Bike to dog attachments - whats good ?

[Ant]

It has to be the walkydog found at walky.co.uk

They are awesome. Attach to seat post and it has an adjustable internal spring damping mechanism. Combine this with a harness and short elastic type lead and you have the safest method of attachment as the dog cannot get in front of your front wheel. I off road with my dogs all the time. One of them is a bugger for chasing little creatures and she does lurch off to the side periodically, but it is pretty easy to manage if you are used to off road bike control. One downside is the attachment will mark your seat post and it weighs a fair bit. I just got a cheap second seat post for dog riding duties and put a spare saddle on it. When you stop, the bar detaches and becomes a lead so you can park the bike and walk the dogs.

Really, honestly, one of the best things I ever bought.

[rmurphy195]

In answer to the question posed in the heading - NOTHING Don't do it. Obvious really.

[Ant]

Rubbish! How many of the nay sayers have actually ever used something like this?

I have been using one for years and it is perfectly safe in the right environment. Like anything else, it just depends on the common sense of the user...

[[XAP]Bob]

Rubbish! How many of the nay sayers have actually ever used something like this?

I have been using one for years and it is perfectly safe in the right environment. Like anything else, it just depends on the common sense of the user...

... and the dog.


If you have a great dane who chases dust then it might not be sensible

[Ant]

Fair point but that's obvious really, hence my comment about common sense I don't think I would risk a great dane on it, but then a great dane wouldn't enjoy that type of exercise anyway. I wore out a set of brake pads the first time out with my little terrier!

Seriously, I can't believe how many people are happy to give an opinion on something they have certainly never tried, probably never seen, or barely even have a concept of!

My petite girlfriend occassionally rides with TWO dogs attached to one walkydog attachment and controls the dogs and bike perfectly well. Yes sometimes they lurch, but the attachment keeps them limited and they CANNOT get in front of her wheel. A dog lurching is PREDICTABLE and hence MANAGEABLE. If your cannot control your dog then you and your dog shouldn't really be out in public anyway...

It is not like you'll be riding 20mph plus on busy roads with them and if you were you'd need your bumps feeling.

To the OP - get yourself a walkydog! If you are anywhere near Bradford, let me know and you can have a demo

[mercalia]

u need to look how husky sleighs work and get one of those systems and a whip to get the dog to pull u? ideally need more than one dog. ( well a silly idea to cycle with a dog lead, talk about dangerous?)

[Vorpal]

We talked about this a couple of years ago viewtopic.php?f=1&t=70714

For what it's worth, I see people 'walking' their dogs by bicycle quite a lot in Norway. Most of them have some sort of device that attaches to the bicycle, either at the rack, or seat post. One gentleman I see occasionally in the park has several dogs, and a set of leads and harnesses that look like the ones that sled dogs use.

[KevinH]

you don't need any special attachments. I been cycling with dogs for many years, usually on towpaths and off-road tracks.

Tie the lead to the seat post, and adjust the length so that the lead does not extend past the front axle. All the dogs I've cycled with picked it up very quickly and are soon trotting along beside you with a loose lead.

Unless you have a huge animal they won't be able to effect the direction of the bike when moving ( no guarantees on speed thou' ). I've had an unruly 35kg German Shepherd try to launch off after rabbits when attached this way, and all that happens is you have a dog running sideways.

[Dafydd17]

This works pretty well...

Tired but happy dog

[merseymouth]

Hi there, his illustrates fully the lack of thought on the part of "Doggy Folk"!
At best selfish, worst silly.
Why not teach the dog to cycle? Safer for everyone else who have to share the space.
Running with a dog is quite natural and reasonable, matching ability to intended speed is the trick, just as visually impaired runners & their guides do with mutual benefits.
But hey dog owners don't think on such lines? I've seen "Doggy Folk" exercise their pet whilst driving! Yes, lead out the window, but then as it's not written in the Highway Code the legality, or otherwise never occurs to them!
So start running with your canine, remember be sure that both party's get clearance from their medical practitioner! Woof, Woof. MM

[greyingbeard]

thank-you, a sensible answer. I see the ancient clunker 531 mtb having a new use.
I am enjoying the squabble though. Postman !! Grrrrr

It has to be the walkydog found at walky.co.uk

They are awesome. Attach to seat post and it has an adjustable internal spring damping mechanism. Combine this with a harness and short elastic type lead and you have the safest method of attachment as the dog cannot get in front of your front wheel. I off road with my dogs all the time. One of them is a bugger for chasing little creatures and she does lurch off to the side periodically, but it is pretty easy to manage if you are used to off road bike control. One downside is the attachment will mark your seat post and it weighs a fair bit. I just got a cheap second seat post for dog riding duties and put a spare saddle on it. When you stop, the bar detaches and becomes a lead so you can park the bike and walk the dogs.

Really, honestly, one of the best things I ever bought.

[cotswolds]

If you want to get serious about it, look up 'bikejoring'. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bikejoring

Saw the start of a race once, very entertaining when you get a crowd of excited dogs on the start line. The best of them disappeared in to the distance very quickly, the inexperienced got tangled up almost instantly.

Loads of equipment here. http://www.innerwolf.co.uk/browse-by-sport-activity/cycling-bikejoring

[Edwards]

Hi there, his illustrates fully the lack of thought on the part of "Doggy Folk"!
At best selfish, worst silly.
Why not teach the dog to cycle? Safer for everyone else who have to share the space.
Running with a dog is quite natural and reasonable, matching ability to intended speed is the trick, just as visually impaired runners & their guides do with mutual benefits.
But hey dog owners don't think on such lines? I've seen "Doggy Folk" exercise their pet whilst driving! Yes, lead out the window, but then as it's not written in the Highway Code the legality, or otherwise never occurs to them!
So start running with your canine, remember be sure that both party's get clearance from their medical practitioner! Woof, Woof. MM

Can you run at over 25mph? I certainly can not but our dog can and does, she wants to race and is quick. She will also just trot along beside the bike when not attached, that is until I say "run and run" then she is gone.
She gets very excited when she sees the bike come out as she knows she can run and win.
But for some of the time I have to use the pole when others are about.

I recommend attaching the arm to a rack not the seat post as it is lower and the back of your leg does not catch it.

The dog MUST ALWAYS WEAR A HARNESS when attached to the bike. DO NOT ATTACH TO THE COLAR. Some sort of quick release is also a good idea to avoid injury, Velcro is very good for this.

[merseymouth]

hello again, I think you make my point all the more valid!
25 mph with a canine tethered? Even without a dog doing 25 mph on a shared use facility is ill advised, not what the track was created for.
Doing the same speed on the road with a dog attached would soon attract attention, with the legality or otherwise of such a practice being tested?
Doggy Folk will no doubt view such comments as killjoy, limiting their freedom, but take the blinkers off.
While you speed along with your pooch tethered to your cycle, another dog, not under your so called control, wants to join in? It's not on a lead, your own dog gets agitated, what happens next??

I don't own a dog, nor would I inflict my lifestyle on any animal, but neither do I wish for others who make poor choices endanger my safety!

I do believe that local authorities should make sensible exercise areas available for those who choose to have dogs. But outside of those areas dogs should always be on a conventional lead, none of those extendable contraptions! Until you have suffered an attack by a dog you cannot fully understand the problems they pose!
Walk your dog on a proper lead by all means, but if you wish race condition your speedy hound get a treadmill! Pavo Canis! TTFN MM

[tatanab]

MM, you know very well that little fluffy can do no wrong.

Question - if/when there is an accident/incident, will the local newspaper report that a cyclist was involved or will it be a dog owner? Let me guess. A "cyclist exercising a dog" which will cause readers letters pages to overflow with outrage at the stupid and cruel behaviour towards little fluffy by that nasty cyclist.