The dog powered recumbent trike

That is such a cool set up! How on EARTH did I miss that post??

I'm not sure it would work for me for touring though. It mounts in the way of my rear rack/panniers. But would be perfect for day rides!

Terii

 

Here is Terii set up.

 

I've tried this myself.
We, my dog and I, are not quite right for bike & dog jaunts:
I'm not the trainer I think I am and
my dog is not built for long trots.

My bike is not a trike; after watching videos of Northern dog teams
training in the off-season by pulling four-wheelers, I'm in
awe of you who can do this with your dogs using your trikes!

BB, my rescued APBT (Pitbull) is built for sprinting, power and agility.
After he ran around this Summer with our rescued Doberman,
he looked like a starved rat!
He was using way too many calories trying to keep up with her.

----

Temperament!

BB has a huge prey-drive... coupled with typical bulldog tenacity.
He has pulled my bike into the ditch going after squirrels.
My dog also has a phobia for large domestic animals.
He has pulled me into traffic avoiding horses, asses and cows.
Other than that (and his genetically poor stamina)
-and the local car traffic-
my dog would love to be out with me, exercising with my bike!

We settle for walks.
He's great on lead.

 

Thankfully, Loke doesn't have a pitbull's strength. His prey drive is pretty high, but with the headcollar, there's no way he can put what strength he does have into yanking me off course. Body has to follow the head.

And of course, he's built for traveling long distances which was the main reason we got a husky... other than the fact we love the way they look and I kinda like the slightly independent temperment. If we get another dog when Loke passes on , it will be either another husky or a breed that is built for covering distances. Maybe a Rhodesian Ridgeback or if my husband has his way, a Malamute.

Terii

P.S. Loke's only frightened of large domestic animals if they're in a tightly clustered herd running along a fence line with us.. Think 20 curious cows lumbering along in our wake. He REALLY hates that.

 

I only knew one Siberian Husky, personally.
She was a very, very well-trained and well-mannered pet/partner
of a dog trainer.
Independent, obedient, hard worker, bright, aloof and strong... Saber was used to demonstrate
how a dog should mind.

Sabers' most impressive feat?
The trainer would ask for a new student to Donate their retractable lead;
he would clip the lead's end to Sabers' pulling harness;
the trainer would have Saber, 'HI' (pull/run!);
the retractable lead would unreel 'till the end and:
the hand-held reel and housing assembly would explode.

Retractable leads are useless and dangerous.
That was the lesson.

Saber, though small for a Sibe., was very, very strong.

I love dogs....
The Northern breeds have always appealed to me.
But keeping a double-coated Arctic breed here in the
Southeast U.S. seems cruel to me.
The closest I've come to that is my old GSD;
(German Shepherd Dog) he could not work too hard
outdoors in Georgia Summertime heat.

 

Thanks you both, for the info. Where did you get the rig for Loke? My dog is a rescued 5-6 year old 67lb. mixed breed (border collie, pit bull, lab plus others). SHe is a bit dog aggressive so needs to be leash walked (or trike-walked-a better choice for me). Her coat is short and very thick and soft.

 

I originally started with a standard dog harness and this http://www.thedogoutdoors.com/walkydog-dog-bike-leash.html

But even at 1.5 years old, Loke pulled hard enough to break THREE of those walkydogs. The problem was the bar can separate from the clamp which holds it to the trike. The little tongue on the connector which snapped into the bar just wasn't strong enough for the wild lunges of a hysterical husky.

No way I was going to be able to just run Loke with a standard leash or even his head collar.

So, my FIL who is a very problem solving and handy kind of guy took a look at my trike and the problem. He took one of the Walky Dog bars with it's spring cushioned tether, slid it into a section of metal tubing, put bolts through it and used metal strapping like what holds various hoses in place on a car engine. The new bar is essentially strapped to one of the horizontal support bars of my seat. It's worked PERFECTLY.

I finally decided the strap harness wasn't comfortable for Loke and it really bothered him when he pulled hard so I found one in the Ruffwear line. They seem to have discontinued my current model, but I think this is the 'new' version. http://www.ruffwear.com/Web-Master-Harness .

It distrubes the pulling force much better and Loke seems more comfortable in it than the old version... which by the way he could 'banana peel' his way out of. Not this one.

If you need more info about the running bar, let me know. I can always a post on my blog about my running arrangement with Loke complete with detailed pictures.

Terii

 

Dog powered recumbents

Not sure if this has been posted before.

go to the website at www.dogpoweredscooter.com

 

My trike is semi-dog powered. Loke pulls on occasion.

Terii

 

Saw on TV...

There was a post on here where someone had asked about how to run a dog with a bent and someone found a link for an outrigger sort of arrangement to go on a scooter, bike or trike.

Just saw it on an Animal Planet show called 'Your Pet Wants This'.

Terii

 

I am going to have to rig up some sort of treadmill mechanism, on my trike, for my "dog wannabe" so he can stop when he gets tired. It is obvious he so wants to go with me; however since he is only 8" tall i am afraid he won't be able to keep up. And i don't like him enough to let him ride in my lap.....

 

This is whats called living on a wing and a prayer. The only thing keeping this guy right side up is faith and luck.
I had to clean the dog house one day and my female would not stay out of whenever i put my head in it to clean it. I finally chained her to the eyes on the back of my car so she couldn't reach the dog house. After i cleaned it i tipped it up so the water could drain out the door opening while i went in to clean up. When i came back the dog house was back down. She was in the dog house, and the car was up against the gate. I had to get in it and move it to get in the gate. She had pulled the rear of the car sideways... If that Husky looking thing decides to take off dude is in for an "E" ticket ride at best. Maybe an "E""R" ticket as well.....

 

That is pretty cool, but still, a dog sled would be best in my opinion. low sled in good warm weather with 6-8 dogs pulling the load and then a sled with runner in winter etc. Dreaming? Maybe, but it never hurts to wish...