My grandmother’s house, which for all the usual purposes was my “childhood home,” had a round traffic pattern. As a kid, I could run from kitchen to front room to hall to den to kitchen. When you’re little, that’s some serious fun. Well, my current house also has a couple of round-running spots. I’ve started using the carpeted one upstairs to practice high-speed heeling (and frankly to burn off some energy).
Ginko (our big dog) has always loved tearing around upstairs from bedroom to bathroom to bedroom to hall to bedroom. I don’t even have to run with him. I just stand still and jump out now and again, yelling “Ha!” to restart the game. For his part, Ginko does his best I-have-half-greyhound-genes impression of a racing dog. Since the main level of the house is tiled, he really likes the grip of carpeting upstairs.
Lilly’s herding instincts tend to ruin Ginko’s game, so we usually play alone.
But, I’ve recently discovered that I can get Lilly running too (also alone). Granted, I have to run with her, but as long as I clear the path of toe-stubbing items and wear shoes, we can race around. My stamina is NOT as strong as hers (clearly), but I’m finding it useful now that it’s so cold and windy outside.
So, it’s just a thought. If you too have a good traffic pattern in the house, I highly recommend it said the much-interrupted, work-at-home dog mom, who is currently listening to a symphony of disgusting noises from 2 dogs sucking peanut butter out of a Kong. It sounds like 2 plumbers plunging toilets in here.
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