How can a dog have so much stamina?

Kaneman · 02-23-2009, 08:52 PM

This is Jethro, he was an out of control and dog aggressive Boxer that my wife and I adopted. I promptly gave him a job and put him to work as a puller and transporter. We began with wild unpredictable runs on rollerblades and progressed to impressively controlled marathons and then to a kid-pulling cart.

He's about two years old and I've had him for over a year. He's about 95lbs and I'm about 195. He pulls me (without the cart) at a consistent 20mph for a while and levels off around 15mph with occasional bursts. He knows left, right, whoa and stop so I've managed to survive these daily excursions in spite of running across a rabbit or squirrel here and there.

Last Tuesday I took him to a local park with paved trails to do some skating/pulling. I took a GPS with me to track our mileage and speed. He pulled me right at 6 miles (don't have the speed since we stop for breaks). He does not trot, he runs the entire time save for water breaks. At our half-time I let him swim in the river and he proceeded to chase ducks up stream for 100yds....then he was ready for more running. Once we got home he still had enough energy left to wrestle with my choc lab.

At the dog park he outruns 95% of all the dogs he coerces into chasing him. He rarely tires. He can pull the cart with two kids in it and me for great distances as well, though we've never gone as much as 6 miles. He pulls me up long steep hills...like the little engine that could.

He doesn't eat a great amount of food (5-6 cups a day) and he folds up into a space small enough to occupy only one couch cushion. My question is how does he manage to have such unbelievable stamina and strength. Or any dog for that matter. How do their bodies run so much more efficiently than ours or does a dog not feel fatigue or muscle burn?

Thoughts?

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CHEVROLET S-10 EV SPECIFICATIONS

02-23-2009, 08:52 PM	#1
Kaneman AMA Supersport Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Odessa, TX Moto: 2000 Honda CBR1100XX Blackbird Posts: 4,931	How can a dog have so much stamina? This is Jethro, he was an out of control and dog aggressive Boxer that my wife and I adopted. I promptly gave him a job and put him to work as a puller and transporter. We began with wild unpredictable runs on rollerblades and progressed to impressively controlled marathons and then to a kid-pulling cart. He's about two years old and I've had him for over a year. He's about 95lbs and I'm about 195. He pulls me (without the cart) at a consistent 20mph for a while and levels off around 15mph with occasional bursts. He knows left, right, whoa and stop so I've managed to survive these daily excursions in spite of running across a rabbit or squirrel here and there. Last Tuesday I took him to a local park with paved trails to do some skating/pulling. I took a GPS with me to track our mileage and speed. He pulled me right at 6 miles (don't have the speed since we stop for breaks). He does not trot, he runs the entire time save for water breaks. At our half-time I let him swim in the river and he proceeded to chase ducks up stream for 100yds....then he was ready for more running. Once we got home he still had enough energy left to wrestle with my choc lab. At the dog park he outruns 95% of all the dogs he coerces into chasing him. He rarely tires. He can pull the cart with two kids in it and me for great distances as well, though we've never gone as much as 6 miles. He pulls me up long steep hills...like the little engine that could. He doesn't eat a great amount of food (5-6 cups a day) and he folds up into a space small enough to occupy only one couch cushion. My question is how does he manage to have such unbelievable stamina and strength. Or any dog for that matter. How do their bodies run so much more efficiently than ours or does a dog not feel fatigue or muscle burn? Thoughts? ________ CHEVROLET S-10 EV SPECIFICATIONS Last edited by Kaneman; 05-09-2011 at 07:33 PM..