UKC

Hi There,

I'm planning to get a puppy but obviously it will be a year or so before he can join us properly on hiking, running and camping adventures.  

I'd like however to take him with me on shorter trips while he's young in some sort of pack when he's had his jabs and a bit of training.  

Does anyone have any recommendations of something that would be suitable,? There are some cheap looking ones around that a probably unsuitable and looking at some guidance one that he can lay down in would be better than one he's straddling out of. 

He's a medium/large breed so I don't expect him to fit in it for long. 

Any advice appreciated!

Anna

No, you have the whole thing the wrong way round, it's supposed to be like this https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07JFXYL17/

Hahaha. I saw those too. I'll get him one of them so he can carry the tent

My current Collie hasn't been camping with us yet but it's on the agenda. The previous Collie was a regular. Small for his breed we got him a set of Ruffwear panniers. Found them hard wearing and easy to fit. He wasn't that impressed at first because they stopped him chasing about like a loon. However, he soon got the hang of it and plodded along at our pace. He did have a tendancy to go mental for a few minutes at the end of the day when he was relieved of his burden!

https://ruffwear.co.uk/collections/dog-packs/products/singletrak-dog-pack

Another vote for Ruffware. Our Husky could comfortably carry our wine for backpacking trips in the mountains. 

Thanks. This is the later phase. I'm looking for something to carry doggo in while he's too young to walk with us.

I thought you meant a pack of hiking dogs, a sort of canine rambling club. Obviously not. 

Don't hike with a dog but watched this guys videos on doing the Cape Wrath trail, he's got a lovely collie which he ends up carrying for the last day.

youtube.com/watch?v=Js7u4IDHon8&

He has a whole section on hiking with dogs

Thanks. I'm looking to carry the doggo.... when he's old enough to run I'll get him to carry his own kit  

Sorry, got that the wrong way round.  I carry something like this in case our older dog (or the young one for that matter) gets injured in the mountains.   https://mountaindogware.com/dog-carrying-harness-usa.html

It's not very comfortable for the human and there's others.  I'd just put them in a appropriately sized pack as once they are big enough to use one of these, they're probably big enough not to need it, unless injured.

I was thinking similar, and liked the look of the front-carrying versions. NICREW looks decent (only while they are small i'd imagine) as its pretty small, and a rucksac could also be carried for a normal day on the hill/cycle, but its hard to find a decent review which isn't just a link to Amazon.

When we first started taking the dog on the motorbike he was not impressed at all but after a while he realised we were always taking him somewhere he could have fun and he came to love it.

If your dog is going to end up large I wonder if it will be worth it. By the time he settles in he might be too big to carry. 

Yes I'd found the same issue. All the "best hiking packs" like you say send you to amazon with not much context. I've since found these K9 ones, I may give them a call to talk to them direct. 

Yeah, it may be a case of trying him in a sling or something for shorter walks then moving him to a pack until he's too heavy for me to carry... it'll be great strength training if nothing else:-D

I can't recommend any products, but I'd recommend doing it from the start. We put our pup in an old rucksack in the first few weeks when he wasn't allowed to walk out. But it was only on the odd occasion and by the time we wanted to take him on longer walks, he hated it as he knew it was way more fun to be on the ground. 

Actually, in terms of products I did look at the K9 Sport Sack Knavigate. As it was expensive I bought a knock-off version from amazon (about £35) which was crap. Was for a medium dog but the front leg holes were about 3" apart!

I'd assume the K9 ones are better designed/quality.

As an aside, I got one of these for the bike. Ours like it when he's got a chew or something, but starts barking/howling/scratching soon after. Need to start using it more and get him used to it for longer rides. Seems good quality though (just in case you were after a cycling equivalent).

https://www.aosom.co.uk/item/pawhut-pet-bicycle-trailer-foldable-dog-cat-bi...

Great, thanks for the tip.