dog backpacks?

[muggs]

We're backpacking many miles in August and would like to hear if you have a particular dog backpack that you like. Gael has a nice barrel chest to carry one comfortably, but skinny/narrow Loki could have a problem finding a good fit.

[Liz P]

I LOVE the Ruff Wear packs. I use them when we go camping in the summer. They have a really great harness that the saddle packs attach to that we use to lift the dogs up rock faces.

 

http://www.ruffwear.com/s.nl/sc.2/category.13/it.A/id.810/.f

 

http://www.geocities.com/bordercolliesleddog/funpics.html

[Alaska]

Here is an article about choosing a dog pack.

 

I agree with pretty much everything in the article. I think it's stil true that Ruff Wear and Wolfpacks have the best designs. If you like to carry the kitchen sink, you will probably be drawn to the Ruff Wear bells-and-whistles approach, and if you tend toward the lightweight backpacking philosophy you will probably prefer Wolfpacks. I have both, and I was actually surprised to find that: (1) the Wolfpacks minimalist design stays on my BC more reliably than the fancy Ruff Wear harness design does on steep descents; and (2) while I use the bare Ruff Wear harness for many other things, it is slower and more cumbersome to attach and unattach the Ruffwear pack to the harness at each break than it is to load and unload the entire Wolfpack on and off the dog -- several fewer steps are involved.

 

My dogs and I are about to set out on a 1100 mile backpack trip. The older one will be wearing a Wolfpacks Reflector pack. The younger one will be freeloading, since he's young enough that his joints are still forming.

 

Actually, I'm planning to keep the weight off both dogs as much as possible. Dogs aren't built to be pack animals. I've done a lot of research on taking dogs on longer trips, and putting a pack on the dog appears to be one way to decrease the odds that the dog will finish the trip as planned.

 

Two of the main things that cause trouble for dogs when backpacking, though, are: (1) overheating; and (2) pads not tough enough. The barrel-chested dog (not a BC, I'm assuming) could have trouble dealing with the heat in August. You might want to think about that when planning how much the dog will carry.

 

There are things you can (and should) do to ensure that foot problems don't end the trip prematurely for the dogs. Ask if you want more specifics.

[Hector]

Back in the 1990's I did mountain hiking with my Lab-Elkhound-X. I bought Pattycake a REI dog pack that was relatively inexpensive. The only thing that I had her carry was her own water (a one liter bottle on each side of the pack).

 

I think the longest I ever walked in one day (when Pattycake was along with me) was about 14 miles in the Uinta mountains of Utah. It was rough country but she was accustomed to hiking in that kind of country and she did okay.

 

Pattycake's standard hiking routine was to go out ahead of me about 50 yards, then come back and go behind me for 20 yards, then repeat. In this way I figured that she roughly hiked about three times the distance that I hiked. But that was what she wanted to do, so who was I to argue?

[muggs]

Thanks to you both for the links and info! That's exactly what I needed to know.

 

1100 miles :eek: - I'd be embarrassed to tell you what I think is a long hike.

 

My barrel-chested dog is the one I'm worried about overheating. She's from Carolina bc rescue (maybe a bc x german shepherd? - she has a thick undercoat). We'll be hiking on the Appalachian Trail - I haven't checked yet to see what avg. temps will be like, but I'm sure it'll be hot.

 

Yes -please - I would appreciate any information to prevent foot problems.

 

Edited to add: posted the same time as Hector - 12 to 14 is probably as much as we'll do in a day also. I'd like to have their food/maybe water in their packs.

[border_collie_crazy]

I recently bought a Banzai wolfpack for Happy, who is also very narrow, it has not arrived yet though so I cant say much about it yet lol

[Allie Oop]

I've tried several different types and most of them don't fit Allie's 30 lb., 1 yr. BC body very well. Allie was supposed to get this really nifty dog pack and model it for a newspaper story, and it said it was a "medium" (30 - 60 lbs.) -- but, the thing was WAAAAAAY too big. They had to go find a 60 lb. dog to model it.

 

The closet thing I've found so far is the Kelty Chuckwagon Dog Pack in a "small" (15 to 35 lbs.) It is pretty nifty (and has a cool "grab handle" on the back for picking the dog up and carrying them out of trouble spots. ) It weighs about 11 oz. empty. It also comes in two larger sizes.

 

I really only want her to carry her own treats and waterbowl, so I don't know if it's worth the $45 price tag.

[Alaska]

Ha! You need to read the Traildog site about hiking the AT with a dog. It's geared more towards thru-hikers, so don't be too put off by the warnings, but lots of good info there. Be sure to read Tom Grinnell's article on hiking with your dog (link on that page -- it's a bit dated now, but it does have good advice on feet) and Jim Thompson's advice (link at the bottom of the page).

 

The yahoo traildog group is also a great read if you have the time to mine old posts. I obviously have a lot at stake if our hike is to be a success for all, so I found the time. (1100 miles is the northern, or dog-friendlier , half of the Pacific Crest Trail.)

 

Depending on how long your hike is and the kind of terrain your dogs will be covering (not necessarily the same terrain as you if they stray off the trail tread), I would suggest that you at least carry a bootie or two. Whatever kind of bootie you carry should be one that stays on the dog's foot no matter what, so test that out first with a vigorous round of frisbee or the like while the dog's wearing the bootie. I also have learned not to go anywhere without a roll of Vetwrap. If you have that, you can cobble together a suitable bandage for minor lacerations using the contents of a normal human first aid kit.

[Miztiki]

I have the Outward Bound (or Hound?) for Boy. Got it from PetSmart, so it's nothing special. It was never packed heavy but even though he's a pretty substantial dog, the pack would lean to one side or the other, whichever side had the heavier items. So you won't want one of those for a real hike or anything.

 

Your trip sounds so exciting and I'd love to hear about your plans if you'd care to share. Oh, and pictures when you get back too of course.

 

One other thing. When I lived in the Georgia mountains it was always a bit cooler than in the valley. There are also tons of creeks and streams to cool off in also.

 

Me and my old Mickey used to tromp around in those hills all the time and I have so many good memories from it. I hope you have as much fun as we did.

 

(Don't step on any wooly worms though. Ouch.)

[SoloRiver]

Solo is rather barrel-chested, but takes a size "small" in the Granite Gear packs. He's a large male and weighs about 50 pounds, if that helps. I tried a lot of packs on him (including Mountainsmith, Outdoor Research, and a few others they had at REI, I think Ruff Wear and maybe also Wolfpacks) and this one fit him best by far. I also liked the suspension system, which hangs the two panniers from a ventilated, slightly padded "saddle" type thing that goes over the withers. There are enough straps to secure the pack so that it doesn't move much, but not so many that they are ridiculous. The sides of the panniers that lie against the dog are soft fleece. They are large enough to carry water and snacks for a day hike. I would not go up a size unless you have a really, really gargantuan Border Collie.

 

What Solo has is the old version; I think the new version has even better features.

[muggs]

Alot of great info. I'm definitely thinking each dog -being built so differently- will have a different pack. I'm going to check out the Wolfpack packs for wee Loki and the small Granite Gear and Ruff Wear for Gael. She only weighs 40 lbs but it's all in her chest. Maybe she's a husky? x bc since she used to pull like one until Robin F. taught her (me) in about 5 seconds how to walk on (with) a leash. Good thing or I could have been tumbling down the mountain...

 

Alaska - Thanks for the great link (Traildog). I can't wait to hear about your hike! I'm very jealous.

 

Since NC doesn't allow dogs most places (which infuriates me as a North Carolinian), we're hiking through the Shenandoah.

 

OK...OT...anyone have a favorite backpack of the human variety? We're getting new ones for this trip, and since I got alot of good advice on the dogs, I thought I'd ask.

[jenfitzh20]

I have the Kelty Chuckwagon packs. Have nothing to compare them to since they are the only ones I've ever purchased but I've been fairly happy with them. I can think of a few ways to change the compartments to make them more convenient but overall, I've been pretty happy with them. We've done some overnights and the dogs carry their own food, toliet paper and other little things I might need handy. The biggest challenge is keeping them balanced. I recall even using some stones to even them out so they didn't slide to one side.

 

OK now I want to go on a bkpkg trip!

 

Jennifer