Bump.......
Anybody with anything new?
Bump.......
Anybody with anything new?
This isn't really innovative, but it is something I like. I hook my dog to a harness, and attach 15-20lbs of weight to the harness. Once the dog is all hooked up, I throw the kong toy as far as I can. The dog sprints for all he's worth for the kong. I simply walk up to the dog, break him, and throw it again. He gets a little reward time every time he gets his mouth on the kong.
Used a very similar plan as well. We had a bitch that would go after a ball like none other, as long as her feet were on the ground. She had no interest in any type of mill. She walked OK and pulled OK but if she could get after that ball she pulled liked a freight train and was a blur after it. My buddy and I got about 20-30 yards apart and we played catch. She was a blur between us after that ball. The only drawback here was we had use the stick to get it back but that is a small price to pay when she works like that. We added resistance as well. Sprinting after a ball, with feet on the ground, carrying and propelling their own body weight is about as good as it gets. EWO
Originally Posted by FrostyPaws
EWO, last dog I worked got the weight/kong pulling. He also got resistance training AND he got some sprinting without the wts after the kong toy. His mill work was very minimal, and I can't complain at all about what kind of shape he was in, though it was my first time doing a lot more of that than the mill. So, naturally, I was a little apprehensive, but I was quite pleased with the results I saw.
Same here. Lots of times, great things are stumbled upon. It wasn't like one day I said I am going to forgo the mill and everything that worked in the past and go with this new way with all the money I have riding on it. Apprehensive would not begin to describe it. We had a few dogs here and there that just did not get the idea of mill work or biking, etc. etc. "Traditional" methods just did not work. It is amazing the resolve of a person when the $$$ is on the line.
The ball chasing bitch was in phenomenal shape. I too was weary going in but at the time it was the only option with her. But after seing the results we started incorporating it more and more with other dogs.
My latest invention (makes me sound important) I have a 5/16" cable strung out about 310'. (off a double pull hoist for a five story lift). I have one end to a tree and the other to a "T" bar I made to the hitch on the truck. I put stops about 10 feet from each end with stainless pulley from tank entry equipment. I have a three foot lead swivelled on both ends. It stretches along the path I live one. I hook the dog up and zing by on the four wheeler. For whatever reason they chase it like all get out. It has become a staple of the work. It works. EWO
Waccamaw shared their interval weight pulling regimen with me back in 99, and ever since I incorporated that kind of weight pulling in the keep I sell, the people who have traditionally used the mill have *all* noticed a marked difference in performance in the animals they've applied it to. Like almost a night-and-day difference in many cases, which only makes sense, conceptually, when considering the fact that a fight involves struggle and the exertion of strength (not just "running "free" on a spinning belt).
The way Wac did it involved two people working the dog, one behind the dog adding/removing weights, and one in front of the dog baiting him with a flirt pole. If a person is working the dog solo, throwing a Kong Ball is a great idea to accomplish this, as well as to keep the work fun for the dog.
Jack
There is a large set of fields across from here. I do much the same. I have different weight/length of chains dropped along the edges of the fields. I use these fields for long walks with and without the chains. I promised pics in another post about brood boxes but I am digitally challenged to say the least. I will try to get a pic of the cable set up I use as well. I like the mills as much as the next guy, I like anything that works, but I have learned there is something special about a dog giving every thing he has in an all out sprint with his four feet on the ground. I 'think' it quickly separates itself from other methods. EWO
Very well said, EWO.
Great info here and some very funny stories lol. 20' PVC with a snap on the end...that sounded effective but made me laugh also.
These are the minority. I re read some of the posts, even mine, and it sounds like I have a yard full of lazy dogs. They were few and far between. Most would do whatever you introduced them to. It seems like the ones that were not willing to work taught me the most about the dogs and their individuality. The 20' conduit dog was a split hair away from choosing drowning over swimming. She was that lazy. It is funny now but it was really frustrating back then. LOL. EWO
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote