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Help ! Dog + Running Tech Question For Readers

Ruffy the Squirrel Slayer – Royal Crescent, Bath #Ripped.

Help ! Dog + Running Tech Question For Readers

At a mere 1-year-old, my dog has very significantly surpassed what little is left of my running skills.

I’m trying to figure out a way to attach a watch to her body somewhere to see how fast she runs and how far she trots when I run 10 miles with her. The ability to record ‘air time’ as she jumps for a frisbee or hurdles a fallen tree would be a bonus.

I was thinking of a lightweight Polar Pacer Pro or Coros Pace 2 that I already have. I could simply loop the watch around her collar but that might get caught in undergrowth. There is the option of the small chest pouch you can see in the picture above which wouldn’t get the most accurate GPS track going, but I’m not that concerned about accuracy and the watch would probably come out of the pouch

So, ideally, I’m looking for some sort of small-width strap to securely fasten to the back/shoulder of her harness or collar

Any ideas?

many thanks.

(edited)

maybe something like the following from sucre tags on amazon? Or something fashioned along a similar line with a

 

 

 

 

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31 thoughts on “Help ! Dog + Running Tech Question For Readers”

  1. Would a Stryd Pod work?! Should be able to attach a holder to a collar with a thin bit of velcro.

    Not sure a Stryd would work given it would be going sideways and would be dog steps, but hey, might be interesting anyway!! And if you can keep up within Bluetooth or ANT or whatever it is range you could even see the numbers live on your wrist.

  2. I attached an old Fitbit to my dogs collar with duck tape each time I went out, linked it to his own Strava account which was awesome until the device died as it was old! Having him on Strava and as a follower it overlayed my walk/run with his so you could see how mad he is, he is a spaniel after all

    I would love to find some tech to do this properly with a better attachment but I’ve never found anything to date

    https://www.strava.com/athletes/50443223

  3. If your main concern using a watch (you already own) is the watch getting tangled in the bushes, why don’t you take the wristband off and thread one the straps of the harnes through the spring bars?
    Or, if that straps don’t fit, sew another piece of strap wich fits inside the horns onto one of the straps

  4. Wouldn’t purchasing the cheapest watch on Amazon that can do those basic functions be the most economical way to do this? If it got lost, who cares.

    1. ty, yes i have squillions of watches . it’s more how to attach them properly (I’mnot even sure what properly is for a dog). then i get onto making a hr sensor work!

  6. A dog running harness (cani-cross) would give you a platform to attach a watch to. I was looking for one with small pockets for carrying poop bags etc. and there are a few available. Not sure how it will count steps or air time but its a start. Just need a programmer to make a dog app!!

  7. Aside from measuring the pace…I have a question on hitting Step targets…

    When a dog travels one step, is it actually two steps? 🤷‍♂️😂

  8. Just wondering if the MTB jump dynamics on an Edge 530 would capture the frisbee air time; although that would make a well fitting canicross harness a must, to attach the Edge to the top of. Assuming you already have an Edge with jump dynamics, you could do a one off viability trial by just securing the Edge to her back using duck tape around her middle (I’m just pre-calling the RSPCA for when you take the tape off afterwards though 🤣)

    1. Non-stop (nonstopdogwear.com) do a variety of really good quality harnesses If that’s a route you do decide to go down. Whilst not a canicross harness, it looks like their Ramble harness would be perfect for attaching an Edge to to keep it at the centre of her back.

  10. I have never tried this.I wonder if any of the biomechanics metrics or anything other than GNSS position and pace will work properly. The watches all assume a bipedal gait.

    Looking forward to your results.

  11. Garmin 1/4turn lock held on with rubber bands.

    Granted not all watches have this 1/4 turn adapter plate

    #RIP920XT

    1. 21st century recommendations please!
      I forgot about those plates
      I’ve managed to get the PACE 2 fastened to the handle of the harness. Looks rubbish but should work.

      ty all.

  12. You could mimic the Garmin Alpha collars by attaching the watch to the collar, and then a slightly heavier weight half way around the neck on the collar. That would keep the watch orientation pointing up for good GPS.

    Or if you get to do much off leash with your dog, you could just get a Garmin Alpha and get the data that way. Dog tracks are stored as GPX files on the Alpha. The A10 is pretty small for carrying.

  13. I do 1000+ miles a year with my two Jack Russell terriers, so this post sparked my interest!

    I use a Fi Collar for my oldest, mostly because he has a tendency to roam on me (while at home – they are always on a leash when we run together), and the Fi will count steps and do some rudimentary GPS tracks but it definitely won’t do “hang time” as you are seeking. I’m guessing you could attach a Garmin tri watch that does MTB dynamics and get somewhat close. Just attach it to a proper harness as someone above suggested. Interested in what you are able to find out here so keep us posted.

    1. i’ve avoided writing too much about the dog over the last year. not sure where I’m going with it tbh

      just did a 10k run today. dog was off lead for 8k and i was surprised that the coros only had the distance down as an extra 500m or so. I was expecting 2-3k !
      so I’m also wondering if the chosen sport profile or the accelerometer algorithm specific to the brand in question affects recorded distances? the route shown on the coros app is very smoothed. kinda makes you wonder how the normal running tracks are manipulated! (they all do it to some degree)

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