gizmo and I are just starting to add some jogging into our walks (much harder for me than for him) Glad you like your spa package…Should feel good to clean up after a hard workout
That shampoo smells great…in mom’s opinion, I prefer roadkill scent but I like to keep her happy. A walk/run mix is the best way to start if you want to start running and you don’t have to run a marathon, a few miles is great too!
Your face Em on that treadmill looking at that Squirrel..Bawawhhawwaa Great idea about counting Squirrels, yeah, how many I can catch..( I never have caught one but the chase is good exercise 🙂 ) Have a wonderful weekend xx00xxx
Mollie and Alfie
Catching a squirrel is number one on my bucket list, don’t know how I will do it but I just have to!
I love your pictures today they are super cute!!
Thanks Elvis – love you, have a fun day!
I love your cute hoodie bath towel, Emma! Very stylish after a hard workout.
I try to look good for photos, it makes mom happy but I would prefer to be in a nice mud pack – LOL!
Well Emma, we could probably handle the nap part and we would be good at marathon napping!
Do you follow catfoodbreath.com? That cat is holding a cat napping marathon, cats should be in training right now…it is a funny blog 🙂
I will have to look over there, after my training session. I did visit them several times but they got lost in the shuffle somehow. Thanks for the reminder!
Emma, you are adorable as always! We LOVE your squirrel! I think Rocco needs one!
Your pals,
Diane and Rocco
He squeaks and has a crunchy noise tale…he would love him!
Oh my! That’s even better! Where did you get him?
I think at PetCo
Thanks for the treadmill tips. I actually won a DogTread small dog treadmill the other day. I have to figure out where to put it in our house but I also need to learn about getting your dog to use a treadmill. Your tips will get me started for sure.
Great! It is definitely more interesting outside but the treadmill is a good option! I’m sure you will post on it when you figure it out!
I love your squirrel! That made me laugh out loud. We aren’t big runners at our house, but we do like walking a lot. You have some great tips for making things more interesting!
Bunny
Mom is the real runner and since Katie is retired, I am the only one that runs with her sometimes but we all love to walk 🙂
You certainly earned that spa treatment, and that nap, Emma! Thanks for the tips on making running more interesting….right now we are just starting out so we’re not bored yet, but I’m sure we’ll get to that point! I had never run with my dogs before, and it is definitely more fun and a distraction having a dog with me. It keeps me from focusing on myself and how tired I feel so much! 🙂
Exactly! That is why mom did so good in her marathon is because she ran up to 15 miles with my sister and did speed training with her. The last marathon she trained alone and said it was so boring and much harder to train. Running with a dog is great fun!
I like the K9Kamp Nap the best!!
I really do enjoy a good nap too! I am Johnny on the spot, though if something comes up!
You sure earned that nap after all your hard work! We used to wish we could train our beagle to run on our treadmill, but we never had any success. She wanted us to run WITH her. We used to sprint the sunny parts and slow down for the shady parts. A good way to get the intervals in. Hopefully we’ll be back running one of these days…
The treadmill is boring, my mom won’t run on the treadmill. I had here on it twice and she quit…wonder if she has some Beagle in her???
You did a great job Emma (and Mom), I’m not much of a runner myself (my knees just won’t do it) but I sometimes ‘trot’ with the dogs. I have to be careful though because they definitely out run me. :-0 I love mom’s idea of speed training. I wonder if we can do that using trees…..
Unless you are some running professional you can do it using anything you want…it is lots of fun because us dogs love to race you bipeds and we usually win 🙂
Now you can rest up a little and get ready for your next stretch of exercises! 🙂 Love the outfits!
Thanks, mom lets me borrow some of her running stuff sometimes! Over the summer my exercise will be more swimming and chasing wabbits.
There’s a short steep hill in one of our walks and sometimes we run up it as fast as we can. The bipeds are puffing at the top, it’s so funny!
Yep, bipeds and hills don’t mix too well but us doggys love it!
Thanks for sharing your running tips, I’m hoping to take daddy running at some point so will definitely need them
You would be such a great runner! Sometimes mom wishes she had a dog like you to run with!
Good ideas on how to make running interesting. Congrats on your winnings. It looks like a really nice package.
This will be one clean pup!
We loved reading about you and your Mom kamping. You’re such a great (and stylish) kamper Emma!
Kolchak LOVES sprint training, while I am pretty much 100% NOT IN FAVOUR. It makes me hot & sweaty. ew. We don’t have a treadmill, though we’ve thought about getting one for the winter when it rains for 8 or 9 months and Koly refuses to go outside and Felix 110% refuses to go outside.
It’s not just what you do, it’s how you look…says my mom 🙂 We have to go out in all weather, no matter what, mom doesn’t take any excuses…tough life we have 🙂 Thanks again for sponsoring Kamp!
Those races sound like great fun.
It is always fun to race with mom…and especially since I usually win!
That first picture is awesome Emma! You are a true athlete!
My short legs give it their best!