Last summer, we started Bailey on doing roadwork while we ride our bikes. We have plenty of bike trails and quiet streets and she loves it. This year, she has finally settled in and is doing well in her positioning and following our lead. We are starting to extend her distances and it's a great workout for her.

I still haven't bought any bike attachments so we are just using a four foot leash and holding it in our right hand while also holding the right handlebar. All of our efforts to help her stay safe and maintain position are with verbal commands, leash pressure, or by just talking to her.

The question I have for all of you involved with pulling sports or cycling with your dog is what commands do you use while riding with her and in helping her maintain her position? With Bailey, we started marker training her while walking and working on the commands we would use in our bike rides. She knows what do do when we say "over", to get her to move away from us if she's getting too close. The other commands aren't so much commands as us just talking to her to give her warnings of what we are about to do, like slowing down, making turns, etc. The commands I use to slow her down, like "wait", "back", or "slow", are commands we also use for other purposes and I'm afraid I might end up confusing her. That's why I'm wondering if you all have specific commands you use just for the rides or pulling sports you do with your dogs or am I over thinking this?

I bike with my dogs (along side, not pulling me) and teach them whoa to stop, left/right for when I'm going to turn, and I teach them that when the bike is stationary they need to sit just like when we're out for a walk and we stop. To start moving I say 'lets go' and to encourage them to move faster I either repeat it in a sing-song voice or if I really want to book it I say gogogo! really excited. I teach them 'watch out' when they're getting to close by prodding at them with my toe.

It's not scientific, but it works.

Just use a new command for a specific bike thing. To slow down use something else like "easy" instead a command for something else.

WARNING, just in case you didn't read my thread...whatever you do, don't hold the lead handle or in any way attach or loop in onto anything. I recommend using a leash that's 6 feet in case you need sudden slack.

Thanks for the suggestions. Sounds like I need to both make use of some new commands and just keep trying to use common sense. I definitely will be careful about how I'm holding the leash, Tresa. I saw your video about the removal of pins from your hand and that's enough to convince me to be careful.

It convinces me too!

Greg, if the dog is responding to the older commands and hasn't mess up situations that you also use them in I'm thinking the dog is fine with them.
If my dogs are out to far ahead of me in a walk in the woods I may give a "wait", a "Hey", or even a "to far". They figure out my training quirks fairly quick.

 Quote: Greg Meyer

I saw your video about the removal of pins from your hand and that's enough to convince me to be careful.

The removal of the pins was nothing, post surgery was hell!

But yeah, never ever hold the handle of the leash, never use a short leash and never attach the leash.

When I do bikejoring I have a safety snap. It will hold for a steady pressure but come undone when there is a jolt.

 Quote: Bob Scott

Greg, if the dog is responding to the older commands and hasn't mess up situations that you also use them in I'm thinking the dog is fine with them.

They do have more of an ability to understand us than we give them credit for. They learn situations have different requirements and exactly when you're serious and when you're not. This can be good or bad.

I think, from what I'm reading in the responses, is to trust my dog. Sounds like I shouldn't get too hung up on specific commands and that makes sense. When I just talk to her while making turns or slowing down, she seems to pick up on my intent pretty well. I just don't want her to get hurt by something stupid I might be able to prevent. Now I need to decide whether to continue holding the leash or use one of the available attachments for the bike.