Dog Running Bliss

I cannot tell you how much I love running with my dog.  I pretty much hate running by myself, but if I run with my dog, my whole perspective is transformed.  Perhaps some of the joy lies in the fact that he has not always been easy to run with, or even to walk with, for that matter.  My Siberian husky, Shadow Fax, is large for a husky and a very strong puller.  Combined with the fact that he still acts like a puppy, despite him being almost five, and it can make for some stressful moments when I am out in public.

We rescued Shadow when he was about two.  If you didn't know, huskies are often abandoned when they are no longer oh-so-cute puppies, and turn into full-grown crazy balls of energy.  The name "Shadow Fax" we thought was perfect for our grey and white boy, who looked so majestic.  He seemed to be the Lord of all the Dogs (LOTR reference for all you nerds out there), and we thought his original name, Marley, just didn't fit him.  We soon found out that his bad habits were very Marley-esque, as were his amazing lovable moments.  Still, he didn't respond to Marley, so changing his name was easy.  Any-who, I believe I am getting off-track...

The bliss of running with Shadow Fax lies in how he has transformed into a dog who trusts me, and whom I have come to trust.  After running with him on a leash for a mile, I successfully took him off-leash, which I have not been able to do for about 6 months after some bad experiences.  The joy of having one of your best friends (choosing to) run beside you, challenging you, and inspiring you is wonderful!  Not to mention that he looks like a wolf!

For those who have huskies, or other dogs that are difficult to take off-leash to enjoy the outdoors, perhaps this will work for you.  I weighted him down with a dog pack full of some water bottles for weight.  Then, I ran with him for a mile on-leash to help calm him down so he would listen to my commands.  When I could tell that he wasn't interested in going off the trail, but focused on running straight ahead, I took him off-leash.  There were a couple moments when I could feel he was starting to get interested in exploring the mountains away from the trail.  At these times, I told him, "no," firmly.  Twice he didn't come back right away, but explored further out of my sight.  When he did this, to get him to come back I ran on ahead of him since he is driven to be in front (the only thing that works for me if he isn't listening to come is to actually run in the opposite direction so he will chase me).  Then, once he came back I put him back on the leash.  The leash I was using was retractable up to 15 feet or so.  I think that this showed him how far was OK to wander.  We will see how he progresses, but I am always trying to find what works for us.  Hopefully this helps anyone who is having the same issues.

After my run yesterday, I am considering training for a 10k.  I would love to run it with my dog.  Does anyone have experience racing with a dog?