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  1. #1
    Ricky and his Husky Jack
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    Default Has anyone ever had their dog tear/ruin their tent?

    Hello, i am getting ready to plan for my first over-nighter with my 5-6 month old husky. And I was wondering if anyone here has had any experience with their dog tearing, or ruining their tent.

    Today, i finally opened up a 7' x 7' American Camper tent that bought brand new 11 years ago for $20 at a tool show but never opened til today because it weighs about 6 lbs. (would be more handy for a camp site where u didnt carry it far from the car). But I will be taking it to use as a test run to see how my dog handles tents.

    Has anyone ever had their dog 'accidentally' tear a hole in the floor with their claws, accidentally rolled over and had their weight tear aa seam in the wall, etc.

    Im wanting to try it out on this throw away tent before I consider investing in a $100-$200 or so tent.

    have you had any other bad experiences with dogs and tents?
    Me: Ricky
    Husky: Jack
    Skeeter-Beeter Pro Hammock.
    From Dalton, Georgia (65 mi above Altanta, 15mi south of Chattanooga)

  2. #2

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    The first time we took our Golden Retriever backpacking, a raccoon yowled right outside the tent. Ben was already on edge because he could hear fireworks off in the distance (it was July), and he went right through the screen window after the 'coon. (Didn't catch it.) Fortunately, like you we started with a cheap $20 tent. Our next trip out with him, we had no problems. We just purchased an expensive 3 person tent, and we're hoping to avoid more critter encounters so he doesn't damage the tent.

  3. #3
    Ricky and his Husky Jack
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    i forgot about screens. I assume thats a common problem with dogs.
    Me: Ricky
    Husky: Jack
    Skeeter-Beeter Pro Hammock.
    From Dalton, Georgia (65 mi above Altanta, 15mi south of Chattanooga)

  4. #4

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    heres my 2 cents

    My lab/pit has carried a backpack about 700 miles in 4-5 years. He is always "Under" my tent. No days he has his oun room which is my extra vestibule. He is older, and the tent thing is no new thing to him. For a needy 5 month old pup it could be a different story. When I have my 5 month old GSP i woke up to her chewing on my thermorest nozzle. If the dog chews stuff up at home, he is prolly going to wake up before you in the tent, get bored, and chew your ***** up. Now you may ask what straw broke the camels back earning wardy a new spot in the vestibule? Try explosive diahrea at 3 am during a thunderstorm.... "splat"
    Trail Miles: 4,927.6
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  5. #5
    Registered User Damn Yankee's Avatar
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    My Golden loves to hike and swim with me, she also likes chasing rabbits and squirrels in my backyard. I took her on her first overnight and used my Nemo Meta 2P. I put my pad and bag towards the back wall and then I put a CCF pad down for her. I had to get in first because she was a little hesitant but she followed. She did fine as long as I was touching her and she growled a little during the night because of critters. All in all, other than loosing a little sleep, it was a great trip. I have to say, I love meeting and hiking with people but, I much rather hike with my dog. Your dog will be fine. I would however go to walmart and get a cheap exercise mat or something to protect the floor of the tent on the side where she will be staying. After a while she will automatically use the same side every time. Good luck, have a great hike and let us know how it went.

    "You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace;the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands."
    Isaiah 55:12

  6. #6
    Section Hiker
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    I think like with the hammock, it is all about training--and maybe booties in the tent too. Sounds like you're asking all the right questions though, and I'm envious of hikers who have trail-trained dogs to buddy up with.


    "Your comfort zone is a beautiful place, but nothing ever grows there.
    "


  7. #7

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    Our hiking group had a new member join us. He mentioned, on the phone, that he would be bringing his dog, but that he would camp a little ways away from us, in case Baby (really, the dog's name was Baby) bothered anyone. He explained that Baby didn't really understand about screens, and his claws were detrimental to the floor of the tent. We were a little leery to meet Baby, but when the time came, Baby was a 150 pound Mastiff that was about the most affectionate creature most of us had ever met. His owner (whose name I don't remember, but I won't be forgetting Baby's name!) used two giant tarps to make a sleeping space the size of a mid-sized condo, which allowed the dog to watch everything, and it didn't matter if his claws poked a few holes in the floor tarp, and it was big enough for all of us to visit Baby, who loved tummy rubs. To answer your question, I'd bet Baby had ruined a tent or two, but his owner found a solution that allowed the dog to join his master on hikes.

  8. #8
    Wanna-be hiker trash
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    I usually hike with either a German Wirehaired pointer or a border collie (both medium size, very active breeds) and they always sleep inside the tent.

    The rule I've learned is to never let the dog inside the tent unless a person is inside as well and especially to always bring the dog with you when you leave the tent.

    The dogs claws dont seem to be an issue when they are walking in and out of the tent, sitting or bedding down. But you need to supervise the dog so that it does not "dig" inside the tent as that action will shred the tent floor. It is equally important to make sure that they do not "paw" or swat at the walls or netting. Their claws will shred through the bug netting almost instantly.

    Oh, and do make sure to get the dog their own ground pad. I bring half of an old thermarest zlite foam pad.
    Last edited by Sarcasm the elf; 05-13-2014 at 18:23.
    Colorless green ideas sleep furiously.

  9. #9

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    Buster, my Dad's dog, used to claw at the ground, almost as if to dig, when I put him in my old 8 person monster tent when we went camping. IMHO, camping with a dog is really dirty and damaging to your equipment, though it really depends on the temperament of the dog. Buster was very sweet and loyal, but was really messy territorial so he messed around with stuff alot. Tarping with a dog is a much better experience since they have more of their own room, there's no floor or mesh to ruin, and your not confined with the dog smell as much. The above poster was spot on about bringing a ground pad for your dog, though a zlite seems a bit much, but after being cut in half, that would probably work well.

  10. #10

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    For me, the biggest challenge of bringing a dog into the field is having to worry about ticks on the dog, so for this reason, I could see using a tent as appropriate. With Buster, I was pulling ticks off of him left and right which made me really nervous which is why I stopped hiking/camping with him; that, and the fact that he slobbered on everything and "soiled" my $400 winter sleeping bag.

  11. #11
    Registered User Damn Yankee's Avatar
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    That's what I did, I cut four sections off my Zlite and use them as a seat, the rest is for the dog. I put her near the door so she doesn't have to walk over everything.

    "You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace;the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands."
    Isaiah 55:12

  12. #12

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    I don't have a dog, I don't like dogs, but when I was on a backpacking trip, someone else's dog ripped through the screen in my tent and then left lots of little claw holes over two sides of the screens. Had to patch all that up.

  13. #13
    Registered User
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    I use an older 3 person tent which weighs 6lbs and a z lite pad for my black lab,my biggest problem is by the end of he night he's almost on top of me and I have to move him to his own side.

    Get your dog started as soon as you can, they can be better company than any human, They also guard your camp area - years ago i had a bear encounter at around 4 am, never since my dog camps with me, Be Careful seems Husky's tend to wander.

  14. #14
    Registered User Wise Old Owl's Avatar
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    Can I suggest the first few nights leaving the door rolled back so the dog can go in and out? after a while it will get comfortable.
    Dogs are excellent judges of character, this fact goes a long way toward explaining why some people don't like being around them.

    Woo

  15. #15
    Registered User FarmerChef's Avatar
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    Our husky sleeps in or outside our tarp as she pleases. We use Tyvek for a ground cover and typically have her lay down directly on it or with us on our pads (there are 5 of us with pads so plenty of room). We've never had a problem with her claws but now that I'm switching to Cuben I'm thinking seriously about it. I second the idea on leaving the door open for a few nights so she and you can get a sense of her movement and needs. I've found that even on cold nights, our Husky will leave the relative warmth of the tarp and head outside to next in the leaves. We just leave her a leash long enough in camp to come and go in the tarp as she pleases. I don't know how we'd manage that in a tent other than to keep the door open.
    2,000 miler. Still keepin' on keepin' on.

  16. #16
    Ricky and his Husky Jack
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    when u leave the door open, do u leave her leashed still? or let her free?
    Me: Ricky
    Husky: Jack
    Skeeter-Beeter Pro Hammock.
    From Dalton, Georgia (65 mi above Altanta, 15mi south of Chattanooga)

  17. #17
    Registered User FarmerChef's Avatar
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    I rarely let my Husky off leash and only when I can grab it in a heartbeat if need be (read, about 1 foot away). I tie her up to a tree with a long lead of tent cord tied off to her leash so she's got about 15 feet of lead. That gives her enough room to come in to virtually any point in our 10x12 tarp (8x10 footprint) and plenty of spots outside if need be.
    2,000 miler. Still keepin' on keepin' on.

  18. #18

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    My dalmatian love to chase squirrels, so whenever she's going to be sleeping in the tent (which is virtually ALL netting other than the floor) we just pitch it with the fly on and zip it up at night. She sleeps on a fleece blanket on the floor, and we be sure that the blanket is everywhere that our sleeping pads and bags aren't.

    Like others have said, if you don't leave the dog in there alone and they're decently well behaved with trimmed nails - and don't have the scoots! - it's virtually a non-issue.

  19. #19
    Ricky and his Husky Jack
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    good. because when i first made this thread, i was planning to take my dad from amicalola to springer. I finally bought a cheap $25 tent at walmart, and we will be finally heading out tomorrow morning (Tuesday).

    Ill update when we get back wednesday on how he did.
    Me: Ricky
    Husky: Jack
    Skeeter-Beeter Pro Hammock.
    From Dalton, Georgia (65 mi above Altanta, 15mi south of Chattanooga)

  20. #20
    Registered User Drybones's Avatar
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    One of my favorite hiking stories: a friend and our dogs were in camp, he and I were sitting against a log sipping some of KY's best and I asked him what his dog used as a sleeping pad, he said a 3/4 Thermarest, I said I couldn't use something that expensive because my dog has a habit of putting stuff in his mouth when he sleeps, my friend said his dog never chewed anything...within 60 seconds I looked over at his tent and his dog had his $500 WM sleeping bag in his mouth going to town.

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