Backpacking with a dog?

[boom]

The dog Food? You carry it in, or you get the dog a pack to carry its own food?

Tips? Stories?

 

[Dinger]

Watching this with interest, I have a week away backpacking in August hunting Sambar with my GWP.

I'd planned on a Ruff wear pack for dog food and maybe a canvas square (or a oilskin jacket) for bedding.

 

[ChrisS]

He packs it in. I picked up a cheap foam dog bed that compresses small for him to lay on. Sometimes he does, sometimes he doesn't. A collapsible dish makes feeding easier. One of those fozzils does the trick.


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[motts]

My dog carries his food, brush, bowls (sea to summit collapsible), etc. in the Ruffwear orange panniers.

I have a thermarest trail scout short pad that I got on backcountrygear for him for around $20, and a either a thermarest lightweight synthetic quilt, the green one that stuffs into its own pocket, or cut-down old sleeping bag that he uses at night. I carry these in my bag for him, or my wife and I split them up. If I don't give him his own bed he'll lay all over mine so the extra weight is worth not having 70 pounds of potentially still wet dog trying to share my bag with me (we let him on the bed at home, so it's our own fault).

We'll often throw our sandals in his bag as well if we're bringing them; you just have to make sure everything is balanced really well and adjust as necessary once they're on the move. He loves getting out there with us, and just pulling out the panniers gets him all fired-up. We've done trips at all times of the year in all kinds of conditions without issue.

 

[durangobrad]

Rough wear makes good packs. My dog loves the water and creek crossing so I double bag his food to keep it from getting soggy. Usually each meal goes in a sandwich bag. Then I split them in half and put them into gallon size freezer bags. One in each side to balance the weight. Also if you put one beer in one side you have to put a beer in the other.....

 

[Owenst7]

My border collie is almost 11 and has had issues with arthritis for the last 5 years or so. He's really big for his breed (about 65-75 lbs depending on how good I've been at doing low-impact exercise). I found he eats about eight ounces of his food a day when he free feeds at home, so that's what I bring for him on trips. He likes to run and explore when we're out, and he has trouble getting stoved up as it is when I let him do that, so I don't make him carry anything. If we were doing longer trips, I suppose I might get him a bag, but an extra 2 lbs or so in my bag isn't that noticeable.

When I had his brother with me in Alaska, I had a jacket for him that kept him a lot warmer and doubled as a life jacket. He was already a great swimmer, but I could tell that it was a lot less work for him to cross rivers. It had a great handle right behind his shoulders that balanced him well if you picked him up with one arm. That was really helpful at times when we were crossing swift currents and I had to help pull him out of the water, load him in the canoe, etc.

 

[gdog]

If its cold, I've strapped a neoprene vest to my pack for the dogs. Makes a big difference in regards to warmth at night and doesn't matter if its wet or not.

 

[Netherman]

I recently took my lab on an overnight hike and just carried everything in my pack. Figuring it would be good training for this September. First and last time I do that. Hike in was fine but I was feeling it on the hike out and he was go go go go. Hopefully a load will help tire him out. I'm looking into packs and it seems like the ruffwear ones are the way to go if you want to spend the $$. I'll definitely be stealing Durango's beer strategy. 3 beers on one side will be perfectly balanced by 3 on the other side.

Dog gear:
Water: probably didn't need to since he drank river water the whole trip.
Leash: Yuppies cry if your dog licks them but request you give them half your tent as they also identify as a dog lover.
Dog Food: normal daily amount plus an extra scoop.
Sleeping pad: Old thermarest foam cut to his size. Will probably add a blanket of some sort if later in the year.
collapsible bowls: these worked really well. some of the smaller ones wouldn't fit a whole meal. Pet Supplies : Roysili Extra Large Silicone Collapsible Dog Bowl Water Bowl (7'' Dia, 5cups), Portable Travel Dog Bowls for Large Medium pet Dog Cat, Foldable Dog Travel Water Bowl for Camping Hiking(Green Blue) : Amazon.com

 

[JWP58]

I suggest picking the brain of your local train hopper/panhandler/bum with a k9 companion. They live that way, must have a pretty sorted out s.o.p.

 

[twall13]

I make my dog carry his own food. He's a medium sized breed so if I were to go on a 7 day trip his food weight might be more than I'd want him to carry but for 3-5 day trips he's always packed his own. As others have stated, it's important to balance the weight in the dog's pack. I also recommend getting your dog used to the pack before the trip and making sure it doesn't rub him raw anywhere. It's never been an issue with my dog but it would suck to find out it is an issue when you are 5 miles in.

I'm surprised how many bring pads for their dog to sleep on. If I did bring one, my dog would just as soon chew it up as lay on it. He always digs his own bed under my hammock or under a bush or something (see photo below). I guess every dog is different. On that note, if you have any fears your dog might run off chasing a deer or squirrel, make sure you have a good system for keeping him around at night.

A small trail etiquette tip, make sure you have your dog under control and off the trail if horses come by. Even if your dog is fine, some horses (or more likely their riders) get nervous when a dog is around. Taking your dog can be a lot of fun.

https://flic.kr/p/XhZcu8
https://flic.kr/p/XhZbEH

 

[motts]

I also recommend getting your dog used to the pack before the trip and making sure it doesn't rub him raw anywhere. It's never been an issue with my dog but it would suck to find out it is an issue when you are 5 miles in.

This is something I forgot to mention and it is definitely important - I put rolls of toilet paper in the pack the first couple of times my dog wore it to get used to it as it wasn't a lot of weight, but it would still fill the pack out. He rammed the bags into everything he walked by as he wasn't used to sticking out that far on the sides. I think it took him three or four times to get used to it.

 

[vanish]

We have an "Outward Hound" pack and I don't really recommend that brand as the material is a little thin for my liking - have sewn it several times, but hey it was free.

Hank packs his own food and foldable bowl. Sometimes I cook him trout too, if its convenient.

We don't worry too much about him sleeping, but he does get cold sometimes and curls between us.

Sometimes I wish he had a bigger pack to slow him down... and carry a beer for me!

 

[kylem]

My wife and I backpack in with our lab quite a bit. She carries her own food, water, bowls, pad, and on our most recent trip two beers.

 

[nazca]

I do a lot of backpacking with my GWP. I've never put a pack on her, and prolly never will.
1) I don't mind the extra weight for training purposes.
2) She is out 'hunting' as we hike and I wouldn't want her pack to snag on brush, etc.
3) She also had troubles wearing through the pads on her front feet, and extra weight wouldn't help that.

If I had a non-hunting breed, heavier-set dog, I'd give the pack more consideration.

The food isn't that much weight, though make sure you bring more than normal. At home my dog only cares to eat 2.5-3cups/day. While backpacking she'll eat 5-6.

The big weight is the water if you're hiking in areas where water sources are infrequent and the weather is hot. I use the 'bivy bowl' from ruffwear. It is better than the generic silicon bowls because the base is wider than the top, so it is less likely to get knocked over. I also have a dedicated nalgene for dog water... I pour the left over water back in the nalgene. Heat & a lack of water will kill dogs... so this is something I'm always paying attention to.

Depending on the type of dog, you might want to test it out in the tent before the trip. My GWP refuses to sleep in the tent. Instead she stands guard all night outside.


The best dog backpacking story I have: We were doing a hike in northern california on a fairly heavily used wilderness trail. As she's hunting beside the trail, she starts to get bird-y near a thicket 10 yards off the trail. I'm expecting a few grouse to pop out. Nope. Next thing I see is an effing black bear hauling ass away from us, across the trail, and through someone's camp as they're having their morning coffee. They almost sh*t a brick. The bear must have been bedded down in that thicket... and if so was probably there as ~3 dozen people hiked past.

 

[Beendare]

Backpacking in the Sierras I recommend having those booties for your dog....that granite tears up their pads something terrible.

 

[topher89]

Mountainsmith pack and they carry their own food and bowls. One time we forgot the food and our lab mix got to dine on fresh brook trout instead. Now she expects fish everytime we go out

Bought a kid's sleeping bag for sleeping, no pad.

 

[E in CO]

Rough wear makes good packs. My dog loves the water and creek crossing so I double bag his food to keep it from getting soggy. Usually each meal goes in a sandwich bag. Then I split them in half and put them into gallon size freezer bags. One in each side to balance the weight. Also if you put one beer in one side you have to put a beer in the other.....

EXACTLY what he said

 

[zeroforhire]

Did any of you hear the gritty bowmen podcast where they had a guy on that custom made packs for his dog out of optifade cordura? He uses his dogs as pack animals! It was awesome!