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Would you let your dog pull a child on a sled? (in snow, of course)

11K views 37 replies 25 participants last post by  Jrnabors 
#1 ·
Have you ever had your GSD pull a sled in the snow?
 
#2 ·
We don't have snow, but we used to have a competition where Jäger pulled people on a plasma cart after someone with a sleeve a hundred yards away. Whoever stayed on the longest was declared the winner.

Plasma cart:
 
#3 ·
Oh I plan to!!!! I'm getting a dog sled for Kyleigh, and as soon as the snow comes to Ottawa, I'm going to start training her!

My nephew is 6 and he is soooo looking forward to it!!!

BUT ... my nephew will be sitting on the chair, and I'll be standing behind the chair ... so he won't be alone, and I won't be letting Ky run full tilt!
 
#35 ·
Oh I plan to!!!! I'm getting a dog sled for Kyleigh, and as soon as the snow comes to Ottawa, I'm going to start training her!
Ottawa would be a great place to do that. I lived there for 18 months going to St. Paul University up on Main. Can you take her down on the canal? I'm surprised you don't have snow now! I remember last seeing dirt there at the end of October, lol!
 
#4 ·
I've had dogs pull little red wagons with our children in them. We had a goat we trained to pull a wagon as well. Not as successful as the dogs, but it was great fun. I've had dogs lead little ponies around the pasture with children riding the ponies.

As long as your careful and the kids / dogs are supervised, I see no problem with it at all.
 
#5 ·
I've let my dogs pull my younger siblings in sleds and wagons but only with me walking them on a leash. I didn't trust them to not take off after a squirrel with my 5 year old sister attached :wild: The only caution I would take is pay attention to if your dog truly likes pulling... I had a couple that seemed really confused and anxious if I asked them to pull anything, although I blame that on them being older (4 or 5) and having had years of training to NOT pull ;)
 
#6 ·
When you say "sled" do you mean a sled for kids to go sledding on or a real dog sled? Also how old is the child?

I have had my last GSD pull my kids in the snow, but they were over the age of 13 and were in an area that was clear of trees, etc...
 
#7 ·
after working with Bruce Langmaid a professional competitive sled dog racer , Iditarod and Yukon Quest, I bought his gorgeous hand crafted Quebec artisan made sled which he was retiring to get a more high tech, lighter weight sled for competition.
I would be invited to my sons primary grades school and the kids all got rides around the perimeter.

It takes training before - sound on go and stop , directions left right, and turn arounds .

Very important is that the dog is physically sound . That the equipment be correct so that the dogs pulling effort is correctly distrubted , and that the dog be of a temperament to enjoy it .

Control is necessary . You can not have a dog bolting , especially with a child on the ride.

These same dogs were trained to pull a wheeled cart also.
 
#8 ·
That's the only thing I don't know yet ... will she like it? I'm hoping she'll love it because I really need something that gets us out in the winter (since I hate winter, and can't ski to save my life!)

The guy that is building it for me is awesome - He asked me a million questions about Kyleigh - height, weight, physical fitness, etc. I should have it by mid-December! It's a chair on skis with a place for me to stand behind the chair. This way my nephew has somewhere to sit, while I control Kyleigh ...

If it doesn't work this year, there's always next year. Certainly don't have to worry about not getting snow in Ottawa (mind you it's +5 and raining today LOL)
 
#11 · (Edited)
From a different thread when I first posted about it:

A GSD is larger than a Siberian Husky. Sled dog notes: 1 dog can pull 1000 pounds, a 16 dog sled team can pull 33,000. I tested my 2 Mickey the "Silly Sibe" and Jolene the GSD / Sheltie / Husky mix ( dark sable) with me and an adult pedal cycle at Tractor Supply. Nothing happened....they just trotted along side until I passed them, and then WARP drive cut in. I went to the end of the large parking lot ( place was a K Mart in a previous life) turned around and we raced back to the door. I was afraid I could not stop in time or have to use "Freddy Flintstone Brakes"....but all was fine.
I almost peed my pants when I found out how much 1 dog COULD pull. I was wondering if my nephew would be too heavy at 70 pounds, and above was the response I got LOL
 
#12 ·
I was having a thought about letting Kira pull a young child (completely leashed, Harnessed, and supervised) on flat, snowy terrain.

I guess something like a slow pony ride.

Besides the fun factor for the child (and of course the dog has to like it), I think it would be a good muscle strengthening exercise for the rear legs.
 
#15 ·
Carmen- were the dogs you were using GSDs? I thought for sure I've seen you warn in the past (on weight pulling threads) that the GSD is simply not built for such work.
 
#16 ·
Ive done it with a horse before ( not a sleigh like an actual little Sled from Walmart hold on to a long line someone rides the horse and has the other end and gallop!) probably not the safest thing but we were teenagers and had a blast.
I have always wanted to try with a dog and harley has the *crazy gene that would do it all day long. I just worry about being too heavy but i guess if one dog can do 1000 .... hmmm
 
#17 ·
Kane does it, and loves it. Of course, I only let him pull the little ones on the sled and not the bigger kids. Too much stress on the joints and muscles. Especially since he is not condtioned to do it all the time. Wouldn't want any tears.
Anyway, the kids pay him back in the summer in return for sled rides in the winter.:p

 
#19 ·
many moons ago, when I had Jake, I bought a specially padded harness and set of traces for him, that was when we would get SNOW , unlike today where we hardly see it:),,,Had a flat toboggan(sp) type sled hooked him up and let him pull the kids around the neighborhood, one kid at a time of course..he loved it:)
 
#23 ·
We are totally planning to try this this year, if we get some good snow. Planning to use our 5 yr old big male GSD, he won't mind and I'll have him attached to the sled, and I'll walk beside him with a leash on him for control. This way he can do the work pulling our toddler for a few laps around the yard.
 
#25 · (Edited)
I would worry about the dog getting injured, not the child. Pulling on a sled with a 5 yr old isn't that bad/they just glide over the snow. Pulling several hundred pounds in a competition for GSD structure may not be a good idea.
Here is W. Oliver's youtube he posted a few years ago...doesn't look like much fun... :D
SchH dog sled 1 - YouTube
 
#28 ·
When I was 9-10 yrs old, my friend and I tied his large, young, hyper and rarely walked mutt to a "Big Wheel" and then put his little brother (maybe 6 or 7) on it. We opened the gate & the dog took off like a rocket down the block, his brother managed to stay on for a couple blocks before being thrown off. He had lots of raspberries, but no broken bones. The dog just kept going with the Big Wheel still in tow. We were finally able to catch up to him when the rope/ big wheel caught up on a play ground swing set. We paid for that one.
 
#30 ·
weight pulling is different with intentional resistance.

I trained with Bruce , the pro sled guy . I met him initially because he bought one of my GSDs for security when he went on the pro - competitions , his sole source of income , while his young wife and young son stayed home in the secluded acres . I went on a few training sessions with him in the fall when he started prep work . He used a wheeled chariot . Again in the winter . This is not like the Nelson Eddy Jeanette McDonald movie sled dog image - it was exhausting , running behind , jumping on the runner, getting off , running more , more . Good grief .

The harness is so important . Do not have a dog pull from a flat collar .

When that dog passed he got another one "Buster" who had a lot of Lord behind him and that dog could run with the best of his team.

Our Athletes
 
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