Conditioning in the summer

It is Good No Great to See some with an Ubderstanding and more seeing some Worry not about time of year nor temp outside but that of a way to work with it to understand it and what comes with .The above has it correct. I just wanna add That it would do some of Us some good Ourselves to get out there in the HEAT and work out lol stop letting Our wants get in the way of what is best. Hehe just saying. Watch them feet.

 

It's Hot out here. I've been getting our exercise done before 8:30 am no evening exersice. I think the payvement and asphalt still to hot at 8:30 pm. We get about a hour in before 8:30 am

 

I always walk on grass. Drive to the high school. Walk around the infield 4 laps is 1 mile. Change direction every depending on how long we are walking.

 

I'm big on just old fashion hand walking. Along with spring, flirt, pole, work ect. Living in the center of SC. Temperature is around 95, with 45 - 80 % humidity during the month of June. I do take em out for a 5 mile hike in the 1 pm to 5 pm there is a huge difference in there performance compared to taking the same hound out at say 9 pm, or 10pm.at night. I wouldn't advise anyone to start a hound right off the chain on a 5 mile walk in the heat of the day. However they , rather we will build up to it togather. Yet the same hound at night, will work harder for me in general . I think one of the reasons is because my hounds are definitely nocturnal . They are always in hunting mode. I have also learned that taking them out after 9pm reduces the chances of running into others that walk there dogs. Alot of good points have been made thus far. I am living proof that if they will dig for 5 up to even 10 miles in the heat of the day, yes night time as Cajun said , is dancing time. Yet it's hard on there pads if I'm doing real road work. Pavement, verses dirt, is night and day on my hounds pads. I personally like to do some of both. Common sense tells us that if a hound that gets conditioned in the heat of the day, should be matched in the day if you can get the challenger to agree. If not you are still have a advantage. I'm not an expert on conditioning hounds. Yet from my experience with this breed, It's alot harder to take a bulldog on a 10 mile hike in the heat of the day. Compared to a 10 mile hike at night. I would advise a beginner to just take em 2 miles, and so forth in the heat of the day. It's amazing how fast they will build up to working in the heat . One thing is for certain. No matter whether it's day or night, in my experience it puts a bright spot in my hounds day taking them out for a hand walk . They would rather be hand walked than eat. Lol. Back 3 years ago thus month I was 250 lbs with a 38-40 waist 5.10 250 and couldn't even put my boots on. No lie. I started hand walking myself with a bulldog in a years time I went from 250 to 170. Also to a 32- 33 waist. Of course I hit sum push ups ,pull ups also as I got my ass in shape . True story, it was all I could do to go a good mile in the beginning, yet I built my self and hounds up to 10 miles in the am , 10 pm . Felt like new money and my self esteem went up as well as my overall health. Every one is different, so what works for me might not work for you. I truly believe that walking is one of the best forms of conditioning myself and my hounds there is. Of course I added some chain dragging along with wind sprints ect. 1st things 1st. The only way to get ahead is to get started. A thousand mile journey begins with one step. Diet and nutrition is also very beneficial. My hounds love to be hand walked. Anytime, other than a male I have that is scared of thunder. No joke. The rest , rain ,shine, sleet or snow, they love it

 

I don't agree with this statement at all.. Why put your athlete through unnecessary stress.. The

This statement is rediculous .. Why would you add stress to your athlete. The workload from your keep is enough! When you get up in temp vitals get effected which can cause a whole bunch of other issues. The point of a keep is to push the limits but there is a threshold that you must be aware of and not cross. Why would you not want to get the best from your athlete each and every session. Working in the heat will never yield the best results and your recovery will be twice as long!

 

I remember that time being called the "Dog Days" me and mine just lay up!

 

Well where I'm from dogging is a year round thing, if they are going to work in the heat why in the hell would you not condition in the heat? If the dog can't handle a little stress of heat what the fuck is it going to do when it's hot and it's got something on its ass? LMAO I was always told you can tell who's who by how they can shape a dog in dog days of summer, lol guess everybody around here should follow your guideline and sit around and wait for it to cool off. Now I'm not saying purposely wait until ots 12-4pm and 105 out, but anytime of the year dogs get worked around here.

 

Lol thinking about it imo you said some of the most ridiculous shit I've heard. If you were training for a marathon and you knew it would be about 95 degrees when you ran it,would you spend your whole time training in 70 degree weather because you could train longer.... I'd train in the climate I would be racing in......

 

Lol thinking about it imo you said some of the most ridiculous shit I've heard. If you were training for a marathon and you knew it would be about 95 degrees when you ran it,would you spend your whole time training in 70 degree weather because you could train longer.... I'd train in the climate I would be racing in......

 

Marathons and as you say "dancing" are two different things. Keep working your athletes in the heat, I can guarantee there is a smarter approach to getting the best out of your animal.

 

What like shaping in early spring and hoping it's still in shape in the summer???

 

I think they will be fine as long as we use a little common sense.....I use to hear old timers say watch his tongue..if he is hog fat surely he will run hot faster. I've seen dogs running and heating in dead sun 90-100 degrees, thinking these dang dog are gonna have a heatstroke and die...if u have the type that can handle it,your good. Natural winded smaller dogs seem to be the fit for this...I think again like anything else it comes down to the individual dog and how they take it..no dog on my yard will pass up on a hand walking, they love walking it's just i gotta know when is enough for them...

 

What sense does that make..?? Again do you bro. If you do not understand the science behind achieving peak performance then you and I are on difference pages. You may have a few that your keen on but I would bet that if you took a less extreme method they would probably show better.
Your motor will always run better cooler.. Why put yourself in a situation where your car will not run at its best.

 

Not meant for you thunder

 

These animals are a lot more resilient than we give them credit for. If i can rope steers for 10 hours in 100+ heat then they damn sure should be able to do a bit of work, my collies could do a day in the yards in that heat working cattle and we never had one take ill. That said, common sense is the key factor here. Watch your hounds and be vigilant, we always made sure our dogs had access to a trough or dam to take a dip and cool down in but every now and then a dog might start struggling and need to put in the truck with the AC for an hour or two. Dog aint gonna get any better at dealing with the heat unless they get exposed to it gradually and given a chance to build up tolerance

 

Absolutely!!! Here in the south it's 80 at night, late night. Dogs get use to the heat like ppl. Build me up and they are good. Fighters train in the heat. Thai boxers in Thailand train in tropical weather, outside usually. Muay Thai in Thailand is BRUTAL. Not like the dogs, but brutal. Dogs are more resilient than ppl I think

 

If one lives in a hotter climate they basically have no choice but to work one in those temps, dogs that lived there all there lives get use to it.....imagine a dog from a cooler state like Wyoming traveling to a very hot state like phoenix/tucson Arizona. LOL

Besides the heat in Thailand the humidity is fucking horrible, walk out of your air conditioned hotel room for just 5 minutes and you are fucking sweaty and sticky. LMAO

 

Do you guys have any advise on getting your dogs to swim in a pool. I have a pool and have got him in but the little fucker keeps swimming to the edge then gets out.