Dog leashed at night?

[toemaetoe]

I've only ever taken my dog on day hikes, and I'd like to start doing some weekend hikes with her this year. I tarp/bivy, and I'm concerned about my dog wandering off in the night, as she's far too curious/independent for her own good. I know some people do tents with their dogs, but I'd prefer to avoid that for several reasons (including condensation and nails on the tent's floor. Do any of you have similar problems, and how do you deal with them? Do you keep your dog leashed at night? If so, what do you attach the leash to? A tree? This seems problematic. But I can't be the only hiker with an independent dog, right? Right? Help me out, guys.

[Studlintsean]

I use 30-40 ft of Paracord for my dog while sleeping if we are not sleeping in the tent.

[Gaiter]

yes always leash dogs at night, mine hikes behind me and isn't always on a leash, but at night I strap the leash to my pack, so if she does anything stupid she will make a lot of noise and most certainly wake me up...

[Heald]

Hobbling is a technique that has been used with horses for century's, and although I never "hobbled" my dog, or much less used a leash, there are people who do in fact use this technique on dogs.

[kayak karl]

if your taking the dog let it in the tent or on a short leach (6') in vestibule. my 75# lab sleeps in hammock or under it. leach is hooked to my wrist all night. hobbling is cruel. even on horses and junkyard dogs.

in some parks leaching is a law. no more then 6'

[Gray Blazer]

leach is hooked to my wrist all night.

in some parks leaching is a law.

Leaches suck!

[Drybones]

Leaches suck!

I'll take this opportunity to grose everyone out...just came into Hot Springs, went into a privy in a cafe and pulled the pants down, underneath the boxers on my thigh was a 3" something or other that I'm assuming was a leach wiggling around, grabbed him quickly and thew in the trash. Dont know where I got him, do remember stepping into some dark leachy looking water as I stepped onto the road to town.

[Sarcasm the elf]

I'll take this opportunity to grose everyone out...just came into Hot Springs, went into a privy in a cafe and pulled the pants down, underneath the boxers on my thigh was a 3" something or other that I'm assuming was a leach wiggling around, grabbed him quickly and thew in the trash. Dont know where I got him, do remember stepping into some dark leachy looking water as I stepped onto the road to town.

Drybones, that was an obvious typo, he didn't mean leeches, he meant Lychees!

[Wise Old Owl]

This is a tough call - Rugby doesn't take to being tied down - he will chew threw the cord - chain etc and yank the corkscrew out in campgrounds. Unleashed he parks his but directly under the hammock and with each "hoot" his head hits head on my butt.

[Smooth & Wasabi]

Of my two dogs one needs to be leashed at night and he will chew through most materials. I found a six foot wire lead for small dogs at wal mart which he cannot chew. It is very light, holds my 50 pound dog well and was super cheap. I have tied him to a tree near my tarp so he can shelter if needed as well as to my pack successfully. I have also used it to make an impromtu run with some para-cord.

[Wise Old Owl]

Ok I think I know what you are talking about its a six steel cable with loops right?

[Papa D]

Occasionally, I meet a dog that is really benefiting from a backpacking trail - really enjoying him/herself as much as the dog owner - - more often than not, dogs on the trail are akin to extra pack weight - - brought out of fear for safety, being lonely, whatever. I am a dog lover and run with my dog all the time .. tonight as a matter of fact but I think that problems arise in about 90% of backpacking trips with dogs - - these include safety and health of the dog, safety and comfort (including noise pollution) for other hikers, threat and scaring-off of wildlife, and getting lost. I have recovered many a hiker's dog for them (because, as I said, I like dogs and don't blame them). I just wish people would think long and hard about why they must bring their dog.

Now, before he says something, my bet is that WOO's dog does fall in the 10% of well behaved, non-barking, polite, fun trail dogs.

[Wise Old Owl]

A huge source of pride as Rugby continues to surprise even me Papa D. Actually we should take a moment as both you and others in Georgia have had "owner problems" but by the time they arrive past Shenandoah I don't see it. Should be a seperate thread. PM.

[Papa D]

A huge source of pride as Rugby continues to surprise even me Papa D. Actually we should take a moment as both you and others in Georgia have had "owner problems" but by the time they arrive past Shenandoah I don't see it. Should be a seperate thread. PM.

Yes - - I have no intention of turning this into another "dogs on the trail" rant and debate - - and my dog, Tallulah feels the same way, I'm sure.

[Highpointbound]

Yes - - I have no intention of turning this into another "dogs on the trail" rant and debate - - and my dog, Tallulah feels the same way, I'm sure.

If people KNOW that lots of others dont like UNLEASHED dogs on trails..trails where the PUBLIC has rights to..why do they continue to do this? If the topic causes rants, obviously people dont like it. The woods/trails dont belong to just you(meaning people with unleashed dogs). Others have the right to enjoy it also without a pain in the butt dog afoot. WHY..WHY..is it so hard to leash your dog? Why is it okay at night..BUT FOR SOME REASON YOU FEEL THE DOG IS ALWAYS AN ANGEL DURING THE DAY AND DOESNT NEED TO BE LEASHED????? Just did a hike last weekend in the whites of NH. Guy with two unleashed dogs, comes to a scenic area where other hikers are resting. First thing one of the dogs does is walk over and stick his nose in a hikers bag. Good thing she had not opened her sandwich yet. Owner said nothing to the dog. Little stuff like this is common, and irritating. Yet, no one gets it. Im a huge dog lover..but my dog are always leashed.

Dont know why people feel their dog just cant 'enjoy' the hike if he is leashed. Really? My dogs seem to love it. I have them on a long leash, and rein them in when others approach or other UNLEASHED dogs come running up to them with their owner yellng 'no fluffy..no'. I have been a dog person all my life. I just never realized how selfish dog people are. I hate to say it, but just the negative responses or feelings to this post will show that. All because of just wanting a dog on a leash.

[Wise Old Owl]

nuts.....................Still looking for a good answer on how to leash a dog when hanging in a hammock - he gets twisted around the tarp stakes.... everytime... anyone?

[shelterbuilder]

When I used to take my first Siberian Husky with me, he was ALWAYS either leashed to my wrist or tied (usually to a nearby tree). On wintertime trips, Bandit slept tethered to my wrist on the end of an extra-long leash - the leash would snake out of the sleeping bag by my cheek and down to his collar! He would sleep in the tent, on a square of heavy wollen fabric (doubled over into "his" sleeping pad). While he was a really friendly dog, and loved "people-attention", he also knew the command "GUARD", and would watch my pack (tied off to a nearby tree) when I would go down for water. He would also hike at the end of an extra-long leash, and learned to jump over blow-downs, then stop and wait for me to scramble over! (Those of you who have ever had any dealings with Huskies know that you CAN'T let a Husky off-lead and expect it to stay with you!)

Oh, yeah, he also had his own little raincoat...which was as much to keep my sleeping bag dry as it was to keep him dry - he LOVED to dry off by rolling on my sleeping bag!

Tether your buddy - for his own good. If he tends to chew the lead, then measure out from his collar to the normal chew-points, and get a steel cable that's a bit longer than this length - it's likely that he will continue to chew at that same spot...and will get NOWHERE with the cable. The rest of the tether can be nylon.

Enjoy the trip.

[FarmerChef]

Our family hikes with our Alaskan Husky, Sara, and, as Shelterbuilder pointed out, we always leash her in camp too. As a breed Huskies are nomadic and will often go chasing after the first thing that goes "peep" (gotta love all the AT chipmunks). After a full day of hiking, she just usually wants to eat her dinner, have a drink and hit the sack. Unless, of course, there are other people nearby. Then she wants to wag her tail and get some attention, which most are willing to provide. Could we take her off leash in camp? Probably. But a couple of times chasing a Husky through the woods quickly teaches you that an ounce of prevention is worth miles of cure.

As to our particular approach, Sara is not a chewer so we don't have the same problems others have described with regard to night time tie outs. And we've found through experimentation that the right combo for her/us is her leash extended by about 10 feet (total of 15 or more) with whatever extra cordage we have on hand and clipped to a tree, our packs, the center pole of the tent, whatever. She won't pull on it except if she gets tangled up and runs out of cord (rarely an issue). With that length she can get up and move about freely and can come in and out of our tarp as she feels comfortable. She usually likes to sleep in between the kids on top of their bags. They get warm feet/heads and she gets a soft bed. Everybody wins!

[FarmerChef]

Our family hikes with our Alaskan Husky, Sara, and, as Shelterbuilder pointed out, we always leash her in camp too. As a breed Huskies are nomadic and will often go chasing after the first thing that goes "peep" (gotta love all the AT chipmunks). After a full day of hiking, she just usually wants to eat her dinner, have a drink and hit the sack. Unless, of course, there are other people nearby. Then she wants to wag her tail and get some attention, which most are willing to provide. Could we take her off leash in camp? Probably. But a couple of times chasing a Husky through the woods quickly teaches you that an ounce of prevention is worth miles of cure.

As to our particular approach, Sara is not a chewer so we don't have the same problems others have described with regard to night time tie outs. And we've found through experimentation that the right combo for her/us is her leash extended by about 10 feet (total of 15 or more) with whatever extra cordage we have on hand and clipped to a tree, our packs, the center pole of the tent, whatever. She won't pull on it except if she gets tangled up and runs out of cord (rarely an issue). With that length she can get up and move about freely and can come in and out of our tarp as she feels comfortable. She usually likes to sleep in between the kids on top of their bags. They get warm feet/heads and she gets a soft bed. Everybody wins!

[rocketsocks]

Our family hikes with our Alaskan Husky, Sara, and, as Shelterbuilder pointed out, we always leash her in camp too. As a breed Huskies are nomadic and will often go chasing after the first thing that goes "peep" (gotta love all the AT chipmunks). After a full day of hiking, she just usually wants to eat her dinner, have a drink and hit the sack. Unless, of course, there are other people nearby. Then she wants to wag her tail and get some attention, which most are willing to provide. Could we take her off leash in camp? Probably. But a couple of times chasing a Husky through the woods quickly teaches you that an ounce of prevention is worth miles of cure.

As to our particular approach, Sara is not a chewer so we don't have the same problems others have described with regard to night time tie outs. And we've found through experimentation that the right combo for her/us is her leash extended by about 10 feet (total of 15 or more) with whatever extra cordage we have on hand and clipped to a tree, our packs, the center pole of the tent, whatever. She won't pull on it except if she gets tangled up and runs out of cord (rarely an issue). With that length she can get up and move about freely and can come in and out of our tarp as she feels comfortable. She usually likes to sleep in between the kids on top of their bags. They get warm feet/heads and she gets a soft bed. Everybody wins!

I too had a Husky,and yes they are a little nomadic,and stuborn,hard headed,and awfully snugable.bandit was a true husky in every sence,he pulled like no other I ever had,his lungs were large and he rarly tired,cool breed,strong as all.Use to use some 3/16 air craft cable for his tie-out,and he aventully broke it and I don't know how.Spectra may be the way to go.thanks for posting,I had all but forgotten that.cheers