Anyone know if there are any limits as to how far my lab can run?

[DrNortherner]

I am a runner, and training for a half marathon in June.

My running partner is my lab. He is a fit, lean and healthy 3 year old. A friend of mine has recently said I should check with my vet if he is OK to run 10 - 13 miles with me. I had not even thought it would be a problem but she was thinking about the hip problems labs can develop.

If we go for days out he can run and walk and swim for hours and hours, but sometimes when I run with him on the roads he is on a lead and towards the end I do seem to have to be encouraging him but I think this is more boredom tbh.....

Thoughts?

i used to run 5k a few times a week with my young jrt years ago. she was on the lead and was ok with that distance. we used to do a once or twice weekly 10 mile walk but she was off the lead for this

i dont have any medical experience but running 10 miles with any dog on lead seems too much to me. its not just that the dog may get bored but more so that i presume you are running at a fairly constant speed and the dog may need to vary that over such a long distance

have you heard of cani-x? maybe they could advise

if it was me though i would always speak to my vet who knows my dog and take their advice. you could always ring your regular vet and ask over the phone or ask at next booster appointment?

Not sure but I think the issues would be with the feet/paws on pavement and road. They would need checking as they are not designed to run on those surfaces long distance.(The pads canget sore/cracked etc)
I would check with a vet first though.

If the dog is coping well with it and fit enough, I can't see it being a problem tbh. I do think though that if your dog is needing to be encouraged near the end, you may well be nearing his limits. He might just not be fit enough or he might just not be capable of such long runs.

Pads can wear out/through if you're on hard surfaces a loit. Surgical spirit on undamaged pads can help harden them, but they will naturally toughen over time.

My DH runs with all four of our dogs, up to 10-12 miles a time. 2 have to be on the lead for this, two arent', but one of those runs alongside the whole time anyway. Out of the four dogs, two aren't really keen, so we keep them to shorter distanes, one loves it but is pretty tired for a few hours when she gets back and one could easily go for another 10 miles! (3 of the dogs are Golden Retrievers, so not Labs but similar breed mean hip scores)

Thanks guys. I must add he is not on the lead the whole time, I do a mixture of on and off road, as soon as we get to a safe place his lead comes off. He just has to be on a lead near the roads.

What is cani-x?

cani-x is running with dogs. westonbirt aboretum recently had a cani-x race as well as fun dog show. will try and find a link

www.canix.co.uk

www.cani-cross.co.uk

sorry cant do links

Agree with BigGitDad - running on tarmac roads/paths especially in hot weather would likely damage the dog's paws after a while.

Dogs lope along for mile after mile in the wild behind the pack leader so the dog will not suffer psychologically though.

I've got a breed that will run and run and run, and then some. The thing to watch for is road surfaces, dogs are the same as humans and just as you should vary your surfaces for your joints and muscles so should the dog. I don't know about labs but for my breed you can get boots for working/running dogs who are prone to pad problems and you need to inspect his paws after every run for any signs of injury. Remember to take extra water for the dog as he/she may not be comfortable going as long you can without a drink

Thanks guys. Cani x looks interesting, have bookmarked to read in further detail.

It had never occurred to me about he pads, so thanks for the advice. Will put a call in to my vets.