Hiking and Hammocking with Dogs

[swankfly]

Surely your dog has to some pulling and writhing to get out of the harness? Try tying the leash to your hammock so you will wake up when it starts its Houdini act, maybe?

swank

[Sluggie]

Thanks for the suggestions, guys. Lump and I will have to mull them about and see what works.

Sluggie

P.S. No danger of giving Jess a treat just for being cute. She has to perform a "trick" for me if she wants a treat. Tricks are sit, stay, down, watch me, drop it, and so on. She won't shake hands but we keep trying to teach her that silly skill.

[The Old Boot]

We have yet to cross a small river with Jess. We have also not taken her over anything that involves significant climbing like over rocks that meet the river and form the trail near Laurel Fork Falls on the AT or the log bridges at John Rock. Does anyone have any advice or tips to offer about dealing with those hazards?

Sincerely,
Sluggie

Try some agility training for her - you may never do agility with her but the equipment will help train her for all kinds of obstacles - thin bridges, stuff that teeters, tunnels, etc etc.

In respect to her escaping the harness - there are all kinds of harnesses built for all different shapes of dogs - if she can get out of the one you've got, you've just got the wrong one!!

[hairbear]

My 10 lb terrier sleeps with me in the hammock, we end up switching around in the middle of the night since I constantly readjust myself. Make sure your dogs nails are always trimmed though. But then again our dog sleeps with the wife and I normally. I'm not sure that I would be comfortable with something 4 times that weight sleeping with me. I think I would give a 1 person tent a try for the dog, buy it from REI so if it is damaged you can return it and get your money back if it doesn't work.

Where it comes to bridges and such you do what is comfortable for your dog. Carry over if they are scared don't force them or they may shy away from those sorts of situations even if you do end up carrying them in the end. The first time stop right at the top and take some pictures to let the dog get used to the idea of this is the path before moving on, this is a good time to treat. You have probably been told the theory of getting your dog used to things at a young age helps them accept it later in life. Dogs paws are resilient but you do have to keep checking them when you take your dog out hiking, backpacking, or camping.

Running away, I would suggest if you have a concern about the dog running away in the night invest in a bright blinking light collar and turn it on at dusk. Also there might be a locator beacon you can get for their collar which could help you find them if they run off at night. Also your dog MUST have great recall training in all situations.

You could also make your dog a hammock of their own and hang it below you with a zippered bug netting. I don't know any dog who would try and go potty in a swaying hammock.

That would freak me out to be night hiking and see a small ring of flashing red lights flying through the woods. picture it one ridge over ,so you cant hear the dog run. might cause some to dump the rest of their crown.

[nickgann]

If I tent sleep my pooch sleeps in it with me, I use her as pillow, if I hammock(which is most of the time) she goes around a tree and sleeps under me, which in the winter does wonders for the warmth if you hang low enough.

As far as hazards, I have my dog trained to understand Up and Down in terms of over and under. She also understands "around" to mean come around an object on the side closest to me, in most cases she navigates herself through obstacles with way more grace than I do but should a problem arise she knows what to listen for.

Essentially just like a human, exposure to everything you can will make a huge difference in their ability to handle the things the world throws at them.

[Gumbo]

If your dog is crate trained at home, perhaps a pop up crate will work. They sell them at Walmart for around $30.

I find our dogs settle down for the night better when we bring a crate for them.