conditioning ?

[3-Bdogs]

ok i have wondered this For awhile with humans you can train yourself to last longer in runnin a cardio how many of y'all think you can condition a dog  to do the same ? reason for askin is i see lots of post on pits and ab running out of gas

[hogslayer6]

yes, and if you think about it you will see that your baydogs show that every year(if your a guy who stops hunting for the summer). when you give your dogs a couple months off they will slow down and get tired faster. as for CD i would also say although you can condition them to run and fight longer and harder realize they arent built to be speed demons or distance runners so to maximize your bull dogs shorten the distance they have to cover on their own (of the lead) and keep the fight to a minimum. this will allow you to catch more with less. jmo

[BigDaddy2508]

No doubt that it can and is done all the time...If you read any of the interviews of the old time dog-men they had about a 2-3 month keep on their dogs before they went to a match.  Some of these old dog-men were masters at this and were very sought after to condition dogs for matches.  Not sure how much they made doing it but I am sure they got compensated well for their efforts..These guys would pull weight off dogs to make match weights and the dogs looked like ripped spring steel with skin stretched over them before these matches...These shows would last upwards of 3 hours sometimes...I would search some this forum for some advice.

http://www.game-dog.com/forums/

[hog428]

goggle Don Mayfield this man was thought to be the best by many when it came to conditioning Its a combination of training and feeding and how much time you want to put into the program

[3-Bdogs]

thanks guys i always thought you could didn't know what ppl did to condition their dogs but know when i hunt more than normal that my dogs lasted longer... keep tips and sites comin if you know some

[TxHogDoggin]

Although it is hard to do in this Texas heat conditioning my dogs is a part of my everyday life. Just like if I was preparing for a marathon or long distance race I wouldn't want to go in there and get outran and I wouldnt want my dogs to either. The better shape they are in the more bacon on the table.

[leifbarnes]

I put my dogs on an electric treadmill 2-3 times a week and it usually consists of 2-5 miles or around 30mins, all depending on each dog.  If one starts barking when I am outside, they get the treadmill.  It is in the garage so I beleive it helps them with the heat factor also.  thats my .02

[Kyle0329]

when i cant hunt my dogs for a few weeks or during deer season, i put them on a long lead rope and run them along the side of my four wheeler to keep them in shape.

[dub]

But 3-Bdogs it will not work for your dogs though. Because your dogs are whimps. Just kidding. But just like any other animal there are limits determined by genes. Just like human athletes some will have better stamina than others. A heavy weight boxer will never have the stamina of a fly weight. There are trade offs. But even a heavy weight boxer is well above average compared to other people. Yes conditioning your dogs will work and is good for the dog. Just have realistic expectations. No pit will keep up with a greyhound but I bet it could knock that sucker out. Good luck.

[3-Bdogs]

dub your correct my dogs might not handle it but as far As what you said i agree with you and i want my pits to be my knock out power that's why ppl have a pack in my opinion if one dog could do it all i wouldn't own but one dog so your reasoning makes sense to me

[HIGHWATER KENNELS]

I got  a yeler gyp that ranges out in the winter at 800yards and further all day, but as soon as it starts warmin up it will even effect her range. She will range closer and make tighter loops.  I guess I wouldnt want to run in those thickets with a overcoat on either with it being 85 degrees. ha

[dub]

That is why I have a bird dog puppy I am going to introduce to hogs. Bird dogs handle the heat a little better.  That a they are solid energy. I have him run next to me with my BMC and Cat I will show him a hog this weekend.

[TexasHogDogs]

You can peak condition a dog out for a certain event at a certain time but the problem is keeping him in that peak condition all the time .  Just can't hardly be done.  We are talking about peak condition here , peak condition is when a dog is to peak out at his best condition  at a certain time just before a event .  After that time frame peak condition is lost and cannot be recovered until a later date are time.  Conditioned the wrong way is bad bad and over conditioned is even worse it would be better to let the dog go at his natural condition that is his regular hunting weight running around the woods and him conditioning himeself  than for someone who is inexperinced and trying to put a condition on a dog  .  I have seen dogs ruined with people trying to put a condition on them .  

Just keeping dogs in a good all around working shape is the best way I have found with hunting dogs hounds are curs.  I never ever let my dogs get fat ever.  Fat builds heat , heat tears down a dog in many many different ways and that causes exhaustion.  I don't even have fat puppies.  Healthy pups but not fat .

I run vest on my dogs year round and really have never had a problem with dogs overheating .  Yes I have had one are two get a little hot but because of their natural condition their bodies are able to recoupe way way faster than most .  Key here is fat and it starts from a pup!

If we are talking about just catch dogs here good luck you most likly will never get it excatly right because of the time frames of when you hunt that is peak condition , good natural condition yes you can do fairly well  but it wont be a peak condition thats a whole different ballgame .  I might add it takes right at about 45 days to get a dog n peak condition .

[Tomball Dogos]

I run my dogo at the time just to keep her tuned up she can run for days lol