Looks pretty neat. I admit I like the idea. It would bring the fun of skijoring to the non-winter months for me, but $805.00 is alot to have the dual dog system. Even the single dog one at $555.00 seems high for a scooter. If adding the dogs didn't cost $250.00 each it would be more feasible. That and a lower price than $305.00 just for the scooter. I see he'll do your own scooter for $20.00 but you still have to pay for the dog setups.
Skijoring costs me alot less. Too bad it requires snow.
The only thing I would be worried is if the weight is not equally distributed for the dog so it could cause future joint problems or muscular lesions. I don't know if it's that way, nor it seems from this video, but I would investigate more about that.
I do bike with my dog, have a couple of different gizmos so that I am not hanging on to the leash. He loves it. Just wanted to try something new and saw these and was wondering??
Well I looked through those other two sites you added to the one already posted. I think if you're going for a scooter the ones at http://www.dogscooter.com/ look best as they have a frame such that your dog is more controlled. Looks like having two dogs works better for that setup though. I'd be worried about having the dogs out in front like the setup at http://www.dogpoweredscooter.com/ shows. Sure, dogs are out front in skijoring but you're also out on packed trails and so the dogs are going to stay on the trails rather than run off into deep snow. That may be the best system if you have only one dog.
For me though if I'm going to shuck out $900.00 either way I'd rather get the sulkie shown at http://www.dogpoweredscooter.com/ so I can ride and have control as well. However that's not something in our budget these days.
I like the cost of skijoring much more. A beginner package is just $270.00.
We have a Diggler Scooter we bought for somewhere around $350 six years ago. I think it was their top of the line at the time but I'm sure they've made many improvements (and price raises) since then. Seemed like a hefty chunk of change even at the time. Nice product though - it's held up great. And Grace was driving us INSANE, so we really had no choice. There just weren't enough hours in the day to exercise her as much as she wanted and we lived in DC. However, with the scooter and the many greenways, we were able to coexist happily until she chilled out some. Now she's 8 and we just do it for fun. I also use it for ADHD fosters.
The dogs pull it using x back mushing harnesses and they pull from up in front (I didn't like the side mount harness things for the same reason as the above poster).
For training them, we had my husband ride his bike in front of us. GSDs are such velcro dogs they went wherever he went and ignored everything else.
I would rather skijour too but I've never lived anywhere with enough snow.
GSDdad is absolutely right though - if you have them up in front like that, you've got to run them where there's no one around or you need to make sure they're trained "on by" when people/dogs/horses pass.
You can also deal with this by having a biking partner who herds them to one side when passing obstacles, but again, basic training is necessary unless you have a dog so obsessed with chasing your partner that they don't care about anything else, and even then - better safe than sorry.
Doesn't bother mine and I get runner's knee periodically doing other things, but I don't know if my experience is typical. If you're running on paved surfaces with a good quality scooter, you really don't do any work at all. On trails, I can see how it could be more of an issue.
If I had to choose one of the scooter systems, I would go with the Dog Powered Scooter where the dog is next to you rather than out front.
I think it looks like fun and I'm sure my girl would probably really enjoy it. The way it's set up doesn't look like it would be uncomfortable for the dog or that there would be a lot of weight placed on the dog. It's just really out of my budget at the moment.
I have a dog jogger attached to my bike. Java can do 3-4 miles (flat) at a jog and still ask to go for more. She jogs on the left side of my bike and does not get forward of the handlebars. We still want to chase squirrels but the jogger spring gives a good shock absorber when she tries to bolt. I'd love to skijor, but I don't have snow or equipment. I have a good park to do it in though!
Took Deja to a introduction to Barn Hunt. She is a natural with her prey drive. For more information check out www.barnhunt.com. Anyone else doing this? I am hooked.
Not sure if this a a dog sport but was wondering if anyone else is into getting the Trick Dog titles? I just found this "sport" recently and have had quite a bit of fun with it. Didn't realize just how many tricks Stella knows. I am pleased to say she got her Novice title today. We already...
The local kennel club organized a AKC FAST CAT (Coursing Ability Test) event, basically in our back yard so I decided to see what it entailed. It is a short version of lure coursing but for individual all breed/mutts dogs by AKC. After observing this without Deja, I decided to enter her on...
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