I read with interest granyhikers account of her trip to the Strawberries with her dog because I have adopted a Lab who is very strong and about 5 years old. Recently I took her backpacking for the first time. She hike, swims, etc every day but the backpacking is new. Without sparking a debate over whether dogs belong in the wilderness, I would like to learn of others experiences backpacking with dogs.
The trip was in an area where there were almost no other hikers, the trail was good, and the weather cool (the Chelan/Sawtooth area of Washington State).
My dog, Libby, did very well. She came whenever I called her amd stayed close to me. She didn't seem too tired and had no difficulty carring the pack. The bugs got to her however and one night I let her into the tent for protection. Unfortunately, before I let her in she must have snaged the tent fly (silnylon) with a toe nail because it developed a rip). Other nights, I tethered her near the tent. It would have been very difficult to have her on leash constantly because I use hiking poles. I did leash her the few times that other people were nearby. We had a deer in camp too and the two barks that the dog made did not make the deer leave.
My own conclusions were that 1. figure that even if the dog carries all her food, you will probably have to carry more that the usual weight due to extra water. 2. bring some extra cord as well as a 4 foot lead and a bin'er to tether the dog. 3. You will have to be very aware of the dog to ensure that she does not decide to go off to check out the marmots and other animals and to keep her safe. Less daydreaming. 4. Don't take dogs on very hot trips or where there is little shade. 5. Don't take dogs on very rocky trails.
I was wondering if any of the natural bug repellants would help a dog, she already had Frontline. Also, do you have any doggie first aid other than the usual human first aid. I was thinking that I should consider taking some Rimadyl for pain for her. My dog does not routinely drink from streams but expects me to give her water. Should I continue to encourage that behavior in order to avoid her getting water borne illnesses?
Despite the torn (and new expensive) tent incident, I really enjoyed backpacking with the dog and plan to try it again. Her obvious enjoyment as well as the companionship heighened the trip. More so than on a day hike backpacking with a dog did require a bit of thought and some new things to learn for me.
backpacking with dogs
-
Grannyhiker
- Posts: 4598
- Joined: May 28th, 2008, 10:03 pm
- Location: Gateway to the Columbia Gorge
Re: backpacking with dogs
A few items from my own experience as well as considerable consultation with my-daughter-the-veterinarian:
Hysson carries all his food and water, a lightweight evazote pad to sleep on in the tent, a lightweight sweater, a comb for grooming and booties. The pad is to protect the tent floor as well as to insulate him from the ground. I have not yet had any problems with snagging the silnylon floor of my tent, because I clip his claws as short as possible twice a month. The floor can be mended with duct tape temporarily and with scraps of silnylon fabric glued on with Silnet permanently. Hysson is part of my "sleep system" and I rely on him to help keep me warm!
It is a good idea to avoid hiking in really hot temperatures, especially on exposed trails. Shady trails along streams are the best place to take your dog. Sometimes, though, you can't avoid hiking on a hot day--on those days hike only in early morning and late evening, and stop every 20 minutes to hydrate your dog and let him rest in the shade. Take a long siesta in the shade during the hot part of the day. Try to have him walk in streams frequently. Watch for his gums becoming pale, an early symptom of heat stroke/heat exhaustion.
If you're on rocky trails, booties are a good idea to protect your dog's paws. Granite Gear and Ruffwear both make good booties (I use the Granite Gear booties because they are sold by the pair; Hysson wears a size larger on his front paws than he does on his rear). A sweater of some sort at night is helpful if you're at high altitudes or hiking early or late in the season with freezing nights. That's especially important if your dog has a thin coat. Even a thick-coated dog who is normally an indoor dog will be shivering on cold mornings. And the sweater also keeps a wet dog's fur from rubbing against your sleeping bag. I use a comb on him for about 5 minutes before bedtime to remove any possible bugs (like ticks) and to keep too much excess hair from accumulating in the tent.
Water--I started out giving Hysson only filtered water. The theory is that if most of the dog's water is filtered, the few slurps he takes crossing creeks won't expose him to enough giardia to make him sick. However, I've gotten more slack about this and by now Hysson actually prefers to drink from streams than from his bowl. My-daughter-the-veterinarian has gone through the same evolution process with her dog. So far, no problems. You do, however, want to keep him away from stagnant ponds with no outlet that are frequented by cattle and other livestock, to prevent leptospirosis. My vet here (who hikes herself) suggested not letting him drink out of the lakes in Indian Heaven for that reason (deer or elk can carry lepto, too). I also keep him downstream of the section of springs where other hikers get their water. I don't want to drink Hysson's slobber and I know that nobody else does, either!
First aid: Do not give your dog ibuprofen or acetamenophin (tylenol)--they are highly dangerous to dogs. Instead, take along buffered aspirin (ask your vet for the dosage). Frankly, the only first aid items I take for the dog that I don't also take for myself are the buffered aspirin and veterinary wrap. (I do carry a few extra gauze pads.) Vet wrap is a self-adhering foam wrap used to bandage the legs of horses and other animals (it can be bought at any store that carries farm or livestock supplies). It is essential for keeping bandages on the dog's legs. The most common injuries are cut pads and torn dewclaws (the last bleed like crazy). The vet wrap over gauze pads is the best for the latter. Having a bootie that is a bit too big for the dog will hold a bandage on cut pads. I did a little experimenting with the vet wrap and found that with a little reinforcement on the outside with duct tape, it will support a human sprained ankle just fine. I therefore carry the vet wrap instead of elastic bandage--it's a lot lighter.
The books "Best Hikes with Dogs in Oregon" and "Best Hikes with Dogs in Washington" are excellent sources for information on safe hiking with your dog. Here are a few online sources:
http://whiteblaze.net/index.php?page=dogs
http://www.wta.org/magazine/WA-TRAILS-0 ... ith%20dogs
http://www.bootsnall.com/guides/05-04/b ... -dogs.html
I use trekking poles (with rubber tips on the points) for daily exercise walking around home, so my dog is accustomed to avoiding them. Thanks to daily practice, I don't have any problems using the leash with trekking poles. Once we've been hiking an hour or so and Hysson has gotten over his initial excitement, I take him off the leash and have him walk behind me on the trail, which I've trained him to do, unless there are a lot of people on the trail or regulations require the dog's being leashed. I will also keep him on leash if we're around steep drop-offs--I don't want him getting close enough that the edge of the cliff caves in under his weight. If he actually fell, I'd of course have to let the leash go, but I want to keep him in a safe place where he can't fall. I also put him on leash if we come out into a meadow, because he tends to regard an open meadow as a place to run in circles at top speed.
You need to be considerate of others on the trail. Some people are quite nervous around dogs (usually with good reason, due to bad experiences) and it's especially important to keep your dog leashed around them. A number of dogs tend to become aggressive in strange places (often as the result of fear), which is why dogs that at home are sweet and friendly will growl at or even bite people they meet on the trail. Another reason to use that leash! And you absolutely do not want your dog to chase any wild animals, ground-nesting birds, horses, llamas or pack goats that they meet on the trail. If you must have your dog off-leash, make sure he stays behind you and doesn't run ahead.
Everyone hates dog poop! Please be sure to scoop your dog's poop--either bury it as you would your own, or (on popular trails) pack it out. And in camp, keep your dog on leash or tied up so he doesn't wander into another camp site begging for food, or poop in the very spot the next hiker will want to pitch his/her tent.
Be sure to get your dog into condition before you backpack with him--start slowly and work up gradually for both distance and pack weight. Don't plan on long hikes or carrying a pack for a puppy--you will only injure his immature joints. Wait until the pup is at least a year. Remember that some breeds (like Labs) take 18 months to 2 years for their joints to fully mature. The pup will go until he drops; you are the one who has to set the limits. Consult your veterinarian if there is any doubt.
Bugs: You can't put repellent on any place the dog can reach with his tongue. This year I switched to using K9 Advantix instead of Frontline in the buggy months, and it does seem to help. (It's a lot messier than Frontline and I will go back to Frontline in September.) Permethrin (the active ingredient) is not a repellent but kills the bugs when they bite.. You about have to bring the dog into the tent if the bugs are bad, though.
Finally, Hysson got into a lot of pitch at our campsite at Strawberry Lake. Since he was due for a bath anyway, I tried softening up the pitch with cooking oil, followed by an extra application of dog shampoo to the oily areas. It worked! Otherwise, I'd have had to cut the pitch out, which would have left his tummy, in particular, looking awfully moth-eaten. Cooking oil followed by strong detergent is an old remedy given to my mother many years ago to get pitch out of fabrics. Unfortunately, I've found that while it works on jeans, it doesn't work very well on nylon fabrics. Using dog shampoo instead of concentrated detergent, it did work on the dog!
Hysson carries all his food and water, a lightweight evazote pad to sleep on in the tent, a lightweight sweater, a comb for grooming and booties. The pad is to protect the tent floor as well as to insulate him from the ground. I have not yet had any problems with snagging the silnylon floor of my tent, because I clip his claws as short as possible twice a month. The floor can be mended with duct tape temporarily and with scraps of silnylon fabric glued on with Silnet permanently. Hysson is part of my "sleep system" and I rely on him to help keep me warm!
It is a good idea to avoid hiking in really hot temperatures, especially on exposed trails. Shady trails along streams are the best place to take your dog. Sometimes, though, you can't avoid hiking on a hot day--on those days hike only in early morning and late evening, and stop every 20 minutes to hydrate your dog and let him rest in the shade. Take a long siesta in the shade during the hot part of the day. Try to have him walk in streams frequently. Watch for his gums becoming pale, an early symptom of heat stroke/heat exhaustion.
If you're on rocky trails, booties are a good idea to protect your dog's paws. Granite Gear and Ruffwear both make good booties (I use the Granite Gear booties because they are sold by the pair; Hysson wears a size larger on his front paws than he does on his rear). A sweater of some sort at night is helpful if you're at high altitudes or hiking early or late in the season with freezing nights. That's especially important if your dog has a thin coat. Even a thick-coated dog who is normally an indoor dog will be shivering on cold mornings. And the sweater also keeps a wet dog's fur from rubbing against your sleeping bag. I use a comb on him for about 5 minutes before bedtime to remove any possible bugs (like ticks) and to keep too much excess hair from accumulating in the tent.
Water--I started out giving Hysson only filtered water. The theory is that if most of the dog's water is filtered, the few slurps he takes crossing creeks won't expose him to enough giardia to make him sick. However, I've gotten more slack about this and by now Hysson actually prefers to drink from streams than from his bowl. My-daughter-the-veterinarian has gone through the same evolution process with her dog. So far, no problems. You do, however, want to keep him away from stagnant ponds with no outlet that are frequented by cattle and other livestock, to prevent leptospirosis. My vet here (who hikes herself) suggested not letting him drink out of the lakes in Indian Heaven for that reason (deer or elk can carry lepto, too). I also keep him downstream of the section of springs where other hikers get their water. I don't want to drink Hysson's slobber and I know that nobody else does, either!
First aid: Do not give your dog ibuprofen or acetamenophin (tylenol)--they are highly dangerous to dogs. Instead, take along buffered aspirin (ask your vet for the dosage). Frankly, the only first aid items I take for the dog that I don't also take for myself are the buffered aspirin and veterinary wrap. (I do carry a few extra gauze pads.) Vet wrap is a self-adhering foam wrap used to bandage the legs of horses and other animals (it can be bought at any store that carries farm or livestock supplies). It is essential for keeping bandages on the dog's legs. The most common injuries are cut pads and torn dewclaws (the last bleed like crazy). The vet wrap over gauze pads is the best for the latter. Having a bootie that is a bit too big for the dog will hold a bandage on cut pads. I did a little experimenting with the vet wrap and found that with a little reinforcement on the outside with duct tape, it will support a human sprained ankle just fine. I therefore carry the vet wrap instead of elastic bandage--it's a lot lighter.
The books "Best Hikes with Dogs in Oregon" and "Best Hikes with Dogs in Washington" are excellent sources for information on safe hiking with your dog. Here are a few online sources:
http://whiteblaze.net/index.php?page=dogs
http://www.wta.org/magazine/WA-TRAILS-0 ... ith%20dogs
http://www.bootsnall.com/guides/05-04/b ... -dogs.html
I use trekking poles (with rubber tips on the points) for daily exercise walking around home, so my dog is accustomed to avoiding them. Thanks to daily practice, I don't have any problems using the leash with trekking poles. Once we've been hiking an hour or so and Hysson has gotten over his initial excitement, I take him off the leash and have him walk behind me on the trail, which I've trained him to do, unless there are a lot of people on the trail or regulations require the dog's being leashed. I will also keep him on leash if we're around steep drop-offs--I don't want him getting close enough that the edge of the cliff caves in under his weight. If he actually fell, I'd of course have to let the leash go, but I want to keep him in a safe place where he can't fall. I also put him on leash if we come out into a meadow, because he tends to regard an open meadow as a place to run in circles at top speed.
You need to be considerate of others on the trail. Some people are quite nervous around dogs (usually with good reason, due to bad experiences) and it's especially important to keep your dog leashed around them. A number of dogs tend to become aggressive in strange places (often as the result of fear), which is why dogs that at home are sweet and friendly will growl at or even bite people they meet on the trail. Another reason to use that leash! And you absolutely do not want your dog to chase any wild animals, ground-nesting birds, horses, llamas or pack goats that they meet on the trail. If you must have your dog off-leash, make sure he stays behind you and doesn't run ahead.
Everyone hates dog poop! Please be sure to scoop your dog's poop--either bury it as you would your own, or (on popular trails) pack it out. And in camp, keep your dog on leash or tied up so he doesn't wander into another camp site begging for food, or poop in the very spot the next hiker will want to pitch his/her tent.
Be sure to get your dog into condition before you backpack with him--start slowly and work up gradually for both distance and pack weight. Don't plan on long hikes or carrying a pack for a puppy--you will only injure his immature joints. Wait until the pup is at least a year. Remember that some breeds (like Labs) take 18 months to 2 years for their joints to fully mature. The pup will go until he drops; you are the one who has to set the limits. Consult your veterinarian if there is any doubt.
Bugs: You can't put repellent on any place the dog can reach with his tongue. This year I switched to using K9 Advantix instead of Frontline in the buggy months, and it does seem to help. (It's a lot messier than Frontline and I will go back to Frontline in September.) Permethrin (the active ingredient) is not a repellent but kills the bugs when they bite.. You about have to bring the dog into the tent if the bugs are bad, though.
Finally, Hysson got into a lot of pitch at our campsite at Strawberry Lake. Since he was due for a bath anyway, I tried softening up the pitch with cooking oil, followed by an extra application of dog shampoo to the oily areas. It worked! Otherwise, I'd have had to cut the pitch out, which would have left his tummy, in particular, looking awfully moth-eaten. Cooking oil followed by strong detergent is an old remedy given to my mother many years ago to get pitch out of fabrics. Unfortunately, I've found that while it works on jeans, it doesn't work very well on nylon fabrics. Using dog shampoo instead of concentrated detergent, it did work on the dog!
Re: backpacking with dogs
thanks for all the information. Some of this I am already doing and the rest I will try. I agree completely about being very careful that dogs don't interfer with other peoples enjoyment of the trail.
-
Waffle Stomper
- Posts: 3707
- Joined: May 28th, 2008, 10:03 pm
Re: backpacking with dogs
RuffWear makes a very nice leash that is made especially for wearing around your waist. The nice thing about it is that it is long enough that you can see where you are stepping and has a bungee cord built in to take up any slack and absorb sudden shocks if the dog unexpectedly tugs on it. It does not take long for both the hiker and the dog to get used to it. I use hiking poles too and find it to work well.rosecity wrote: It would have been very difficult to have her on leash constantly because I use hiking poles.
One is not as trail wise and needs to be on lead most of the time. The other does well but I leash her where there are people or hazards. To make leashing them simple I use a splitter which keeps them on one lead. When I need to tuck them in close to me I just grab the splitter and they are both in control.
"When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the Universe." - John Muir
Re: backpacking with dogs
I'll have to go find this. I bp'd the Strawberries with my Rrottie 5 years ago and he shredded his pads due to the pumice that is common on the trails there. Also, the skeets were merciless. He was desperate to get in the tent first night and next morning I could see them lined up on the tent mesh roof just waiting. Second night we camped on a exposed ridge to get away from them. End of second day my dog was wearing my used hiking socks duct taped to his legs to try and help him get thru the trip.rosecity wrote:I read with interest granyhikers account of her trip to the Strawberries
I got the booties for the following trip to Steens but he kept losing them causing me to backtrack to find it LOL. He wore himself out the first day on Big Indian by running around too much and the second day scrambling up the headwall totally finished him off. Morning of the third day we were camped at Little Wildhorse Lake and I had to literally drag him out of the tent. He didn't move for the next hour during breakfast and we were packs on heading out he still hadn't moved an inch. Watching him stand up legs wobbling was kinda funny, kinda sad. We bushwacked back out on Little Indian and every time we stopped for more than 10 seconds he'd be lying down in the creek.
I was lucky, if he'd had a problem on the Little Indian bushwack it would have been impossible to get help in. Lesson learned, on a tough multi-day, leash your dog for the first couple days else they have a tendency to just wear themselves out.
Re: backpacking with dogs
I wish I had known about booties when I took my dog into the Bull of the Woods. She was a farm dog out in the fields all of the time but the trails cut her feet up badly. She always stayed close to me, even when we got to twin lake and I jumped in, she did too. The paws where the problem and she just had to walk on them, I can't carry a St. Bernard and my pack.
She is long gone, three dogs back or so, but I have never taken a dog out with me again.
Bill
She is long gone, three dogs back or so, but I have never taken a dog out with me again.
Bill