Dog backpack recommendations

I should have done my research beforehand; but, on a whim, I bought two "Outward Hound" backpacks for my dogs. I liked the features I saw advertized and I thought they looked good in the store. After two hikes I am disappointed in the design. Some aspects work O.K.; but the packs are not very durable, the straps slip, and the padding is less-than-inadequate. Further, I have since learned that dog packs should be designed to put most of the weight on the dog's shoulders to avoid injury and strain - which these packs do not.


Does anyone else have a good recommendation for dog packs? There seem to be a lot of options out there. Gracie and Salty are medium-sized (40 and 50 pounds, respectively).

I don't use a pack on Shiloh, but I do use alot of other dog gear made by Ruffwear...They always seem to have good quality stuff

I don't put a pack on my dog unless I am backpacking for more than four days and need her to carry some of her food. I agree that there really don't seem to be any decent packs out there -- most are too strappy to be practical when they get loaded up with mud on thier "undercarriage". The fabric holds heat in the dog, and unless balanced perfectly they tend to shift.

Our old pack has a mesh top and very nice compact saddlebags, and minimal strapping, was made by Caribou and was called the Woofer II. Unfortunately, they are no longer made.

http://www.sierratradingpost.com/p/413,82740_Caribou-Woofer-I-Dog-Pack.html

My dog drinks from a stream of water shot out of my hydration tube. It works for us. I don't really see a need for a dog pack on day hikes, but that's just me.

una_dogger said:

I don't put a pack on my dog unless I am backpacking for more than four days and need her to carry some of her food. I agree that there really don't seem to be any decent packs out there -- My dog drinks from a stream of water shot out of my hydration tube. It works for us. I don't really see a need for a dog pack on day hikes, but that's just me.

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I'm w/ you...At 100#'s I don't want to load his joints w/ any more weight...Especially the way he jumps off cliffs etc....Shiloh's a water bladder drinker too

We've used "Wolf Packs" for many years and found them to be very durable.
http://wolfpacks.com/products/dogpacks/banzai.html

As others have mentioned, we try to keep the load to a minimum in order to reduce the chances of back problems.

I think there was an earlier thread on this...

My dog makes a mission of leaping into every mud puddle, stream and pond that she sees. I gave up on the whole pack idea myself and ended up porting around her supplies as well as mine

I had a similar experience with an Outward Hound product not very durable and the pack was velcroed to the harness and was eventually lost in a bushwhack. The Ruffwear pack Zippy uses now is great: much more durable and has a handle and harness set up that I can use to haul her up scrambles.

Zippy carries her own water and food. The balancing act can be frustrating. I find if I weigh everything out before a hike and divide it carefully between the two sides it stays nicely centered over her. But as I give her water and food during the day it becomes unbalanced and slips to the heavy side. At the end of the day it slips to her water dish side as this weighs more than her empty water bottles and empty plastic bags. This seems to bother me and others, a lot more than it bothers her. She seems to like the pack, and will come over and sit still in front of me while I buckle it on her.

It seems to me that a single guy that does not hike with a dog wearing a pack is missing a great opportunity to meet women. Not knowin' just sayin'.

I have used the ruffwear pack on Dooley. It seems durable enough but also holds in way too much heat for mid summer use. We have decided to just carry extra water and some food.

Thanks

Thank you all for your responses.

I have found for balance, what sort-of works is to put a water bottle on each side. When the pack inevitably sags (no matter how hard I have tried to get it even initially), I take a swig from the water bottle on the low side. I also carry a leatherman tool in my waist pack (good for porcupine quill removal), and that can be dropped into the high side.

The hydration tube squirt sounds like a neat trick. My dogs drink out of my L.L. Bean canvas hat.

I will look into the Ruffwear and Wolf brand packs. Since they are quite costly, I may see if I can find some second-hand ones online. In the meantime I think we will stick to day hikes (where I would not generally have packs on the dogs).

I haven't put a pack on Augs yet (he's short but barrel-chested, so finding a good fit has been hard), but my last dog, Oliver wore a Granite Gear pack that held up pretty well. It didn't have all the bells and whistles of the Ruffwear packs, but it worked for him.

I would suggest taking your dogs to the store and have them try packs on with weight to see how they fit/balance.

A pack may be overkill in a lot of situations, but having a d-ring on the back so that if the dog is on leash and slips or strains, the pressure isn't on their necks was a helpful feature. A handle on the back can also come in handy in case you need to give your pal a boost (you could probably get both with a good harness)

Off topic a bit, but I use a harness on Shiloh...It's real handy when helping him up and down cliffy sections etc....

RUFFWEAR

Nothing else I bought worked.

Granite Gear:
http://www.granitegearstore.com/Ruff-Rider-Dog-Pack-P39C4.aspx


Simple but durable mine is at least ten years old and has held up well.

Geneva wears a Ruffwear pack, and she does really well with it.

I was just looking around online for ideas for designing her a pack, and I found one for 75% off, which was less expensive than me making one for her.

It is pretty bombproof and has reflective strips which is great for hiking under headlamp.

I don't put very much in her pack, mostly only her food.

She gets very excited whenever it comes out of the closet!

chinooktrail said:

I was just looking around online for ideas for designing her a pack, and I found one for 75% off, which was less expensive than me making one for her.

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I always think of you when this dog pack question comes up on VfTT -- you should design a line of White Mountain Dog Packs, inspired by Geneva. I'm sure you'd sell a few..

una_dogger said:

I always think of you when this dog pack question comes up on VfTT -- you should design a line of White Mountain Dog Packs, inspired by Geneva. I'm sure you'd sell a few..

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Great idea!