So we're gonna be in the market for a new dog soon and I'm just curious what you guys/girls would recommend for a hiking companion? I'd like it if the dog could hold some stuff whether it be just his food and water or a little more then that. I'd also like him to be a good family member and guard dog.

Clearly we're talking about a large to extra large dog here.So I'm just curious as to what you guys would suggest? Some of the dogs I was thinking might be good ideas are German Shepherd or some type of Mastiff.

Thanks,
Spencer

In the past, I have had Alaskan Malamutes and have taken them on the trail with me. They are large enough (85-100 lb) to carry their own food and dishes. They are prone to chase deer, elk and moose however. I now have a Golden Retriever who at 75 pounds can carry her food and dish as well. I leave my dog at home when I go desert hiking; carrying water for a dog can be a bit of a burden and keeping them from drinking foul water can be nearly impossible. I have also seen many Labrador Retrievers and Lab mixes on the trail; they seem to be easy-going and pleasant company.

I've had a couple Doberman Pinchers who did great on the trail, non-aggressive, packdogs. My late Yellow Lab X was very good. Great companion, great with people, non-aggressive, but would bark only at bears and packed his food and my trash.

I've seen all sizes and shapes of dogs on the trail. Smaller dogs can't carry as much pack, but they don't eat as much so it works out about the same. You will have to carry them through creek fords and over rough spots, though.

My Hysson (in my avatar) is 3/4 Lab and 1/4 Golden, is a very friendly dog, sheds perpetually (adding R value to the tent floor but making khaki the only possible clothing color in his vicinity) and keeps my feet warm in the tent at night.

I think it was on this forum that someone mentioned having a dachshund who curls up inside his sleeping bag keeping it--and him--warm on cold nights. Another advantage of a small dog! That's not possible with my 80# dog, but he does make a good footrest/warmer.

Be sure you obedience train your dog thoroughly and keep him on leash when other people are around. Scoop his poop (bury it in a cathole like human poop) and keep him away from other people's food. Other hikers will appreciate your dog a lot more.

Also, with a pup, let him get fully grown (i.e. his joints mature) before taking him on long trips or having him carry a pack. With the larger breeds, that's about age 2. A 1-year-old may look mature, but their joints are not!

I'm told that mastiffs drool a lot, which IMHO would be worse than Hysson's shedding.

Hyson is one of the best dogs I have run into in a long time, but I think the shedding is the golden part. I would recommend a lab, black, yellow or mixed. They're strong and want to come along and be with you, its just hard to keep a lab or any retriever out of the water and no one wants a wet dog. My dog is a pointer/grey hound and such a hunting dog is definitely more interested in hunting on her own than in playing with me. "come" is optional to her, and playing ball is only a diversion not a life style. A lab for its short hair, can take extremes of temperature. Dogs with short straight hair are almost self cleaning, my grey can roll in mud and half an hour later it can be brushed off with a hand. Consider the dogs feet and foot size depending on the terrain you'll be in, large paws for snow, smaller ones pick up less mud.
Jim

I take my malamute. See avatar. She like to chase at bark at other people and animals, so I only take her to places with not much people. I got a mal so I could take her winter camping without having to worry about her in the snow. I will leave her at home for summer desert hiking.

Thanks, Jim, for the compliments to my dog!

Hysson also regards "come" as an optional command, but fortunately he responds to "heel" just fine. He comes and sits or walks by my side, ready to be grabbed should he decide to lunge happily at an approaching hiker in an excess of friendliness that makes a lot of people nervous!

He also walks behind me on command, which is especially good on trails. All too often when he's in front of me, he stops dead to investigate an entrancing smell, while I almost fall over him!

Sounds like my Rosie. She views "come" as a suggestion and can spend hours enjoying the subtle aroma of a decomposing kangaroo mouse. She is good with "heel" and excellent with "leave it". If we don't vacuum at least once a week there are windrows of golden fur gathered in corners and under tables. She sheds constantly; our Malamutes, on the other hand, shed badly but seasonally.

I would love an Alaskan Malamute but its gets fairly warm here in the summer and I don't feel it would be fair to them. Not to mention how they blow their coat twice a year! haha

My mother for some reason really doesn't want a lab or retriever, I think its because she is scared he'll jump in the pool and rip the lining.

I noticed no one mentioned German Shepherds, is this simply because no one has experience with them or is there lower back end a problem?

My mother loves Dobermanns so that is a good idea.

Keep rolling out the ideas guys and girl!

Thanks

Try the animal shelter too, my Yellow Lab X was a rescued dog at five months old.

It is about you and not the dog.

I do not want to hurt OregonMouses feeling, but Hysson is an ordinary dog. But Hysson has received skilled and patient training and been showered with attention. I have hiked with Hysson and it is about the best dog I have every seen and is a joy to be around.

Many dogs can become good hiking dogs, IF you are willing to put in the time and energy to train them.

Another one here for a lab. We have a black lab mix, she is 3-years old and much shorter than regular labs and weighs around 50lbs. She packs her own food in and our trash out no problems.

She does have squirrel-attention deficit disorder though and so we do need to be mindful, but with some more training we are hoping that she will be good to go this season.

P
Both Dobermans and German shepherds are on the list that will require additional home owners insurance, simply because they CAN go ballistic and attack people, other than that I love the intelligence of shepherds, they're almost like playing ball with a human. On the other hand they are terrible hiking companions because they might attack other dogs or people on the trail. Of the three dogs that have ever forced me to draw a gun in self protection hiking, 2 were G. Shepherds and one was a Doby. Fortunately unless its a trained attack dog, they know when they are up against a superior enemy and stay back far enough to avoid being shot, on the other hand the people who take them hiking off leash and let tham range out ahead should be shot.
Jim

I 100% agree with this.. and it shouldn't hurt anyone's feelings - it's a compliment to the owner when the dog is well behaved. (Both Hyssen and Benny did very well on the hike we did with them..)

Again Jim, I think this is a lot less about the breed, and a lot more about what the dog has been trained (or not trained) to do. When people buy a dog to be a "guard dog" for "defense" or as a symptom of testosterone poisoining, are you really all that surprised? Now think about what breeds are more likely to be bought for such reasons, even in part, and there ya go.. it's not a symptom of the breed of dog, it's a symptom of (on average) the breed of owner.

phat
I live in Central Oregon, and came from Bend where there are more registered dogs than registered voters. In Bend we simply do not allow "bad dogs" they put them down. You can walk up to any dog in Bend and if you understand dogs, you can pet him no worry. I understand the "bad" owner syndrome, BUT come up here to Sisters and the number of insane pit-bulls is quite contradictory to the county ordinances - same county. Different owners, BUT Pit bulls can go ballistic without warning simply because they were bred to do that, and any animal with the genes is the same, regardless of training. A pet puma, a trained tiger, they all can and occasionally DO return to their "nature" if only briefly. I was talking to my neighbor (having a friendly non-confrontational conversation)and her pit bull walked up to me and sunk her teeth into my calf. The only time a dog ever actually bit me. German Shepherds were bred to protect, and Dobies were bred to protect. Now Pomeranian were not bred for that yet they are probably the most aggressive dogs I have ever encountered.

Yes, good training can overcome DNA 99% of the time. That 1% can be a real problem.

On one bp trip, my male dobie did get between "our" camp and the folks hiking on the trail a hundred feet away and barked a few times. I quieted him right away, he only advanced a short distance, otherwise, on trails I let him range ahead with no problems from him or bp traffic.

The only reason I mention my mal is because that is what I know. I had a bordie collie, and he was great as well, but could carry the same amount of weight.

As for summer, I am sure Ontario doesn't get as hot as Utah. My mal does fine in Utah during the summer. Just make sure she has shade and water, and try not to hike in the heat of the day. But, if you aren't in the desert, I doubt even that is a problem.

But, like every one is saying, the breed isn't so much important as the owner.

Letting a dog range ahead loose can cause lots of problems.

Oncoming hikers who are nervous about dogs are going to have a tizzy fit. Quite a few people have had bad experiences with dogs in the past and are frightened by loose dogs, even if they act friendly. I'm actually one of these--I've overcome a lot of my fear but have a lot of sympathy for people who are truly afraid of dogs. Horses of an oncoming horse party may also be spooked by a loose dog, even if the dog behaves himself. Finally, who knows what wild animals are around the corner. If it's a deer and runs, the dog may be lured into chasing it-illegal and, in some states, could get your dog legally shot. If it's a bear, you might find your dog running back to you for protection, closely followed by irate bear. If it's a cougar, your dog may become dinner. If it's a porcupine, you may be faced with a quick exit to the nearest veterinarian.

I have let Hysson run loose but only when I'm way out in the open and can see that there are no people or animals anywhere in sight. Otherwise he walks behind me on the trail, on or off leash. I don't want him getting out of sight, ever!

Mary, my black Lab mix, is just about the best hiking companion one could desire. We went to obedience school (Mary got a higher grade than I did)and she is fine on the trail. Oddly enough, she is not attracted to water (must be the X-factor paternal gene). We also retrieved her from the pound. That is definitely the place to get, and save, fine animals.

OM
People want their doggy to have a fun time and a great wilderness experience. A couple of dogs have come extremely close to being blown away when they attacked me. I am a dog person, I know when I'm being attacked. That person would be livid if I killed their dog, would that cause them to flip out and to be killed as well? People just don't get it, I guess I should let their puppy maul me so he can have a nice time on his hike. I am not frightened of dogs, only dogs with their head low charging at me growling. At least hunting dogs are sort of safe because they aren't walking with their people, they're not in protect mode, they're out hunting and they act differently, they're not interested in people, they simply find you to be a curiosity...
The reason this upsets me so badly is that I have come close to being forced to blow away some dogs because of their owners irresponsibility, and because of the dog breads natural protective instincts. And why were they all women and girls with the dogs?

I couldn't blame someone for killing a dog if it is attacking or threatening, I would kill it myself. I would have killed my female Dobie if I had caught her attacking and killing my geese the time I came home to find my two geese killed after she climbed her fence. My dog/s were kept reasonably close, after all, where I go there usually aren't many people on the trail. When I had my dogs, they were in the tent with me at night, too worried about skunks, porcupines. My late dog Pooch, was partially trained for SAR and we were given a compliment one time by a SAR trainer on how well we interacted with each other. I think a lot has to do with the training you give your dogs and interact with them around other people. I know what you all mean by dogs being in protect mode or just running loose. I've seen them too.

These are the same dogs that go after my dog when he's on leash. If I'm lucky, the worst that happens is that I'm wound up 3 or 4 times in the leash. If not lucky, I have to rescue Hysson (he's too much of a wimp to fight). So far neither of us has been chewed up, but some time the worst will happen.

I'd suggest pepper spray instead of a gun, but I don't want to use either one around my own dog if he is attacked! As you may have heard, it nearly happened on the Eagle Creek trail last fall just as I was passing the sign that said to keep dogs on leash! I understand the same 2 dogs caught up to and tried to get nasty with Bennie (Bigfoot's dog), too, to say nothing of Bigfoot, Food and Spork.

Either item might be more useful on the owners, except they wouldn't let Hysson stay with me in jail!

EDIT: There's currently an anti-dog rant on nwhikers.net that in a few days has grown to (at last count) 13 pages! Maybe we oughta back off on this hijack before it also grows exponentially?

I don't mind the hijacking, actually I really enjoy reading it haha