Hand walking

[Wise]

I recently attended a conformation show over the summer that got me thinking and lead to this post. I watched a damn good looking dog win some points, I watched that dog walk in, do the little routine and walk out. I could tell by the way the dog walked that it spends a considerable amount of time on some type of mill. Anyway, I congratulate them and ask, to no offense, "how do you shape em"? They reply "hand walking, lots & lots of hand walking" I said oh and kept it moving about my business. Now in my head I'm thinking, how the fuck does somebody walk a dog this much and only the dog gets in shape? the more I thought about it I just remembered all the people that claimed to do the same thing and I just don't believe it. Some actually do do it but not as many as claimed. In my opinion the only thing it's good for is to empty the dog out FULLY and get the blood flowing and loosen up the muscles a lil bit for the workouts, then obviously the cool down but other than that I'm trying to WORK the dog the whole time and for me hand walking for a zillion miles is not my remedy. Depending on the season I prefer road work with a bike as far as that aspect goes and if I can't get out there then it's mill time. It's just a real insult to a man's intelligence to have a fat person tell you they walk a dog all these miles a day. QUIT

[Wise]

Oops wrong forum!!

[FrostyPaws]

Maybe someone else in their family walks the dog. Maybe they use a carpetmill and simply say handwalking. Who knows with people really.

[R2L]

In my opinion the only thing it's good for is to empty the dog out FULLY and get the blood flowing and loosen up the muscles a lil bit for the workouts, then obviously the cool down but other than that I'm trying to WORK the dog the whole time and for me hand walking for a zillion miles is not my remedy. Depending on the season I prefer road work with a bike as far as that aspect goes and if I can't get out there then it's mill time. It's just a real insult to a man's intelligence to have a fat person tell you they walk a dog all these miles a day. QUIT

maybe the man wanted to lose a couple of pounds himself?

handwalking can get you a better looking dog then your method on the bike if the dog pulls the leash.

then there is genetics. i have a 10 month old pup, just sitting in the kennel but looks like she could be competing in a confirmation ring.

[ragedog10]

To me hand walking a hound does so much more one, it's true bonding time and two it allows that hound to be a dog he or she can get to use their noses and see the world thru the eyes of a dog and that is threw their nose! For me I like to not only build them up physically but also have them strong mentally! let them feel grass,gravel,sticks! These hounds are living beings who have emotions dogs are more intuned with us then we tend to believe! Kinetic energy is something thing I practice all the time with them dogs but they still know when I'm in a shitty mood! Lol long hand walks,Everybody benefits from those! plus it's less shit I have to clean up around my yard! :-) :-) :-)

[kandyman]

I've handwalked enough dogs to say that it is not going to put a human in any kind of condition. Good genetics and a proper diet are a major part of the dog show arena. I know one person that shows at least 10-15 dogs at every show and that person laughs when I ask how much time goes into working them.

[Officially Retired]

To me hand walking a hound does so much more one, it's true bonding time and two it allows that hound to be a dog he or she can get to use their noses and see the world thru the eyes of a dog and that is threw their nose! For me I like to not only build them up physically but also have them strong mentally! let them feel grass,gravel,sticks! These hounds are living beings who have emotions dogs are more intuned with us then we tend to believe! Kinetic energy is something thing I practice all the time with them dogs but they still know when I'm in a shitty mood! Lol long hand walks,Everybody benefits from those! plus it's less shit I have to clean up around my yard! :-) :-) :-)

This is a great post. If the dog is pulling hard into a harness, or dragging a little weight, handwalking does build muscular condition ... but it also builds a bond with the dogs.

I remember an interview I did with Coy Dickenson and he really did get in tune with his dogs ... never published it but maybe I should.

Jack

[Wise]

"handwalking can get you a better looking dog then your method on the bike if the dog pulls the leash."

I disagree as I've seen first hand the results of both on the same dog/dogs. And when I use the bike my dog's leash is attached to the handlebars pulling probably 80% of the time realistically. And I work em in a harness either way, never had an injury either in 14 yrs.

[Wise]

I walk my dogs all the time and we bond well but I'm referring to the walking to get the dog in a specific shape is all. I mean hell, if you saw me walking down the street with Ch Mechanic knowing what you know about dogs and I said he got that way from hand walking you'd know I was bullshittin.

[Officially Retired]

I agree there are much better ways to bring a dog in shape than walking, and they are outlined in my keep, but I do think handwalking can bring a dog in excellent shape IFF the dog is a puller and is wearing a harness.

My Pretty Boy dog won over G. Long and M. Pinkerton in 2:42 on nothing but handwalking ... these were veteran dogmen and it was the first match for the guy who had Pretty Boy ... but he followed the handwalking regimen of a veteran dogman in GA who was a big believer in handwalking ... IFF the dog would pull hard ... which Pretty Boy never stopped doing.

Jack