Hike, Bike, Run or Sniff!
What are cani-sports?
OTHER CANISPORT DISCIPLINES INCLUDE:
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Scooter is a discipline where an athlete uses a specially designed off road scooter, which is attached via bungee to the dog's harness. It requires a great level of fitness and skill to scoot and manoeuvre over the off road trails.
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Rig is a class where the athlete or 'musher' rides a 3 or 4 wheeled rig and has a team of dogs attached at the front. These teams are between 3 and 8 dogs and as such require not only excellent knowledge of the discipline and trails, but also an excellent ability to control a large team of dogs.
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Please be aware that for the various disciplines of canisport, it is recommended that you have appropriate insurance for training and racing. This is a requirement for the wheeled disciplines which also require a permit or permission for training in many locations and cannot be done on public paths. We recommend membership of the British Sleddog Sport Federation who are the National Governing Body and as part of membership, they provide insurance for their members for training and racing. You can visit the BSSF website here
We hold insurance for our classes and participating members as well as relevant permissions to use lands for training.
Cani-Hike
Cani-Hike is the easiest of the cani-sports as it involves very low impact exercise and hiking attached to your dog. It's almost as easy as going for a walk with the dog, except we walk using a waist best, bungee line and harness for the dog. This allows the dog to pull ahead under control and for you to hike hands free! It's a far less stressful walk if you have nervous dog, or even powerful dogs as you are allowing them to be connected to you but still build confidence and that bond with their human. Our hiking group is open to all ages and abilities and as a health walk leader, we can support you in getting fitter if that is you goal. All our hikes are on lead so your dog can socialise under controlled conditions. Perfect for reactive dogs.
Walk to run and Mixed Ability canicross
Canicross is the dryland discipline of running cross country attached to your dog. You may have heard it called just simply 'run with your dog'. The sport started as a dryland alternative for training when snow melted and has grown to become a very popular past time and fast growing sport in its own right. True canicross involves correctly fitting harnesses for your dog which allow full range of motion, a bungee line and a human waist belt to help ensure a comfortable run for you both. We offer dog training and human coaching to help you learn to work as a team. Our extensive kit bag is available so you can try kit at any of our sessions. This kit includes, Non Stop Dogwear, Arctic Wolf and Sporty Paws equipment.
Our DBS cleared and qualified staff also provide specific junior training to support your child should they decide they wish to canicross with their own dogs. Our junior coaching focuses on supporting your child with their dog and building confidence, responsibility and independence.
Bikejor Training
Bikejor is the discipline whereby a mountain bike is attached via bungee to the dog's harness and the athlete then cycles cross country with the dog providing some of the power. This discipline requires high levels of mountain bike skills and an excellent partnership between dog and athlete. We offer introductions to bikejor, information about training areas and considerations for you and your dogs. If you are already biking with your dog, we can support you with developers training and prepare you for more technical trails or races.
