For all his flaws quirks, and despite his litany of fears, there is one thing that focuses Cooper, gives him confidence, and lets him blow off all that pent-up drive:
Running.
Cooper loves to run.
He would run until he dropped, sleep it off, then get up and run some more if we let him. (We don’t.)
Last year, before Lucas, I started the C25K training program with the app on my phone. Of course, the incremental training was for me, not for Cooper. We worked through it together, though, then totally derailed because I de-prioritized running when we were dealing with Lucas and moving. Fast forward to this winter, and John and I started to run at an indoor track. He decided to set his sights on marathon training (um… no, thanks…), and I set mine on getting back to finishing a 5k.
Which we did last weekend! (Yes, I turn that shade of red every time I run. Sometimes even redder if the temp is above, say, 60 degrees!)
Now that spring has sprung, we’re back to running outside with Cooper, and all the time off? Well, it didn’t do a thing to slow him down. His drive is still there, fully intact. He will. not. stop.
Here’s the deal: When Cooper is out for a walk and we spot a dog, he flips out. He loses his head. He strains at the end of his leash, he barks, he wags, he yips, he hollers. It’s extreme frustration. When Cooper is out for a walk and we spot a squirrel, he makes his dog-spotting flip out seem tame. He seriously screeches. People from blocks away turn to stare. When Cooper is out for a walk and we get startled by a person–someone getting out of a car, someone coming out of a front door somewhere on the same block we’re walking, someone he can’t see coughing or sneezing somewhere nearby–he barks at that person.
But when Cooper is out for a run… none of that fazes him. He gets a bit excited if he sees a dog, but he keeps running. He gets a bit tense when he sees a person, but he keeps running. He whines a bit and reaches in the direction if he sees a squirrel, but he keeps running.
He’s the neurotic pit-mix version of Forrest Gump.
He just keeps running.
His post-run happy face is the cutest thing ever:
Anyway, some days he goes with me on my slow, short jog around the neighborhood.
Other days he goes with John on his training runs. Those are a mix of things, from distance and duration to sprints. What we’re finding is that Cooper thrives on distance. He wants to cover miles. He dislikes varying speeds, though; he needs a constant pace.
On Saturday, John had a log run. Seventy minutes. (Shudder…) He leashed up Coop and said that he’d swing by the house sometime between minutes 30 and 40 to drop Bean off because it was a little warm out and that was a long run. So, he did. After about 35 minutes, he brought Cooper home, then went back out. Cooper? He stood at the back door and waited. He wanted to keep going! I think he thought John would come right back to get him… but once he realized that John wasn’t coming back, he flopped in the middle of the kitchen floor and slept.
Cooper is an intense dog. He’s intense in all things. Seriously. All.
Just look at him in this birthday hat (another story for another day!):
That intensity is a double-edged sword, especially when it’s combined with his single-minded loyalty. He will literally run until he drops. Finding that line where he gets the most out of the activity, burns the most steam, gets to practice focus and build confidence, without overexerting him or pushing him to that point is our new challenge.
I know many of you run and many of you run with your dogs. Any tips or tricks to share? Fun running stories or outdoor adventures with your pup? What are your outdoor exercise plans for the summer?
As for me, it’s my day to run with Cooper… so I have 30 minutes of him trotting along staring at me with those “is that all you got, lady?” eyes of his… Yes, Bean. It’s all I got. 🙂
That is awesome! I bet he had lots of fun running with you. I wish I could take my dogs out for a run but one has collapsed trachea and the other doesn’t know how to keep a steady pace. He would go fast then started to walk.
For tips checkout Runners World site (http://www.runnersworld.com/tag/running-with-dogs). They have lots of articles about running with a dog.
Oh, my gosh! What an excellent resource. THANK YOU so much for sending that along!! Bookmarking it now… 🙂
I’m glad that you found it’s useful! 😀
I love that he gets in his zone! it is precisely why I don’t run, my zone is anywhere but running!
OMG… I know… I really keep waiting to start enjoying it, but. Nope.
He has the same sort of look I’d expect if you put a party hat on a Secret Service agent, or one of the Buckingham Palace guards!
HAHA! Exactly. Nothing is funny, sir.
I have a very similar story with my GSP Zoe. We adopted her from a local rescue organization when she was 6 months old and she was a nervous wreck, especially every time she was exposed to new environments, new people or new dogs. I started running with her about 2-3 years ago as an attempt to wear her out – GSPs have unlimited amounts of energy! She was never aggressive, but at first she would just start barking her head off every time we would encounter a person or a dog during our runs. She was also terrified of bikes and strollers to the point she would freeze and start shaking uncontrollably for several minutes. The first couple of months were really hard a but I began to notice that her confidence was growing. She started to focus more on the runs, like she was on a mission to get somewhere and then she slowly started to ignore people, strollers, bikes and most dogs during our runs. She still snaps at some dogs (thankfully she just barks at them) and I’ve become pretty good at reading her body language and the body language of other dogs, so I can predict when she’s going to “lose it”. In those cases, I stop running, grab her harness tightly and tell her to stay. We wait until the other dog walks by, I praise her when she does a good job and we start running again as soon as she’s calm. I try to stick to the same trails during our runs so she’s familiar with the environment and has one less thing to worry about. I also try to schedule our runs early in the mornings before the crowds and before it gets too hot. I live in Houston and I worried about her getting overheated so I always run with a collapsible bowl in my pocket and run around areas with water fountains. If water fountains are not available, I just carry water for both of us. She genuinely LOVES to run. I have trained for 4 half marathons with her and I cannot imagine doing it without her!
This: “like she was on a mission”
YES! That’s exactly it. I love the story you shared. Thank you for taking the time to share your tips and tricks, too! Did you find it was totally different running those half marathons without her? When I was lining up at that 5k, I kept thinking, “I wish Cooper were here!!!”
Isn’t it awesome to find something that takes their focus away from reacting? We’ve found that magic in the Frisbee (or more correctly, the Booda TailSpin Flyer) for Ruby. Like Cooper, she would Frisbee until she dropped if I would let her so. These intense dogs! I’m so happy you’ve found a fun activity to share with Cooper.
YES! I was reading about your Frisbee fun (flying disc, to be accurate??) and totally saw the parallel. It’s such a great way to burn off steam, and it sounds like you and Ruby are having a blast together… which is the most important thing!
for him, running by your side represents his “job” and he will remain very focused. my only suggestion for long runs would be to let him join at the back end and follow your lead as you relax after, otherwise he will be anxious as you drop him off and continue running without him.
BRILLIANT! Honestly, I never would’ve thought of that!! Thank you so much for the tip!
I certainly am not a runner but last year our son in law, who is in the Army, was acting all cocky about running with Julius. He said how much can a 75 pound dog pull an 220 pound man?
One (block) and done.
THAT face: what a beautiful boy he is!
Have you considered getting or making him a ‘cooling coat’ for these longer summer runs? There are several places I’ve seen them on line; but, really, how hard could it be to make? The collapsible bowls are so handy, You can attach one to your belt or to Cooper’s leash or your water bottle with a carbineer.
My boy is super-reactive, also.. I had to laugh when you mentioned his reaction to people opening car doors or sneezing or coughing. Wishbone totally freaks out if he sees someone on the OTHER side of the street a block away.
Our bedroom is only a sidewalk away from an apartment building and Wishbone has been known to wake, barking loudly, from a deep sleep when he hears someone knocking on the neighbors door or hears them talking on their phone..Same with hearing a doorbell ringing on TV. I don’t understand why that sets him off. We don’t even have a doorbell. Then there’s dogs barking or whining on TV. LOL As for the saying: ” Let sleeping dogs lie.” Whoa. Heaven forbid his sister or I should happen to bump him when he’s sleeping on our bed!
I guess the super- cute and super- loving genes must be paired with the reactive ones, or these dogs wouldn’t end up with families who love them as much as we do, in spite of their issues.
Super-hearing and super-reactive, NOT the easiest combo to live with. 😉
My boys share Cooper’s shift in focus when running vs. walking, which is fabulous (combined, they outweigh me!); however, even as a young pup, Oli seems to have a built in odometer telling him it was turnaround time. We had several sit-ins. 🙂 Since I was running half marathons back then, I used to have to do the run-and-drop then continue any long runs. He would relax with my partner (not a runner) for a post-run snack and snooze without being concerned that I kept going. If I did the reverse he would whine and pace until I came back – like perhaps I had forgotten about him. I do really like Konadog’s suggestion though, if you can make it work for Cooper then that a great way to do it!
Humphrey has no such odometer,. I’ve learned to read both of their little tells well. You’ll soon get the feeling on when Cooper is having fun vs. keeping up. Do keep an eye on his paws or signs that he is starting to feel tender, especially if you are on hard surfaces. Have fun!
Reading this makes me a little envious of you, having a dog that runs acceptably with you. My Lunabelle has three speeds, normal walking pace, speed walking pace, and Crazy Race Dog. When she is in Race Dog mode, she forgets that there is a lead attached to her and there is absolutely no getting her focus back. It also leads to a lot of injuries (on my part not hers, leash burn mainly.) Luckily though, if we just walk with her she doesn’t go into Crazy Race dog mode on the leash, and it has been reserved for a few laps around the back yard.
My name is Cooper as well! I love to run and I am a flawless, but quirky, kind of dog. Come check out my blog- dogs4dayz.weebly.com!!
I’ve never run with my dog Raven, he just wasn’t that kind of dog. He did love his walks though. Now that he is 14, he isn’t all to thrilled with longer walks.
Good luck with your running and I’m sure with all the good advice you’ve gotten here you and Cooper will be running in harmony.