bicycling puppy

Question
I was thinking of starting to either scooter or bicycle with my 5 month old cairn terrier... would this be a good idea?

Also I was wondering when my puppy will stop having accidents (i've pretty much potty trained him but if I leave him out for an hour or so he will pee on the ground, can't hold it). Do I need to keep bringing him out once every half hour until he's an year old or something? Thanks!

Answer
Hi Jeff,

There is no one time period in which a dog will become house trained. It can vary greatly between dogs.
While it's good that your puppy is making progress, he obviously isn't house trained yet, so you should be giving him frequent opportunities to go to the bathroom outside, and either crating him, or containing him to an area that has newspapers on the floor (with the help of a child-gate or two) when you can't be watching your puppy. At this point, he should not yet have the run of your house.

Clean the areas where your puppy has been having accidents with an enzymatic cleaner, such as Nature's Miracle. This will help prevent your puppy from re-marking in the same spots.

For a puppy, forced exercise is not good. Young tissue is resilient but prone to trauma and stress. Cartilage especially has limited regenerative capability and can be damaged by shock associated with excessive exercise. If the damage is not repaired, normal growth is disrupted. Until your dog is grown, moderation is best. Leash-walking and light jogging are excellent. Avoid heavy or extended activity on inclines and hills. Running alongside a bike is really good exercise for a dog (if you do it right), but you should not do it till your puppy is done growing. It's difficult to judge a dog's level of activity and fatigue while on a bicycle seat. You must make frequent stops and examine your dog's foot pads, and give him a rest as needed.

Running alongside a scooter (even after your dog is grown) might be too much for him to keep up with, or he might keep up with it just to please you, and hurt himself!

Free play for puppies is always the best, and it gives you the chance to practice lead training. When your dog is fully grown (after 1 year of age) using a "walky dog" attachment to your bike makes it much easier and safer, compared to holding onto the leash by hand.
http://www.walkydogusa.com/


Best of luck,

Patti