the pack I bought at REI was about $50. I have been told Gander Mtn, Bass Pro
Shops, and Cabela's carry backpacks and other gear for hunting dogs. you
might get a good deal at one of those places.

staying on trail is easy, if he walks on the sidewalk he will figure it out the
trial is just a nicer sidewalk.
Rupert is terrible at walking down the street in the city, I use a harness that
goes over his nose,so he will stop pulling. there is just to many smells around
the sidewalk, when you get on a trail he has less to chose from and generally
is pretty good.

A dog will drink less water when out on the trail if it is hot out, which
reminds me, if he has a dark coat he will absorb more heat on a sunny day, a
light coat will absorb less so becaerful not let him overheat.

j0ywalks wrote:
> Thanks everyone for all your answers. My intention is to always have
Jack on a leash in the woods. I can't imagine trusting any dog, no matter how
well trained, where small furry critters are involved. (He's already killed a
woodchuck in our back yard, and he is always on the lookout for more.) Getting
the Lyme's vacination is a great idea, thanks for that suggestion.
> I know he is always supposed to be behind me if I want to be the alpha dog,
but I would feel more comfortable on the trail being able to see him. I also
want to train him to actually keep his feet on the trail unless I tell him
otherwise. All I need is for him to tromp around in poison ivy and then share
it with me. Anyway, I was curious how other people do it.
> He will definitely have to carry his own water and food, he is a large dog and
I'm not capable of carrying all of his supplies AND my own. As my old friends
here know, I'm not a backpacker, just a day hiker. But water still is pretty
darn heavy, and he drinks a LOT. (And I know from experience that you can never
count on finding it when you need it.)
> I'd like to start getting him used to a pack as soon as possible, maybe I can
just get a cheap one that fits him now at Petco, and get a really good one later
when he is grown.
> I will check out the book too, thanks for that suggestion.
> (Hi Dick and Pam!)
> Joy
> --- In greatlakeshikes@ yahoogroups. com , "Dick Bolton" <dickbolton3@ ...>
wrote:
>>
>> Glad to see you are back, Joy!
>>
>> Our late Bailey The Wonder Dog never carried a pack. She pretty much drank
when and where she wanted to, with no evident ill effects, but I did use the
leash to dissuade her on occasion.
>>
>> Should the dog lead or follow? BTWD was permitted to lead, if that was what
she wanted to do. By day's end sometimes, she was happy to tag along behind.
I'd say that half of BTWD's hiking mileage over 14 years was on leash. We used
a long (15 ft?) training lead made of nylon webbing, which was easy to shorten
or lengthen on the go, as needed.
>>
>> Dick Bolton
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> --- In greatlakeshikes@ yahoogroups. com , "j0ywalks" <j0ywalks@> wrote:
>> >
>> > Hi All! I haven't been following the list for a while, I hope everyone is
doing OK. I haven't been hiking much the last couple of years either. Anyway,
I'm ready to start again, with one difference, I recently adopted a dog with the
notion that he will hike with me.
>> >
>> > Jack is a nine month old Great Dane/Shar Pei/?? mix. He is currently 80
pounds and I guess he'll get a little bigger. He is the first dog I didn't get
as a small puppy, so he has to learn a lot that he should have learned when he
was small. Of course, he is the largest and goofiest dog in our obedience
class!
>> >
>> > I never took my other dogs on hikes, so I don't have a lot of experience
with it. I have one silly question; on a very narrow trail, obviously the dog
(on his leash) will have to walk in front of or behind you. Is one way better
than another?
>> >
>> > And how on earth do I train him not to drink any water we may come across?
>> >
>> > Oh, and does anyone have favorite brands of doggy packs? I've read that
they can fall apart easily, and also that some fit better than others.
>> >
>> > Happy summer,
>> >
>> > Joy
>> >
>>
>