Hello, all!

I haven't posted here in a while, but hope to do so more in the future. I wanted to ask some advice of fellow husky parents.

I just recently moved into a fairly urban area. I used to be able to exercise my pup (Echo) by walking and biking in my neighborhood and local park. Here? It hasn't worked out as well. The streets are not bike friendly, especially with a dog in tow- and it isn't particularly safe to walk (we have an unpredictable, kinda dangerous homeless population here). I know several people in my apartment complex who have had scary run-ins. So far, most of Echo's exercise has consisted of visiting dog parks for hours, and several short walks. I've come to the unfortunate conclusion that my bike doesn't seem to fit in my car, so I haven't been able to take it anywhere. XD Does anyone else have these kinda urban problems?

I am super lucky in that Echo is a great sport and is still behaving well despite the change in activity- but I know she wants to do more and want to be able to do that for her.

Any suggestions on what to do with a husky in a city?

My current ideas:
1) I just bought some roller blades that'll be easier to transport than the bike, but it's going to take a LONG time to remember how to use those. XD
2) There's a dog beach I know she'll love, but it's a long ways away, so that's going to be more of a treat, not a regular thing.
3) Once it starts cooling down, I'm hoping hiking trails will be more of an option!

Does anyone have any other suggestions? Does anyone have any pointers on politely discouraging EVERY person on the street, including iffy (heroin addict) types to want to stop and pet your pretty dog?

I'm sure this sounds way worse than it is. It's not THAT bad, just really different. This is just a compilation of things I've been adjusting to, and wanted to know if anyone has to deal with the same thing. I'm sure some other SoCal people and pups must!

Thanks in advance. <3

Have you considered a scooter instead of a bike? Perhaps something like that might fit better in your vehicle. There are also bike attachments for the rear of your vehicle if you want to continue biking.

Starting up jogging/running is beneficial for the both of you and doesn't require fitting a bike or scooter in a vehicle to do either.

Wish I had more suggestions.

I run with mine. It's the cheapest alternative. As Val said, you can get bike carriers that hook on the back of your car. They are a little expensive depending on the type you need though. I don't live in the city but I have to travel to exercise my dogs. I drive 10 miles one way to a park with trails and run them, then drive 10 miles home. In the winter when it gets dark early I walk laps around the high school because there's less people and street lights.

As for discouraging petting, I've found a very brisk pace, avoiding eye contact and a prompt "on by" tho the pup to be helpful in that regard. Running would also help as week add crossing the road.

Thanks for your input, guys! Running is unfortunately not an option for me because of a back injury- any impact activity is not good for that. I should definitely look into a bike rack, that might be better than what I've been trying to do. A scooter too, perhaps!

Amymeme- Yeah, I've found that helps for normal people who can take a hint. XD Intoxicated homeless people, not so much. It doesn't help that Echo WANTS to go up and meet everyone. I should try working on an "on by" command!

I found that Ami learned "on by" rather easily just by me noticing and anticipating a distraction up ahead, start saying "on by" and speeding up the pace, tugging on the leash if I have to...even some brief, very brief running steps (I have lumbar/cervical stenosis and knee arthritis...old age, ya know?) so brief is the word. The key is to keep moving slightly faster, the uptick in speed seems to get their attention.

If you have access to hiking trails I find that is a great way to get sufficient exercise. We have a hiking backpack for our sibe (Amazon has reasonably priced ones) and she loves it! I like to think it helps her feel like she's "working". I usually add in her water, dog first aid kit, car keys and anything else we might need, but I usually make sure it doesn't way more than 10lbs. I usually take our pup off leash, but if that's not an option I really do love retractable leashes (if Echo has good leash manners).