# US Canine Biathlon



## Chris Viscovich (Apr 2, 2014)

May 9th in Anniston, Al. Looks like fun. Anybody else from the forum going to participate?


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## Meg O'Donovan (Aug 20, 2012)

So what does K9 biathlon look like? Up here biathlon means xc skiing and shooting. How about down south?


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## Chris Viscovich (Apr 2, 2014)

Looks to be some running and swimming activities with some obstacles thrown in. Since it is not terribly far from the house, I may take a road trip and do a recon mission.
http://amk9academy.com/u-s-canine-biathlon/


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## Sarah Platts (Jan 12, 2010)

These are actually kinda fun. Virginia Police Work Dog Assoc. does an Iron Dog competition every year. It's held by different departments so the terrain can vary from one year to the next. 3 miles of running with obstacles, shooting for the cops, dog carrys, dummy drags, things to climb over and through. Some are very competative, some alot less. Mostly it's to just have FUN! fifty bucks is a bit steep (Va's only $25 and they feed you lunch at the end). But it's something to at least try once.


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## Meg O'Donovan (Aug 20, 2012)

It does look like a lot of fun. Gives people a goal to do more with their dogs (and stay fit).
Nice video. Thanks for the link.
The Mals will rule!


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## Chris Viscovich (Apr 2, 2014)

Meg, The mals did rule. Shadow and I took top civilian team and "Top Dog" overall, beating the top military and Police K9 teams that participated.


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## Bob Scott (Mar 30, 2006)

*!!!outstanding!!!*


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## Meg O'Donovan (Aug 20, 2012)

Chris Viscovich said:


> Meg, The mals did rule. Shadow and I took top civilian team and "Top Dog" overall, beating the top military and Police K9 teams that participated.


 What gave your team the winning edge? Training for particular obstacles or just lots of miles/hours together?
This is really cool. Thanks for the update. I hope this sport takes off. It would be healthy for all involved.


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## Misty Wegner (May 22, 2015)

Congratulations!


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## Chris Viscovich (Apr 2, 2014)

The edge was definitely in the preparations. We have been training indoor and outdoor obstacle courses for over a year. We train for long distance (15+ mi) x-country runs in the mountains/hills with frequent high intensity climbs. We train short bursts of speed with our toy play daily. (Varsity Balls are awesome fun for most of the working dogs that I have been around). We are both super-athletic with great VO2 max. She is a great size at 53lbs (easy enough for me to lift and carry). 

Much of her obedience training was done while navigating ad hoc obstacles. For example, we spend time outside of home depot practicing on the construction materials. We practice jumps frequently, she is up to 52" free jump and 6ft wall climbs. We work water and drainage tunnels as a team (I always lead). Ladders, slides, beam walks are regular practice and we even train on a 300 ft suspension bridge with step spread randomly between 18-22". Shadow is not much of a swimmer, but has no problem wading through streams as long as she can keep her paws generally planted. (We are already working swimming this summer)

Shadow has been trained on praise and toy rewards. Verbal praise works well for resiliency, and longer duration work. The toy rewards bring sharper and more intense behaviors but often over-motivate her and cause burnout. 

Shadow wore a Ray Allen/ Signature K-9 LLC harness, which has well-placed lift handles. We had a custom 9' lead made, as 6 ft was too short and 15ft was too long.

Finally, Shadow trusts me, seeks direction for me frequently and paces herself to me well while on lead. Many other competitors struggled as dog was trying to lead handler.


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## Chris Viscovich (Apr 2, 2014)

Mental attitude was also important during the competition. Much of my never quit attitude came from not wanting Shadow to be "famous by association" to her brother Carlos, who stars in the movie Max this summer. I wanted her to be famous of her own accomplishments.


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## Bob Scott (Mar 30, 2006)

Chris, EXCELLENT training routine!


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## Chris Viscovich (Apr 2, 2014)

Thanks Bob. I have learned alot from the experienced folks here on the forums and enjoy putting the lessons into practical application.

I have no connection to Purina, but a Purina representative shared with me some great materials from the 2014 Sporting Dog Summit, called "Achieving a Performance Edge" which covers top dog team conditioning, recovery and soft tissue injury analysis that I would figure out how to share to interested handlers and trainers, just PM me.


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