You probably already know this, but riding with your dog in the heat carries a significant risk of the dog getting heat stroke if you're not careful about hydration and limiting the amount and pace of running the dog has to do.

I know you are very opinionated, but sometimes you come off as a complete dick.

I hope FixedNotBroken doesn't mind me linking this, but I love all of the pictures he posted here: http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=117604

Well... there had to be one.

Just like the saying "guns don't kill people, people kill people"..... Pits are not violent at birth, they are trained to be that way.

I'm sure that you are aware of this and are actually just looking to start a fight for some attention... just thought I would clarify.

Much like everything else, don't like pits? Don't buy one.

Uh, Pit Bulls have been bred to tend towards violence. If somebody has a family history of heart atacks, they will have to eat more soy and less bacon than somebody else. With pits, they just require more niceness training, and zero tolerance for agressive behavior.

Pretty sure my pit Vigner was born without a mean bone in her body. And she was a street dog.

Pit bulls are also recommended by the American Kennel Club as an especially good dog for small children. Go figure. I like pit bulls, I just hate bad pit bull owners.

I agree that pits have been physically designed to be more appropriate killers physically. In other words if you train them to be violent they are damn good at it.
But you would still have to allow them to behave in such a manner and encourage it.

you bastard!

jes' kidding. i was just about to dig up that thread myself. unfortunately, he's now my ex-dog - by mutual agreement with my ex-gf. i miss him... :cry:

edit: i used this to haul the pooch around. it works pretty well; you'll need to secure the animal as they tend to want to 'escape'.

My dog rides in a baby trailer on the road. I ride w/ him off leash on single track all the time. I occasionally ride with leash in hand and him to my right in some situations. This takes a very light hand on the leash, so that it can be dropped. My guy liked to occasionally pop a squat, and that sent me over the bars twice until I trained myself to hold the leash lightly.
On single track, he starts getting in the way when he gets tired, so you have to be used to that, but it is doable.

bull****...
not saying they all do, not saying yours will, but pits do snap...
they can go from "see, not all pits are violent, sugar here's been a sweetie for years" to taking off the back of your leg in an instant... and when they do snap they stay that way...
i used to live with an orthopod... when she was in training she was seeing at least one person a week in for surgery because of their pit... this was in several hospitals throughout the SF bay area...

that said, that is a very good looking dog...

i also think that most violent pits are trained that way, but i do know that even well trained pits can snap. a friend's friend had a beagle and a pit from their puppyhoods... they were properly trained and raised together for 3ish years. one day, they were running around playing, then the pit snapped and ripped the beagle literally into pieces.

that same friend came out this january to visit me. about two weeks prior, a stray pit got into my backyard. it got along great with xochitl. i kept it and took care of it while the found dog report was active at the pound... i figured i'd keep him since he got along with my dog great, and figured it'd be one more space available for a dog in need at the pound. we had a new year's party and he was great around the crowd and all the strangers... shortly after the party is when my friend came out with his lab... the pit did not like the lab one bit, but the aggression seemed mostly like dogs trying to prove dominance, so we both figured we'll just keep them separated and not worry beyond that. well, were locking him in a room when the dogs needed to be inside. this was working great for a few days. well, we all went to dinner, locked the pit in the room, and left the lab and xochitl in the house... we still don't know how the pit got out but:
http://static.flickr.com/42/83232478_266fb8e5c1.jpg
http://static.flickr.com/37/83232473_9a149e3c80.jpg
we were gone less than an hour and came home to find my entire house in this condition.
http://static.flickr.com/43/83586337_8a251fd97b.jpg
crouton, the lab, lived and is 99% back to normal. the main reason we think it lived is because xochitl nearly killed the pit. she came out with four tiny puncture wounds. the lab was obviously hurt and the pit was also in pretty rough shape... it needed many stitches as well. the worst of the lab's injuries were due to it trying to get into a cupboard, but couldn't fit and the pit really ripped into it's hind legs... the lab's thick collar also saved him from the numerous throat attacks.

jesus christ

oh... poor thing... he looks just like my dog. I always make very sure to stay away from any slightly aggressive dog when I walk my lab. He gets snapped at by alot of dogs and he is so gentle that he would not even try to fight back (ie. he would end up in just as bad shape as this poor lab above). All of the people who walked pitbulls at the park I would take my dog always had them on a 2 foot leash with either a harness or a muzzle and they would get really aggressive any time my lab got near them. Some dogs are more aggressive than others from birth... I can't really see any logical reason to get one that has been bred for attack.

Just a side note; if you have a dog that attacks a person are you held responsible for the death or maiming? (this is regarding the pitbulls mauling little children you seem to hear on the news every one in a while)

Woah. Heelers rule.

yes you are responsible. at least for sure in colorado. they had to fix the pit as well so he could be alive at the pound for an additional week... had someone claimed him, they would've been fully responsible for the damages. since no one claimed him, he was euthanized. crouton is the same way as your lab... completely passive at all times.

128, heelers do in fact rule. they're actually a akc recognized mix. mainly dingo and dalmation i guess.

the most ironic part about that whole situation is that the very next day is when the found dog report would've expired, and my plan was to take him down to stay there and re-new the report for the additional 10 days. we were even talking about said plan at dinner...

This is pretty much the process I used to train my dog. (80lb pit bull) We had one or two really exciting crashes but he got it eventually. When I was riding my track bike I'd tie his leash to my waist (I didn't attempt this untill he was REALLY well behaved with the bike) When I was riding other bikes, beach cruiser, mtn bikes, cross bikes etc. I'd tie him to the seatpost or the frame.

i guess you probably know this, but you haven't mentioned it...i almost moved to denver (portland, denver, or new orleans were my picks) and was looking up some stuff about it. and it seems pit bulls are illegal in the county (denver county, if i recall correctly?). also iirc, it's also illegal to transport pitbulls through the county.

just thought that was interesting.

yeah, pits are illegal in metro denver. there's been a bunch of rallying lately to reverse it.

http://www.ontla.on.ca/documents/Bil...on1/b132_e.htm

It seems that pit bulls have been banned in Ontario, and that if you have them they must be immediately spayed or neutered and kept muzzled in public and private, and that if the dog attacks a person or animal the owner will be held responsible in both criminal and civil court. The police can also seize (with warrant) pit bulls in the interest of public safety. In fact if you live in Ontario it is now illegal to acquire a pit bull:

Pit bull ban
6. Except as permitted by this Act or the regulations, no person shall,
(a) own a pit bull;
(b) breed a pit bull;
(c) transfer a pit bull, whether by sale, gift or otherwise;
(d) abandon a pit bull other than to a pound operated by or on behalf of a municipality, Ontario or a designated body;
(e) allow a pit bull in his or her possession to stray;
(f) import a pit bull into Ontario; or
(g) train a pit bull for fighting.

what******************** did anyone else not understand that at all??

I think he got his penis caught in the drive chain.

I will give you some advice about healers. Now I am talking about real healers not mix's.
Never walk up and just think it is ok to touch them. always ask the owner. even if they are wagging their tails and acting very freindly. They have the strongest jaws of all captive dogs. They can and will rip your hand to pieces. and the true breeds tend to be one person dogs. and very... Very protective of their stuff. like the car their are in or even their leash.
So just be carful with them. healers are probley the most dangerous dogs. but also smartest and freindlest. Just always assume they are a killer inless you know they are not. My friend has a few and I love them. Great dogs. but you always know your car is safe with them in it. IF you know what I mean. ;)

I don't wanna know how that turned out...

Well I live with one now and we're getting used to each other pretty quick. He'll pass out on my lap when I'm watching movies or trying to use the computer. It's cute. He deffinately does NOT like it when theres confrontation int he house or when people touch each other, but as he learns our friends he's mellowing out.

Oh ya' most are pure sweet hearts. Thats cool. I love how they look like they are always smiling.

Not to be the guy who posts a link to a Malcolm Gladwell article, but:

http://www.newyorker.com/fact/conten.../060206fa_fact

He spins out a bigger arguement about profiling, but this article mentions the specific attack that led to the Ontario ban and as well as the Denver ban. It also brings up the point that just because German Shepards kill 2 people in the US per year, no one's trying to stop them from being seeing-eye dogs.

Pits were bred to bait and fight other animals. They tend to be very loyal and friendly to humans but really aggressive towards other dogs. If a pit isn't socialized well to other dogs, it'll probably be mean to other dogs. If it's raised really crappily, it'll be the same towards humans.

Fantomas, it looks like you're off to a great start--your dude's still a puppy and got neutered. If you can spare the cash, do an obedience school soon. you'll keep him from getting bad habits and he'll start getting used to paying attention to you. Also, get the dog used to other dogs early by taking him to a fenced-in dog park to play. Both of these have been awesome for the high-energy terrier mix that followed me home a few months ago. (he jumped in the street and ran after my blinkie light.)

It'll be a while before I try riding with my dog. We're working on his bad leash manners, and I'm afraid of him getting underwheel. Hopefully your guy will be more mellow and better suited for it. Wear him out all the time! Dogs are way fun.

edit: fixed that thing about the bears...

So I guess to steer this back onto topic, here is my bike+dog photo.
This is Bartelby before his first ride on Test Bike. I can maybe get about 3-4 miles in before he starts to get a little antsy. I haven't had him out for a ride since winter started and I don't know when I'll get anotherr chance now that I have a wee little child to look after as well. I have been looking at getting one of those kid trailers with two seats so I can put both of them in it.

that is so ****ing cute! i want that to happen to me!

nah...i don't know if i could afford a dog. but i really want one, and after years of apartments, i finally have a yard. *sigh*. oh, and roomies with cats. **** cats.

bostontrevor posted pics of his dog as he towed it behind his bike in a trailer... it looked pretty cool and the dog totally looked relaxed to be in it,
i can't find that thread though