Tips for Hiking & Backpacking with Your Dog
You'll be great trail buddies. Especially at first, this is a hiking companion who’s most likely to need a lot of care and feeding. Remind yourself that this is what you signed up for, then consider the advice below as you begin to create a more successful trail dog. These tips can help you prepare for a safe trip when hiking or backpacking with your dog.
Is your dog physically ready?
Check with your vet, learn trail etiquette, pick appropriate trails, and build your dog's stamina with Value Dog Training. For starters, puppies aren’t ready to carry a load, nor are their immune systems ready to take on the world. So you need to work out exactly when your dog will be ready.
Visit the Vet: Ask your veterinarian some key questions before you and your dog head into the wild:
Is your dog physically ready? You need to wait until a young dog’s bones are fully developed. That might be at a year of age, plus or minus several months, depending on size and other factors.
Does your dog need any specific vaccinations or preventative medicines?
In the city, you might not worry about things like your dog drinking water in a lake or pond that an infected animal has contaminated with Leptospirosis or even Giardia. Ask the vet about preventative measures for outdoor destinations.
Is your dog’s immune system ready?
Factoring in the rate of natural immunity development and your dog’s vaccine schedule, your vet can advise you about the safe age for you two to hit the trail.
Know Your Trail Regulations
Be sure to check the regulations for the areas where you'll be hiking or backpacking. Most U.S. national parks, for example, do not allow even a leashed dog to share the trail. Many national forests, as well as state and local parks, do allow dogs on their trail systems, though rules vary. Nearly everywhere requires your dog to be on a leash. You can find dog-friendly hikes and more on Dog Treckker
Bone Up on Obedience Training and Trail Etiquette
Hiking or backpacking with your dog requires you to maintain control of your dog at all times. Step off the trail to yield the right of way to hikers, horses and bikes. And having your dog on a leash isn’t enough. You also need to be able to keep your dog calm as other people and pooches pass by.
Leave No Trace
On day hikes, always pack out filled poop bags. It’s also bad form to leave them by the trail for later pickup. If you’re worried about a breach, double-bag on the trail, then remove any intact outer bags after you get home.
Leave No Trace rules apply to humans and dogs on backpacking trips: Bury pet waste at least 200 feet away from trails, camps, and water sources. Enforcing the 200-foot rule for urination breaks isn’t practical, but be prepared to interrupt things and move away if your dog begins to pee in or next to a water source.
Start a Trail-Training Regimen
Ease into the routine of hiking. Start by hiking for an hour or so, then monitor the energy level afterwards. If your dog is still super active, increase the time for the next training hike. Your goal is to work up to the amount of trail time you plan to do on future day hikes or backpacking trips. This slow approach also helps toughen up citified paws.
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