Why the Dog Walker is One of the Best Tools in Our Kennel
It may not be the first guess that comes to mind, but one of the most valuable and underrated tools in our kennel is the dog walker. We’ve had ours for a number of years now, and we can confidently say it’s one of the best investments we’ve ever made for training and caring for our sled dogs.
Dog walkers have been around for a while, having been used by sprint racing kennels in North America since at least the 1980s. It was perhaps Swedish musher Egil Ellis who took this concept and really maximized its benefits. In this entry, we’ll dive deeper and discuss why we use it, how it works, and what makes it so uniquely effective in terms of developing both the physical and mental traits that we seek to instill in our dogs.
What Is a Dog Walker?
The one we use is essentially a modified horse walker. Ours was built by Molenkoning, a Dutch manufacturer, using the same mechanical principle: a rotating arm with gates that gently moves dogs around in a circle. The only real difference is the gate design and the speed settings, with dogs having a faster trot than the speed at which horses walk.
We installed ours in 2019, and were one of the first sled dog tourism kennels in Finland to implement it. Initially, we justified it as a way to show summer guests how we train the dogs, but we quickly realized it was much more than a showpiece. It was a game-changing training tool.
Is it Worth the Cost?
Absolutely.
Yes, it’s an investment; but when you break it down, a good dog walker costs about the same as a new snowmobile or quad bike, something many mushers are more than happy to buy without question. However, we maintain that the dog walker provides many more hours of training for that price.
Once it’s part of your system, you’ll use it all the time: spring, summer, autumn, even winter. In terms of hours-used-per-euro, it’s one of the best purchases we’ve ever made.
What Makes It So Useful?
This is where the magic lies; not just in what it does physically, but how it affects the dogs mentally.
Traditional Training Challenges:
- Free running burns off energy, but it’s chaotic. Heart rates spike, and it doesn’t build endurance well.
- Hooking dogs to quads or sleds simulates real pulling work, but in hot weather it’s dangerous. They overheat fast, and the training becomes ineffective or even risky.
What the Dog Walker Does Differently:
- Dogs trot slowly in a controlled way
- No pulling, no harness — so mentally, they don’t go into “work mode”
- They can trot for 30, 45, 60+ minutes
- Heat buildup is slower, so they can train safely in warmer weather
- It builds real endurance at a low intensity
This is especially beneficial for sprint teams, who need to associate harness time with going full speed, not slow and steady. The dog walker lets them build endurance without reprogramming their instincts.
Summer: From Wasted Months to Training Time
Traditionally, June–August were months where sled dogs didn’t do much. Things have changed now, thanks to the dog walker; allowing our dogs to stay active year-round, safely and consistently.
- We maintain endurance built in winter
- Dogs gradually adapt to the summer heat
- They stay mentally and physically balanced
It’s like base conditioning for a human athlete, with longer, low-intensity treadmill runs that set the foundation for high performance later.
Heat Adaptation: Why It Matters
Sled dogs can adapt to heat, just like human athletes training for an Ironman in Hawaii. But it needs to happen gradually, and it needs to be managed.
The dog walker helps our dogs adjust as the seasons change, so that when autumn arrives, we can begin more intensive quad training earlier; a crucial phase of training that prepares the dogs for a busy December season.
Injury Detection and Gait Analysis
Another somewhat surprising benefit of the dog walker is that it gives us an excellent view of our dogs’ gait and movement. Being that the dogs run at a consistent speed, we can spot subtle issues, like:
- A limp
- A shortened stride
- A leg that’s thrown oddly
This would be much harder to see while driving a team.
However, if a dog already has a small, hidden injury, the walker can aggravate it. That’s because repetitive motion stresses the same spot again and again. As such, we monitor these training sessions closely, and if we notice anything off, the dog comes out immediately for rest, stretching, or physiotherapy.
Routine, Engagement, and Mental Health
The walker isn’t just physical training, also an integral part of our dogs’ mental enrichment routine.
Here’s what a typical walker session looks like at Bearhill:
- Dogs are leashed and walked to the walker
- Halfway through, they come out for a drink, a stretch, some social time
- We might do nose work or little games
- Then they go back in and finish the session
- Finally, they’re walked back or given free-run time
It’s structured, predictable, and meaningful. The dogs enjoy it, and it’s part of how we bond and interact with them in the off-season.
A Tool for Every Season
Some kennels use the walker as a warm-up or cool-down tool around training sessions. Others use it when it’s too hot or too icy to train teams on the trail. It’s a perfect fallback when conditions aren’t right for high-intensity work.
For us, it’s a bit of everything. It’s our go-to tool for keeping dogs happy, healthy, and fit — whether it’s +20°C in July or -10°C in October.
Final Thoughts
If you run a serious kennel, whether for racing or tourism, a dog walker might be one of the best training investments you’ll ever make.
Ours has given us:
- Consistent endurance training
- Safe summer workouts
- Better insight into our dogs’ physical condition
- A healthy routine our dogs love
It’s not flashy. It doesn’t replace sleds or quads. However, it quietly, reliably, and efficiently keeps our dogs in shape, in both body and mind, all year long.
