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Campfire Tales:  Seeing pets on the trail  |
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Elizaray
outspoken
680 Posts
Elizaray
680 Posts |
 Posted - Mar 29 2008 : 08:34:06 AM
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Have you seen people hiking with their dogs? I bought a dog backpack for our dog, but her fur is too slippery. It always slides to the side no matter how tight I make it, which isn't fair to her.
What do you think about people taking their pets with them, especially off leash? Do you feel intimidated when you see a dog running up?
Elizaray |
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Libbie
outstepping
157 Posts
Anne E.
Elsinore
Utah
USA
157 Posts |
Posted - Apr 21 2008 : 07:56:18 AM
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I have such mixed feelings about this one, as probably many pet/dog owners do. I love to hike with my dogs, now, my dog, but I also can be pretty intimidated by a big dog running up to me - but I HATE it when it happens to my kids, even though none of us has been so much as growled at on the trail by (wo)man nor beast! I'm undecided. I guess I just like to think that if someone has a dog that is liable to be mean or inappropriate, they will control it somehow. I know, it's not true always, but in my experience, most dogs "in the field" don't have the territory issues that they do at home, and they are really nice.
We had a backpack for Seamus for a while, and I did try it, and it DID stay one, but I always felt bad for her - I would usually end up taking it off and carrying her load myself because it just seemed so unnatural for a dog to be a pack animal - she so loved running through brush and up and down and around, that I didn't like to "saddle" her, so to speak.
What kind of dog do you have, Elizaray? I might be able to suggest some pack hints if you want it to stay on. Seamus was a Golden Retriever, and I ended up putting a harness on her and attaching the pack to the harness. It really was pretty stable, and then I would just take the harness on and off - it acted like a set of more substantial pack straps. Just lemme know!
XOXO, Libbie
"Farmgirl Sister #10," and proud of it!!! |
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Elizaray
outspoken
680 Posts
Elizaray
680 Posts |
Posted - Apr 28 2008 : 10:40:22 PM
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She is a Australian Shepherd mix with a ULTRA silky coat. We're talking cat or rabbit fur here. And it is about 4 inches long so everything slips and slides. Imagine trying to buckle a backpack to the top of your head- it's about that slick. Our pack is from outward hound and it is the right size and it is the same configuration as most harnesses. I think I would have to get a sled harness for it to be any more secure :(
Any tips from experience are great! Maybe I am missing the obvious! LOL
Elizaray |
Edited by - Elizaray on Apr 28 2008 10:41:03 PM |
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Libbie
outstepping
157 Posts
Anne E.
Elsinore
Utah
USA
157 Posts |
Posted - Apr 29 2008 : 06:50:19 AM
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What a fun dog to pet! I'll bet you could spin it into some great yarn ! But seriously, Outward Hound makes some pretty good stuff, so I'm sure it's not the pack itself - hmmmmm... let me think about this one. I'm betting you're making sure that the weight in the pack is distributed equally on both sides already, so I don't know! I guess you could let her get REAL dirty first and see if the pack will "stick" to her ! I don't think you're missing anything obvious - I think that shepherds (aside from the German variety) are just really lithe dogs meant for work, and maybe it's just in their confirmation that packs don't sit right.
XOXO, Libbie
"Farmgirl Sister #10," and proud of it!!! |
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Elizaray
outspoken
680 Posts
Elizaray
680 Posts |
Posted - Apr 29 2008 : 07:55:05 AM
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Hi Libbie-
Yes- she is great! I have to shave her in the summer and I really could spin her fur. I have finger spun it a few times and gotten lengths over a foot long! I haven't tried the pack on her once she has been shaved so maybe that is the key- maybe her wooly undercoat will act like velcro....Maybe I should sew some velcro hook on the underside of the pack! LOL Can you just imagine!!
Elizaray |
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Libbie
outstepping
157 Posts
Anne E.
Elsinore
Utah
USA
157 Posts |
Posted - Apr 29 2008 : 08:39:34 AM
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Hey - now THERE'S an innovative idea! Maybe you could just let her undercoat sort of "felt" itself if you rubbed it alot, and use velcro on the pack....LOL!!! You may have just solved the problem!!!!
XOXO, Libbie
"Farmgirl Sister #10," and proud of it!!! |
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Campfire Tales: Seeing pets on the trail |
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Seeing pets on the trail
