Transporting a dog by bike?

Hi,

A cycling friend has a new dog, and is looking for advice and experience on
how others use their bikes to transport their canine friends.

He's a strong rider, and also accustomed to riding with all sorts of
trailers.

He borrowed a Burley kid trailer, and found that, while the trailer is large
enough, the configuration with the leg space, seat, and stowing area is such
that there's not really room for the 40 lb dog to sit or lie comfortably.

He's seen a "dog trailer" advertised, but it's pricy (~$400?). He's heard
about some sort of semirigid leash that allows the dog to run alongside or
behind, but is dubious.

Does anyone have any experience (success or failure) they can share?

Thanks,

David Wean, whose cats mostly stay home

"David Wean" wrote in message
...
Hi,

A cycling friend has a new dog, and is looking for advice and experience
on
how others use their bikes to transport their canine friends.

He's a strong rider, and also accustomed to riding with all sorts of
trailers.

He borrowed a Burley kid trailer, and found that, while the trailer is
large
enough, the configuration with the leg space, seat, and stowing area is
such
that there's not really room for the 40 lb dog to sit or lie comfortably.

He's seen a "dog trailer" advertised, but it's pricy (~$400?). He's heard
about some sort of semirigid leash that allows the dog to run alongside or
behind, but is dubious.

Does anyone have any experience (success or failure) they can share?

No experience but a friend who consulted a vet on a similar issue was
advised that dogs - especially running breeds - can literally run themselves
to death. The instinct to run is bred into them and they don't know enough
to stop if they are trying to keep up with the alpha on a bike.

Thanks,

David Wean, whose cats mostly stay home

I wondered about a cat in a trailer. I wonder if it would freak them out.


--
'Things they do look awful c-c-cold
Talkin''bout my generation
I hope I die before I get old' -Pete Townsend
Born May 1945

1oki ? wrote:

...
No experience but a friend who consulted a vet on a similar issue was
advised that dogs - especially running breeds - can literally run themselves
to death. The instinct to run is bred into them and they don't know enough
to stop if they are trying to keep up with the alpha on a bike....

One could train the dog to jump into and out the trailer on command. The
dog would ride on the faster paced flat and downhill sections, and could
run on the slower uphill and headwind sections.

--
Tom Sherman - Earth (Downstate Illinois, North of Forgottonia)

David Wean wrote:
A cycling friend has a new dog, and is looking for advice and experience on
how others use their bikes to transport their canine friends.

We tow a Wike dog trailer http://www.wicycle.com/ldt.htm behind our
tandem. We've been happy with it. Our dog loved the trailer when it was
sitting on the living-room floor without its wheels. She's still getting
used to the idea of it rolling along behind the bike... :-/

Another option I was considering was to buy a kennel and attach it to a
flat-bed cargo trailer. But after you buy the kennel, the trailer, and the
hardware to attache the two, it isn't much cheaper. Plus, it won't fold
easily.

He borrowed a Burley kid trailer, and found that, while the trailer is large
enough, the configuration with the leg space, seat, and stowing area is such
that there's not really room for the 40 lb dog to sit or lie comfortably.

Yep. The Wike dog trailer is basically the same as their kid trailer,
except that they've removed the seats, added a rigid floor, and added a
couple inches of padding on top of the rigid floor. If you wanted to tinker
and were reasonably handy, you could convert a kid trailer fairly easily.
Of course, it would no longer work for carrying kids...

He's seen a "dog trailer" advertised, but it's pricy (~$400?). He's heard
about some sort of semirigid leash that allows the dog to run alongside or
behind, but is dubious.

I'd be dubious, too. It might work for pedestrian-equivalent cycling,
riding on sidewalks and trails at pedestrian speeds. But if I wanted to do
that, I'd just leave the bike at home.
--
Darin McGrew, , http://www.rahul.net/mcgrew/

"If a man speaks in a forest and no woman is there to hear him,
is he still wrong?"

"David Wean" wrote in message
...
Hi,

A cycling friend has a new dog, and is looking for advice and experience
on
how others use their bikes to transport their canine friends.

He's a strong rider, and also accustomed to riding with all sorts of
trailers.

He borrowed a Burley kid trailer, and found that, while the trailer is
large
enough, the configuration with the leg space, seat, and stowing area is
such
that there's not really room for the 40 lb dog to sit or lie comfortably.

He's seen a "dog trailer" advertised, but it's pricy (~$400?). He's heard
about some sort of semirigid leash that allows the dog to run alongside or
behind, but is dubious.

Does anyone have any experience (success or failure) they can share?

Thanks,

David Wean, whose cats mostly stay home


Well I guess it would depend on the breed, there is a guy down the block
from me who has a Dashhound that rides in a little basket on the bars.

Ken

Ken Marcet wrote:
"David Wean" wrote in message
...
Hi,

A cycling friend has a new dog, and is looking for advice and
experience
on
how others use their bikes to transport their canine friends.

He's a strong rider, and also accustomed to riding with all sorts
of
trailers.

He borrowed a Burley kid trailer, and found that, while the trailer
is
large
enough, the configuration with the leg space, seat, and stowing
area is
such
that there's not really room for the 40 lb dog to sit or lie
comfortably.

He's seen a "dog trailer" advertised, but it's pricy (~$400?).
He's heard
about some sort of semirigid leash that allows the dog to run
alongside or
behind, but is dubious.

Does anyone have any experience (success or failure) they can
share?

Thanks,

David Wean, whose cats mostly stay home


Well I guess it would depend on the breed, there is a guy down the
block
from me who has a Dashhound that rides in a little basket on the
bars.

Ken





I was thinking the same thing. If you want to ride with your dog, get
one like Paris Hilton has. They fit in a bag nicely. She has her
little "twinkle belle" or whatever they hell its name is, inside her LV
purse all the time. I have a 100 lb dog that runs beside me, but when I
first came on this newsgroup, everyone discouraged me from riding with
a big dog beside me. So I stopped. I just ride around the backyard with
her by my side. I don't take her outdoors to ride along side of me. My
sons run her at night. On foot. I am glad I took the advice because I
probably would have been dead by now if she had seen a cat while we
were out riding.
"OOOOOO Yummy little critter...let's run wildly through the streets
Mommy, FAST."
All Good Things,
Maggie.
Who just wrote a big fat check for a wedding reception for her daughter
and feels like stinking her head in the oven. THESE ARE THE TIMES TO
JUMP ON THE BIKE AND RIDE.

1oki wrote:



I wondered about a cat in a trailer. I wonder if it would freak them out.



I take my two cats to the vet in their carriers on my bike trailer. They
do not like it at all, complaining at the top of their voices the whole
way. But it's only half a mile so they survive. Most of the problem is
that they know that when they get stuffed into their carriers they are
going off to the strange man who pokes them with needles and sticks
thermometers up their ass. They are much calmer on the way home after
the torture is over.

Lorenzo L. Love
http://home.thegrid.net/~lllove

"Some people say that cats are sneaky, evil, and cruel.
True, and they have many other fine qualities as well."
Missy Dizick

(Sigh. Re-post.)

Maggie wrote:
Who just wrote a big fat check for a wedding reception for her
daughter and feels like stinking her head in the oven.
^^^^^^^^^

You mean, like, basting it with sauerkraut first or something?

Literal Louie

I had a Dachshund that I towed in a BOB trailer. Absolutely no problems at
all, even when stopped in traffic and intersections. (Of course she was
trained to "stay" until we got to a park or something.) It worked really
great.

The BOB people will tell you not to do this. I am sure because of
liability but for my
small dog, it was perfect...

Bart

"David Wean" wrote in message
...
Hi,

A cycling friend has a new dog, and is looking for advice and experience
on
how others use their bikes to transport their canine friends.

He's a strong rider, and also accustomed to riding with all sorts of
trailers.

He borrowed a Burley kid trailer, and found that, while the trailer is
large
enough, the configuration with the leg space, seat, and stowing area is
such
that there's not really room for the 40 lb dog to sit or lie comfortably.

He's seen a "dog trailer" advertised, but it's pricy (~$400?). He's heard
about some sort of semirigid leash that allows the dog to run alongside or
behind, but is dubious.

Does anyone have any experience (success or failure) they can share?

Thanks,

David Wean, whose cats mostly stay home

On Sat, 26 Mar 2005 14:35:12 -0800, Bartow W. Riggs wrote:
I had a Dachshund that I towed in a BOB trailer. Absolutely no problems at
all, even when stopped in traffic and intersections. (Of course she was
trained to "stay" until we got to a park or something.) It worked really
great.

The BOB people will tell you not to do this. I am sure because of
liability but for my
small dog, it was perfect...

That wouldn't have worked for my Siberian (100 lbs, mutant Siberian
:-). God I miss him! Then again he was over the weight limit for the
BOB.

--
Linux Home Automation Neil Cherry
http://home.comcast.net/~ncherry/ (Text only)
http://hcs.sourceforge.net/ (HCS II)
http://linuxha.blogspot.com/ My HA Blog