Eight year old GSD girl too much exercise? - Page 1

My nearly eight year-old GSD girl lately has become more eager to exercise.  She seems to be in better condition and is very reluctant to stop after the second lap (3 miles) of fast trotting, about 9 mph, when I ride my bike. When she sees the driveway she kept pulling away and wants to trot more.

She begs to trot everyday but only let her do so once every 72 hours.

Should I consider her age and make her stop exercising too much?

Do you think a dog can be too eager to exercise to do so excessively for her own long term health?

She has no sign of any discomfort after exercise now but I am concerned due to her age to let her exercise until she slows on her own.

I am referring to orthopedic health, not overheating or such.

Thanks

Dontcha just love dogs who don't want to go home ?  IMO she's probably fine for now;  I understand your concern
but it usually works out okay if you let the dog be the judge.  I think we do worse if we insist on keeping exercise
up to a set level/distance DESPITE reluctance on the part of the dog.  While they feel they want to keep going,
its generally all right to let them.  8 isn't too geriatric yet.

In the movie "cold hand luke?" with Paul Newman, a hound died of exhaustion on its own drive.

Can this really happen to a GSD?

I'd argue 8 can be geriatric pending on your dogs genetics.  Do you know anything about her pedigree and predecessors ?  Excersise is good for an old dog, but pending on her genetics trotting for 3 miles next to you on a bike might be very hard on the joints.  You jogging hills with her might be a more appropriate  pace.  I've seen many older dogs that want to push themselves a little and end up with sprains or worse.  Could be quite costly for you if she not hardy.  Ages 8-10 is usually when they start not recovering or healing like they did when they were younger.

She is OFA H(good) and E normal, so are both parents and three grandparents (one Grandparent is only OFA H (good) no elbow test).

Yes I am concerned because of her age.

Do GSD's really know when to quit for their own good? This really is the question.

Strange is that this intense eagerness to exercise is recent, just the past three months.

Actually I try to slow down, but she pulls.

She is of ideal weight now, 24.5" 67 pounds.

If she hasn't always been this way,(if previous to this she was not as driven) then I'd say yes trust her, but you don't HAVE to let her run all day. Everyday does not sound like too much to me.
What was she like previously? If she wasn't so driven before then she is probably the type you can trust.
There are those that are so driven they don't know when to stop but they are like that their whole lives until they are so old that the pain is too much or their site goes etc. 
There are no generalized statements on this. A GSD can have the whole range of energy/drive levels. It's an individual thing.
What does she do for the rest of the day? If she's in a place where she can't excersize too much then it is understandable for her to want to when she gets out.
8 yrs old does not have to be geriatric, but is for some. Enjoy your time with your dog doing what she loves as much as you can and for as long as you can and she is comfortable. Let common sence mandate the rest.
Debby

If it's only 3 miles then I don't think you have anything to worry about, she should be fine doing 3 miles every day for 5-6 days a week (with maybe one or two days for rest.)  Maybe on cooler days you could go one more lap for her too.  Sounds like she's in great health for it. 

My first GSD was driven like yours (and she had mild HD!) It wasn't unusual for her to get 5 or 6 miles of walking/running a day and on warm days to get 30-45 minutes of swimming, in addition to 30+ minutes worth of ball fetching daily (my dad loves to play fetch with the dogs and has a really good throwing arm.)  She was still going strong at 10 years, doing all the same things she could do when she was 4.  It wasn't until about 12-13 yrs that she started slowing down and she passed away peacefully at 14. 

HighDesertGSD, yes it's absolutely possible for a dog to be so driven that it kills itself from heat exhaustion.  My old girl that I mentioned above was one of those types.  During her early years she would never say no to any exercize, twice she collapsed from heat exhaustion when my dad was out exercizing her.  My dad didn't know that she wouldn't tell him when she was tired, so he would keep throwing the ball or keep letting her run while biking. 
Both times she was hospitalized at the vets, thankfully she recovered well.  My dad learned to measure how much excercize she should get and started making her do long down-stays to rest during her excercize.  Eventually she accepted her rest breaks and started taking them on her own. 

In the summer I always wait until the last hour of day light and I always wet her throroughly.

I think she will not overheat. This is not my concern.

After exercise her fur is wet and cool.

“Do GSD's really know when to quit for their own good? This really is the question.”
 
First off, congratulations if you have a dog like that, 8 years old and still running that way is awesome.  These types are the best to have imo.   

To answer your question, yes, they know when to quit but only when it starts hurting them.  They obviously can't foresee that though so you therefore do have to take a little care and keep a close eye on their movements.  If you have been biking/running with her for some time now you should be able to notice the smallest of changes in her gate.  I'm referring to a slight swagger along the back or a small dip in the hindquarters or a slight limp in the front.  These signs are very subtle so you have to watch closely but you probably already have a good eye for it if you’ve been doing this with her all along. 
 
If everything seems fine & dandy to YOU, I say let her keep going as long as she wants and trust your own observations.  You'll know immediately if something isn't quite right long before your dog will notify you at which point you just hop off the bike and enjoy a nice stroll home with your dog.
 
Enjoy that dog!  They are hard to find believe it or not.