Bugsy Malone, miniature schnauzer, volunteered for the long-term testing of competing bike leashes. Bugsy's trainer had recommended towing Bugsy behind a bicycle, using a device called a K9 CRUISER.

A similar product, the SPRINGER, can be also be used for this purpose; so can the WALKYDOG.

 

The idea is to wear the dog out by forcing him to run distances that would tire the owners beyond endurance if not for the use of the bicycle. The trainer thought this would improve Bugsy's disposition and make him too tired to bite everything in sight (this is not exactly how she put it, but this writer has to summarize her advice using concepts he can remember).

Since the K9 Cruiser was the first product Bugsy heard about, we tried that one first. I don't know if it's still available. It's basically a short metal bar that bolts to the hub of the back wheel of the bicycle. A short length of leash is attached to this bar and to your dog. You take off pedaling and the dog is exercised at a speed you could not achieve on foot.

 

The K9 Cruiser is easy to install, but I encountered this difficulty: It didn't fit any of our three bicycles. There is a bend at the end of the metal bar where it attaches to the wheel hub. The K9 Cruiser is supposed to be mounted inside the rear fork, but this bend interfered with the spokes on all three bikes available for this comparison (one ten-speed and two "beach cruiser" style bicycles). Fortunately, one of the bikes had an unusually long "axle" bolt on the back hub. By applying extraordinary ingenuity, the installer was able to buy another nut and attach the K9 Cruiser outside the fork, so the bend in the bar cleared the spokes and the apparatus could function.

 

A representative of the manufacturer of the K9 Cruiser was kind enough to contact me and offer suggestions about how my installation may not have complied with the instructions. He may well be right that the K9 Cruiser attaches easily to most bicycles, and that it's just my personal, specific experience that extra ingenuity was called for.

The connection from dog to bike is very direct with the K9 Cruiser. The bar is rigidly bolted to the hub. The attached leash is only a foot or so long. So every jerk and tug is communicated to the bike rider forcefully and immediately. This isn't really a problem with Bugsy, who weighs less than 30 pounds, but could be a drawback with a larger, stronger dog. In November of 2007, I was alerted to the availability of a bungee option for the K9 Cruiser that absorbs shock, and Bugsy is continuing the long-term testing of that apparatus. Click here to watch a short (less than a minute) video of the K9 Cruiser bungee attachment in action.

Naturally, when the bicycle rider feels all that jerking and tugging, it's natural to wonder if the dog is OK. The rider can't see the dog while towing the schnauzer. Is this injuring the dog? After more than two years of testing, it can be reported that in Bugsy's case, there was never a situation where he was being dragged along by the K9 Cruiser; he maintained his footing and never seemed to experience the slightest degree of distress.

 

 

The Springer has a key advantage over the K9 Cruiser in that it can be attached to a wider variety of bicycles because it is bolted directly to the frame, not to the hub. This advantage comes at a cost: The Springer is a much bulkier apparatus and takes a lot longer to install.

The Springer boasts of a "quick-release" that supposedly frees the dog in an emergency. Bugsy decided not to wait for an emergency, quick-releasing himself in the first ten minutes of riding. We were lucky he decided to come home at all. I threw the "quick-release" component of the Springer in the trash and replaced it with a length of chain securely attached to Bugsy's collar. With this modification, the Springer performs about as well as the K9 Cruiser. The correct length of chain must be used (for Bugsy, fifteen inches was about right). With a longer length of chain, Bugsy could run into the front wheel or get tangled up in the chain. Even with the correct chain length, towing the schnauzer with the Springer does take a little more attention than with the K9 Cruiser, because the Springer allows a little more freedom of movement for the dog. The tugging is less pronounced with the Springer because its spring interface absorbs some of the jerking.