Comments on: Unitasker Wednesday: The Jog-a-Dog

By: Marilyn

Marilyn — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 23:15:54 +0000

These things are actually useful for a dog with disabilities and injury rehabilitation.

By: Danielle

Danielle — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 15:01:03 +0000

This is truly ridiculous when you consider how cheaply a used treadmill can be purchased. My Pointer/Weimeraner/Dane mutt would spend hours cruising on my treadmill if I’d let her and has become a fantastic dog because of it. Make no mistake, I would run and walk her twice a day for over an hour and not even touch her energy reserves. The treadmill was a last ditch effort to maintain my sanity (and knees!). I could turn on the treadmill and she’d hop on and totter along for 45 minutes before hopping off for a rest.

One note on Caesar Milan – he totally discredits ‘mental exercise’ which is more tiring and useful than physical. I learned to use games for my dog (meals in sealed water bottles, etc) to give her mental stimulation. The more mental exercise, the less physical she needs by a huge measure (and its a lot easier to move an empty water bottle than a treadmill!).

By: catmom

catmom — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 03:17:42 +0000

All my dog owning friends are lined up for this, NOT!!!

To M.R., all I know is, if I bought this for my cats, they would no more get on it than the man in the moon. They would absolutely freak out! Maybe other cats are different.

By: Isobel Joaquin

Isobel Joaquin — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 16:27:55 +0000

No thanks, I’d rather walk my dog.

The product is equally ridiculous as it’s price.

Fun read Thanks!

By: M.R.

M.R. — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 14:58:06 +0000

Please let me know if anyone has luck getting a cat to stay on this. I know a few indoor kitties who could benefit from some activity!

By: Vi | Maximizing Utility

Vi | Maximizing Utility — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 14:07:36 +0000

As some commenters have already pointed out, Cesar Millan uses treadmills (well, human ones, which can be much cheaper). He preaches (and I agree) that dogs’ number one need is exercise. And you’d be surprised how many dog owners do not give their dogs sufficient exercise. It can be very difficult given all the time constraints the average person has. I think that using a treadmill for your dog is better than no exercise.

By: George Jetson

George Jetson — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 03:25:38 +0000

Jane! Get me off of this crazy thing!

By: Karen

Karen — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 23:44:28 +0000

A must have for all dogs!

And what an economical price!

I feel foolish teaching my high energy dog to use my $400 treadmill, when I could have bought her one for so much more!

By: John

John — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 22:23:29 +0000

OK, I live in a nice temperate climate so we can always take walks, but you know what? A walk isn’t THAT much exercise. The real value of it for me & my lab/pit mix pup is that it’s time we spend together, that I reinforce his training (playing games with “wait” and “sit” and “leave it”), and just enjoy doing something together.

If I want to get him running I need only throw a frisbee around the yard.

By: Anna

Anna — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 22:09:38 +0000

The Littermaid, not the cat!

By: Anna

Anna — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 22:09:23 +0000

If I had $3000 to throw around I’d get myself a treadmill so my running schedule wouldn’t be dependent on weather and light conditions.

Josho2001 – Good luck getting your cat to use a treadmill! Mine was so terried of the LitterMaid I had to give it away.

By: Celeste

Celeste — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 21:37:23 +0000

Isn’t everything you buy for a pet a unitasker?

By: Colliegurl!

Colliegurl! — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 20:23:19 +0000

Living in the cold climes of Michigan, we get a lot of snow & bitterly cold temps. My dogs participate in dog-related sports such as agility (obstacle courses for dogs), so they are trained to use my treadmill. Otherwise, they lose their muscle condition over the winter months. I know, seems silly, but one ACL injury to an agility dog can end their career, & they LOVE to do agility. So I can sand the laughter & keep doing it my way.
CollieGurl

By: BarbaraB

BarbaraB — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 20:17:40 +0000

Dog treadmills are illegal in some jurisdictions in the US because they are used by dog fighters to train fighting dogs.

By: Kellye

Kellye — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 19:46:32 +0000

I used to have a Siberian Husky and if I could afford it, I would definitely have bought this during that time period.

Then again, I wouldn’t ever recommend a Siberian Husky to a “casual” owner…if you have to buy a $3000 treadmill just to keep your dog too tired to destroy your home, you probably picked the wrong breed for your lifestyle (like I did…)