Pack-a-Paw

Have any of you tried this?

Dog Carrying Harness for Hikers | Pack-a-Paw - NH, USA

Yesterday I did a long difficult hike up South Sister in Oregon. While the wilderness is dog friendly, I would never bring Thor on this hike. The upper half of the route is on rough volcanic terrain and is very exposed with no shade. I'm afraid it would tear up his paws, even though he is well conditioned. There are also limited water sources, and my pack was already full carrying a gallon for myself. There were a handful of hikers who had their dogs with them, though.

On my way back down I was about 1/4 mile from the trailhead and crossed paths with a hiker and his dog. This is the final few steps of a 12+ mile hike with almost a vertical mile of elevation gain. The dog (golden retriever) was exhausted and moving very slow. The guy said he had run out of water, and had sent his son ahead to grab some from the car to bring back. I still had a little bit left and gave it to the dog (not the guy, hehe). They did make it back to the trailhead, but I could see the dog was on the verge of needing to be carried.

So this made me think - While I'd never push my pups beyond what I thought they would be comfortable with, I know that unexpected things can happen on the trail. And how would I carry 80 lbs of lab off a mountain? I did some googling this morning and came across this harness. It looks small and compact enough to throw in a pack as part of my dog emergency kit. It can support up to 140 lbs.

Does anyone here have experience with this harness, or anything similar? Obviously it needs to work, but it also needs to be compact and light enough that I can carry it in a backpack along with all of my other gear (or even in Thor's daypack).

Pretty cool ... developed in the White Mountains of NH which is one of my favorite areas for hiking and camping. Pretty sure the photo of the guy carrying the dog up a ladder is the Hi-Cannon trail on Cannon Mountain.

It is worth considering as I had the awful experience of Cassie tearing her CCL while about a mile from my truck. When she laid down in the field crying, the first thought I had was how am I going to get her out of here. It took us the better part of an hour with me carrying her part of the way and her limping along for some of it when I ran out of gas.

I think about this situation a lot because even on a mild trail you never know what could happen. It looks like it might not be the most comfortable for a dog, and in the video the dog is on a table. If I was alone without a raised platform I would probably have a hard time going from the ground to standing with Bubba strapped in. And if I was already carrying a backpack and other supplies. But anything that provides peace of mine and could help out at all might be worth the investment.

That looks really neat...it would sure provide peace of mind (after you proved that you could use it, that is).

If anyone gets one, please let us know how you like it.

There are some photos with the dog being carried at the front leaving room for your pack behind. I know Cassie would be very nervous of me putting her on my back but if I could sling her to the front, it might be more workable. Reminds me of the front pouch carriers they have for babies.

Yeah in the front video she was kind of cradling the dog's head - that might be more comfortable. The straps seem a bit fussy but I'd definitely practice at home first - I wouldn't want to be figuring it out while dealing with an injured dog in the backcountry.

I don't want to ever have a dog I cannot carry. We used to remote area canoe trip and carrying a dog out was always a possibility. My concern would be hurting them more while moving from canoe to portage trail and back, if needed. There is a cairn on one trip where a woman had to carry her husband out. I have had to carry Oban twice. Once just a short hop over freshly laid asphalt. The second time about 1/2 kilometre, maybe less, when he collapsed from heat and humidity in the bush last summer. I did it but that harness might have helped. Though with the short distance we were from our house last summer, doubt I would have carried it with me.

I'd probably carry a sling vs. something like this. You'd have to do a lot of practicing to use this, both for you and the dog. In the event that you don't have a sling, you can use one of those re-useable grocery bags cut down the sides to create a sling with handles. I mean, if you were hiking very far, very often, rough terrain, climbing ladders, etc. something like this might be worth carrying and getting you and the dog accustomed to. My first dog, who did not like being messed with, cut his inner thigh pretty good, requiring 15 stitches. A sling would have been ideal because I wouldn't have had to touch him (so, probably a muzzle in his case, too!). If you are strong enough, a firemans carry works well, too. Again, you'd have to practice a lot.

I haven't but I like the idea. Our Help Em Up harnesses have been invaluable for only to get them into the car or keep them stable when they're walking. I can haul 70 lbs so this one looks really nice.