Training for the AD

[ayoitzrimz]

Hey everyone,

Did anyone get the AD (Endurance title) on their dog recently? I'm looking for information on what is required and perhaps a training plan I can use as a baseline for us (now that he's old enough structurally) to train for the AD.

I couldn't find information online, can anyone post a link or some notes on how they trained for it? Or any other information about the title will be great.

Thanks in advance!

[onyx'girl]

TRAINING FOR THE ENDURANCE TEST (AD)
Sirius Dog

[Liesje]

To me the main components are training the dog to jog along the bike and conditioning the dog's feet if your AD is going to be on pavement. I think most dogs in fit condition can run an AD with little prior training but if they are like mine, living mainly on grass, carpet, or rugs, and have to run on pavement they need some time to toughen the pads.

[Packen]

I did Gnash's AD last year. We trained for it by running him next to the bike for 2-3 miles 3 times a week for a month or so. Endurance wise he is very fit so running 12 miles was no problem, the short runs toughened up his paws.

I have seen many ADs cut short at the 6-8 mile mark as the dogs paws started to bleed. The paw conditioning is the most crucial part in my opinion, done easily by running him 2-3 miles at a time. These short runs do not stress the joints and conditions the paw pads nicely.

[elisabeth_00117]

I bike with Stark almost everyday in the summer and spring, a few miles here and there. One per week do about 10 miles at a nice trot.

Like everyone said,, conditioning the feet is my main focus. He can do 12+ miles easily.

[ayoitzrimz]

Perfect, thanks for that tip. makes perfect sense that the paw conditioning would be the main focus. We haven't done much road work because I've always worried about stressing his joints - and by the time he was old enough we've been spending our time outside doing OB or tracking lol

I'll start conditioning his paws now (or very soon) and hopefully by the time the spring rolls around we'll be ready

[lhczth]

I just did two AD's in October (not my first, just the most recent). I like to bike my guys 2-3 times per week to prepare them for the AD. Usually I will do 2-3 miles on one or two of those days and then on the other day I build them up to doing around 6 miles (for a couple of weeks before the AD). I usually start 6-7 weeks before the AD, though I only do one or two easy rides early in the week preceding the AD. Personally I think it only fair to build up the muscles needed for trotting (not running) before making my dog go 12.5 miles. Plus it is good exercise for the dogs and for me.

I bike on gravel roads with a couple of very short distances on pavement. I look for AD's where the dog will be running mostly on grass or other natural surfaces and not on pavement.

[Castlemaid]

I did an AD a few years ago with Keeta - she would have been around 4 yrs old at the time. Tried to bike her regularly 2 or 3 times a week. I did shorter runs on weekdays due to time, 2 to 4 miles or so as everyone else, and would push for speed and work on pavement to toughen her pads. On the weekend I would do longer, more leisurely trips on dirt roads or running her on dirt or grass shoulders to build stamina and the ability to remain focused on task for longer (a big deal with Keeta who easily got distracted and would react impulsively - DEAD TOAD ON ROAD - Gotta go smell!). It wasn't just training for endurance with her, but training self-control and work ethic too.

[lhczth]

Lucia reminded me that on one of the shorter trips I usually did some sprinting with the dogs (boy is this scary with a 90# dog) for a 1/4 - 1/3 mile towards the end of our routine. Pretty much as fast as they could run. The longer trips were done at a steady AD pace (9 mph).

[codmaster]

Originally Posted by Castlemaid

I did an AD a few years ago with Keeta - she would have been around 4 yrs old at the time. Tried to bike her regularly 2 or 3 times a week. I did shorter runs on weekdays due to time, 2 to 4 miles or so as everyone else, and would push for speed and work on pavement to toughen her pads. On the weekend I would do longer, more leisurely trips on dirt roads or running her on dirt or grass shoulders to build stamina and the ability to remain focused on task for longer (a big deal with Keeta who easily got distracted and would react impulsively - DEAD TOAD ON ROAD - Gotta go smell!). It wasn't just training for endurance with her, but training self-control and work ethic too.

Actually, a DEAD TOAD does sound like most dogs would want to take a short break ("You go ahead and I will catch up with you in a minute!") to check out!

Heh! Heh!