Trail Angel Needed!!

[rocketsocks]

Seems to me that many here have thru-hiked with a dog.So the thing to do would be,stop your hike,take care of your dog,when you sleep tonight conjure a new dream,one where you stop or slow your hike,it's really that simple.but get the dog checked out,at best she is dehydrated depressed,pissed off,do the right thing here.......

[Lea13]

While I don't know either Anthony or Rosie's individual capabilities, it sounds like the pace is obviously too much for Rosie, and for whatever other reasons, Anthony has a schedule to keep that demands over 20miles/day. Even if Rosie stays with someone for a little while, the same thing will likely happen again if she gets back on the trail w him, since he's not going to change his pace. It seems to me, your best bet would be to have her shipped home to you, where you can take care of Rosie properly and see her regular vet (if need be), instead of some unknown stranger who may not know what to do for her medically.

Also, if Anthony has to maintain this 20+ mile/day pace for the rest of his trip, I have major doubts about whether he can finish anyways (again, I don't know him personally, but that's a seriously grueling pace even for a really fit/experienced person). If he isn't going to finish in one go at it, why not slow down and enjoy the hike, avoid injuring himself (huge risk for overuse injuries or accidents related to fatigue in this scenario).

Everybody makes mistakes and errors in judgments, it's how we take responsibility and deal with them that makes us who we are.

[Jim Adams]

...free the dog and leash and / or cage the owner.

geek

[Winds]

Betsy, some may wonder why anyone would want to stay with a person who doesn't respect an innocent loving animal.

Nuf, I think you may have missed the core of Betty's post here; Neither of them give a damn about the dog he dragged to the trail for his goal (and her goal too!). So now the dog is potentially in serious trouble (?) and now THEY want someone else to alleviate them of their burden.

[added]
Or for at least for a good bargain.

[Tinker]

Two-legged ticks? Dogs don't need them any more than our society does. Do the right thing and send the dog home. Let the owner beat his own body to death if he so wishes. Don't go looking for others to fix your mistakes. Take ownership of them and make it right.

[BetsyVi]

Ok look, this is not a joke, and it is not abuse. Rosie is used to hiking with Anthony, and they always hike a long way. Anthony knows Rosie very well, and he would not put her in harms way. They are resting right now. And they have hiked a long way at that pace, and she has been fine up until now. However, there is no way for Rosie to come off the trail completely without Anthony having to give up his hike also. Now if that is what needs to be done, he will do it. He is not abusive to his dog, he takes very good care of her. But I was just trying to see if I could get her a week off to rest, and then if she recovers, they could continue. If not, they will have to stop hiking. I'm kind of offended that everyone just assumes he is abusing his dog. Personally knowing Anthony and Rosie, and having been on long, strenuous, 20 mile a day hikes with them, I don't see any where in my posting that suggests he is being abusive. And maybe you misunderstood me, but I meant he can't really afford to spend a week in a hotel somewhere, not that he can't afford to take the time for his dog. Now, that being said, I don't mind taking any sort of constructive opinions, even if your opinion is that Rosie should stop hiking, but please don't assume that she is being abused because she is not.

[BetsyVi]

And yes, while he is in town he is taking the dog to the vet. So please don't worry about Rosie, she is going to be fine.

[Slo-go'en]

People get all defensive when we tell them not to take a dog on a thru-hike. The situation this couple find themself's in is the usual out come when they don't listen.

I can see only two solutions to the delema. 1. Hiker + dog goes home. 2. Dog get abandoned (hopefully at a reascue shelter) and hiker goes on. Solution #3, sending the dog home, would be both expensive and logistically difficult, so that doesn't seem to be an option here.

[CrumbSnatcher]

I need a trail angel desperately. My boyfriend, Anthony, is hiking the trail right now with his Rhodesian Ridgeback dog, Rosie. And I get the pleasure of being his support from the home front. Both Anthony and Rosie are really strong hikers; they usually hike about 20 miles a day. However, this past week they had a number of days in a row that were really long and hard, and they hike more like 25-30 miles a day. Rosie got worn out and a little beat up, and she really needs some rest, but Anthony can't afford to take a week off, or even a few days really. The strain of having to urge Rosie along, and practically carry her is really exhausting Anthony both mentally and physically, to the point that he is debating giving up his dream of finishing this hike to come home so that Rosie can rest and recover. I really don't want Anthony to have to end his hike at only 800 miles in, and I want Rosie to get the rest she needs. Does anyone know a trail angel, somewhere near mid Shenandoah, who would be willing to take Rosie for a few days, or a week maybe, for a little bit of money. We don't have much, and we certainly don't have the $300 that we already paid to have Rosie boarded for 4 days while he went throught the Smoky Mountains National Park. But we could pay around 50-100 dollars. I know this is a tall order, that is why I need a true angel, who also happens to be a dog lover, and who wants to see this man not have to give up on his dream. I would appreciate any responses, suggestions, people you know, or very affordable pet boarding in the area. Thanks so much.

is rosie wearing a pack on these 20-30 mile days? i wish i lived close to the trail to take rosie off his hands but i would be trying to adopt not baby sitting.but i would of watched her. no dog is going to be able to handle that pace, not to sound like a dick, but in your post you seem to be more concerned about your boyfriends dream than the dog. i hope you find the trail angel ROSIE desperatly needs! my dog too had alot of long distance experience,but in 2002 we got off trail for 5-6 weeks went home for awhile because i thought she was dragging a little-then we headed back out and it was a much better time for the both of us.

[Tinker]

Ok look, this is not a joke, and it is not abuse. Rosie is used to hiking with Anthony, and they always hike a long way. Anthony knows Rosie very well, and he would not put her in harms way. They are resting right now. And they have hiked a long way at that pace, and she has been fine up until now. However, there is no way for Rosie to come off the trail completely without Anthony having to give up his hike also. Now if that is what needs to be done, he will do it. He is not abusive to his dog, he takes very good care of her. But I was just trying to see if I could get her a week off to rest, and then if she recovers, they could continue. If not, they will have to stop hiking. I'm kind of offended that everyone just assumes he is abusing his dog. Personally knowing Anthony and Rosie, and having been on long, strenuous, 20 mile a day hikes with them, I don't see any where in my posting that suggests he is being abusive. And maybe you misunderstood me, but I meant he can't really afford to spend a week in a hotel somewhere, not that he can't afford to take the time for his dog. Now, that being said, I don't mind taking any sort of constructive opinions, even if your opinion is that Rosie should stop hiking, but please don't assume that she is being abused because she is not.

I don't think most people, including me, think that the dog is being intentionally abused. The outcome, for the dog, is the same nonetheless. Just because the dog had done a few 20 mile days in the past doesn't mean she could handle multiple back-to-back 20s (I couldn't, even in my best shape). I'm sorry for your situation and I hope that things work out for all three of you, but especially the dog. She wasn't in on the planning.

[CrumbSnatcher]

PMed............
By the way, I've done plenty of 35 mile days with my dog. He loves it.

day after day after day? pack on or off?
must be one bad ass dog!

[BetsyVi]

no dog is going to be able to handle that pace, not to sound like a dick, but in your post you seem to be more concerned about your boyfriends dream than the dog. i hope you find the trail angel ROSIE desperatly needs! my dog too had alot of long distance experience,but in 2002 we got off trail for 5-6 weeks went home for awhile because i thought she was dragging a little-then we headed back out and it was a much better time for the both of us.

Yea I really didn't mean to sound like I was more concerned about my boyfriend than the dog. I think the phrase "need a trail angel desperately" gave people the wrong idea. Rosie's situation is surely not dire. She loves to hike and is used to doing long distance trips at 20 miles a day. They have been hiking for over a month now and this is the first time she has has a problem. And the reason they went extra hard for those couple days was to get ahead of another hiker that had an unneutered male dog that was harrassing Rosie at the shelters. I have had dogs all my life, and hiked with everyone of them, and Anthony and I are both dog lovers, so we are not new to this, and we are certainly not abusive to our dog. We really do have her best interests at heart, which is why at the first sign she was having any trouble, we decided that it would be good to give her a break. And we thought that instead of just slowing the pace, which he did until he could get her into town, that it might be nice to give her a week off while he goes ahead, if we could. We just don't have a lot of money, he has been doing this hike as cheaply as he can, and we know from experience just how expensive it can be to board your dog. I had been reading about trail angels, and thought there might be an ex-hiker, dog lover out there who could help us out. The only reason I said we need one desperately is because I was hoping someone might be able to meet with Anthony while he is in town today. We have known from the beginning that Rosie might not be able to complete the whole AT, but when she needs to come off the trail for good, Anthony will come off with her. She isnt in terrible condition right now, and I think that she would be okay to continue for now if she got a few days off. So thats why we didn't want to jump the gun and end both of their hikes at her first sign of trouble. But yeah, if she isn't okay after a few days, then they will stop and come home.

[Lone Wolf]

yo betsy! YOU take the dog and let sweetie fulfill his "dream" GD no-brainer

[Slo-go'en]

The problem is Rosie and your BF are getting thier first taste of what the trail will be like for the rest of the way. Hot, humid, rocky, along with fewer and harder to get to water sources. What has aready beaten up Rosie will just start to get worse and worse.

There is no sense putting it off, especially if funds are tight to begin with, time for Rosie and your BF do the right thing and go home.

[rjjones]

Maybe your freind can do a handfull of 3-5 mile days{spread the 3-5 out throught the day} to give Rosie a chance to recoupe.Then back his daily miles below 20 or at least not consecutive 20's.Take a few more nero days??He's got a hiking partner he has to think about!It cant be all about him.

[nufsaid]

yo betsy! YOU take the dog and let sweetie fulfill his "dream" GD no-brainer

Betsy, please do the right thing. And it need not deprive you boyfriend of completing a thru hike.

[Danl]

Check your email.

[BetsyVi]

The reason I can't just go get Rosie and bring her home is that I live in California. And the place where I live doesn't allow dogs, so he can't even just send her home to me. Thats the reason that if Rosie's hike is over, so is his. But like I said, if he needs to give up because of her, he will.

[CrumbSnatcher]

BetsyVi, i see you are from california? so did anthony and rosie fly out to georgia? as someone said the trail will only get rockier and the temp. is going to get hotter. i see you have a few people that have PM'd you, i hope they are trying to help you out. sorry some dickhead with another dog is bothering you. i know when it got real hot out me and my dog night hiked alot, well over a 1,000 miles over the years! be a long road trip for me to come get rosie :-) i hope you get some help! on my last thruhike my dog was 10, so i was able to keep her on the journey by having wonderful friends and a dog that started to enjoy zero days :-) gotta HYDH
we would hike usually 12 mile days or so together then on her days off i would go big, so as to avoid pushing her. how long of a hike did they have planned(when was he hoping to be finished by?) you say he can't afford time off, but as mentioned above, he probably needs to cut his mileage in half for awhile. better to come up a little short of katahdin and both enjoy the hike more

[Bucketfoot]

I'm with R. J. Anthony should back off on the miles, even take a few days off. You don't need a hotel. camp somewhere! Stop and smell the roses along the way. Enjoy the hike for as long as time permits you too go. HYOH and make sure you and your hiking partner enjoy it.