Dirty Dog a.k.a. bathing my dog on the trail

[pelenaka]

Santa (hubby) rescued a dog this past Christmas which has made me take an all new direction in learning this lifestyle. Now I'm more focused on being a gram weenie that I have to carry dog food and a bit more gear.
My thru hike plan (all along) pre-dog was to limit my town visits to just resupply, shower & laundry. Limited dine in since I have dietary restrictions.

I know that bathing a dog in tubs can be a concern for lodging/shower providers; clogged drains, scratched tubs, water tracked outside the bathroom.

Wondering what those of you who hike with your best friend do when it's time for a good old fashioned bath ?
Visit a groomer ?
Hope no one notices you hoisted Fido into the laundry sink @ the fluff & fold ?

One item that I'm considering packing is a very small blow up kiddie pool like I did when I air traveled with young children. The pool was great as a base for floor naps @ terminals, an extra large changing pad, or just a designated play area so they weren't just sitting on nasty terminal carpet.
On the trail I thought that we both could use it for bathing on those zero days when there would be time to set it up in a sunny spot & solar heat the bath water.
Another thought was to retrofit tent's ground cloth (footprint) to hold a 3 or 4 inches of water. Dual purpose not to mention it could be black (solar gain).

[Ginger Snap]

Having a dog pack for said dog will help with the gram-weenie-ness. They can carry about 20% of their body weight safely, but work up to it. I love the ruffwear packs. Pricey, but worth it.

While not very light, we have an MSR Dromedary bag that has a little plastic nozzle attachement for a shower. It holds a ridiculous amount of water, and while the pressure wouldnt be huge you could at least have some regulated flow to bathe fido!

Personally, I carry a few wet wipes/baby wipes in the little plastic resealable packages to wipe down our dogs when they roll in deer poop.

good luck!

[Kookork]

I always hike with my dog( a sheltie) who has long hair but honestly I have never had too much problem keeping him clean while hiking. The worst case scenario is in rainy muddy days which he stays out of the tent and after I set up the tent and settle down, I clean his paws with a bottle of water and dry them with a very small towel. Brushing their hair is more important than a bath IMHO. I bathe him once every 4 month but if there is a creek around in a sunny day a short deep in water is all he needs to stay clean.

I carry his food on my pack but he is a 18 pounds dog and eats 1.5 cups of dog food a day while hiking. If your dog is bigger or you do not want to carry extra weight , they can carry 15 to 20 percent of their body weight.(especially if they are not overweight originally).In my case my dog can carry around 3 pounds of weight which is something around 2.2 pounds of dog food( and 0.8 pound of dog pack) which is about roughly 10 days worth of food.

The real challenge about hiking with your dog (specially small to medium ones ) is fording the creeks and rivers.It is more challenging if it is a fast flowing white water river. I used to ford the river twice , one with my backpack and one with my dog in my backpack or in my hands but recently I bought a Ruffwear Webmaster Dog Harness and I attach him to my neck by his collar and ford the river only once while the backpack is in my back and my dog is conveniently hanging in front of my chest. But again my dog is just 18 pounds and my backpack is around 20 to 30 pounds so the whole weight is easily manageable for me.

[pelenaka]

Having a dog pack for said dog will help with the gram-weenie-ness. They can carry about 20% of their body weight safely, but work up to it. I love the ruffwear packs. Pricey, but worth it.

While not very light, we have an MSR Dromedary bag that has a little plastic nozzle attachement for a shower. It holds a ridiculous amount of water, and while the pressure wouldnt be huge you could at least have some regulated flow to bathe fido!

Personally, I carry a few wet wipes/baby wipes in the little plastic resealable packages to wipe down our dogs when they roll in deer poop.

good luck!

I've thought about a solar shower but Fido's coat is really water repellent. He's a Bassador (Lab), and the water just beads off his back. Much like his Basset parentage his underside picks up trail dirt like a feather duster. I use wipes now to clean off his paws following a simple urban hike in our hood. But when we've come in from a local trail now that it's Spring then it's bath time old school.
I suppose that I'm borrowing trouble but I also want to be prepared to do a major de-skunk on trail if need be.

[pelenaka]

I always hike with my dog( a sheltie) who has long hair but honestly I have never had too much problem keeping him clean while hiking. The worst case scenario is in rainy muddy days which he stays out of the tent and after I set up the tent and settle down, I clean his paws with a bottle of water and dry them with a very small towel. Brushing their hair is more important than a bath IMHO. I bathe him once every 4 month but if there is a creek around in a sunny day a short deep in water is all he needs to stay clean.

I carry his food on my pack but he is a 18 pounds dog and eats 1.5 cups of dog food a day while hiking. If your dog is bigger or you do not want to carry extra weight , they can carry 15 to 20 percent of their body weight.(especially if they are not overweight originally).In my case my dog can carry around 3 pounds of weight which is something around 2.2 pounds of dog food( and 0.8 pound of dog pack) which is about roughly 10 days worth of food.

The real challenge about hiking with your dog (specially small to medium ones ) is fording the creeks and rivers.It is more challenging if it is a fast flowing white water river. I used to ford the river twice , one with my backpack and one with my dog in my backpack or in my hands but recently I bought a Ruffwear Webmaster Dog Harness and I attach him to my neck by his collar and ford the river only once while the backpack is in my back and my dog is conveniently hanging in front of my chest. But again my dog is just 18 pounds and my backpack is around 20 to 30 pounds so the whole weight is easily manageable for me.

He tolerated wearing a couple of weighted shopping bags afixed to his harness so next on my DIY gear list is to make him a pack. As far as I know there's no real outfitter in my area let alone a shop that carries real dog gear. I'm not able to order a pack off the rack so to speak because of his chest large width and short height. Picture a dog who has the head of a chocolate lab body of a basset. He tops the scale @ 54 pounds so that should work out to 10 pounds but since he has the classic long Basset back the plan is just to have him pack the lite items.

He eats 2 1/2 to 3 cups of grain free Iams - three to five times a week he walks me to work 1.34 mile. If we do a 5 mile weekend hike then I add in an extra cup of dry food that day. Corn turns him into a methane producer to the highest power. Researching dehydrated dog kibble maybe making my own to supplement the Iams to save on weight.

As to fording streams & rivers don't laugh but I was thinking I could redesign a tarp to convert into a sling yeah sorta like a baby sling. From what I have read Bassets don't swim well.

Thanks for the replies !

[Kookork]

He tolerated wearing a couple of weighted shopping bags afixed to his harness so next on my DIY gear list is to make him a pack. As far as I know there's no real outfitter in my area let alone a shop that carries real dog gear. I'm not able to order a pack off the rack so to speak because of his chest large width and short height. Picture a dog who has the head of a chocolate lab body of a basset. He tops the scale @ 54 pounds so that should work out to 10 pounds but since he has the classic long Basset back the plan is just to have him pack the lite items.

He eats 2 1/2 to 3 cups of grain free Iams - three to five times a week he walks me to work 1.34 mile. If we do a 5 mile weekend hike then I add in an extra cup of dry food that day. Corn turns him into a methane producer to the highest power. Researching dehydrated dog kibble maybe making my own to supplement the Iams to save on weight.

As to fording streams & rivers don't laugh but I was thinking I could redesign a tarp to convert into a sling yeah sorta like a baby sling. From what I have read Bassets don't swim well.

Thanks for the replies !

First of all, there is nothing to laugh about when it comes to invention and DIY. I am a huge fan of people who make their own gear. I wish I could see a photo of your dog. Labs love water and Bassets don't so it is a deuce here .

Since he has the classic long Basset back try to shift the pack toward the front of his body( most of dog bags are like this design).

I go for daily hike of 4 miles but since my dog is off leash he runs to the woods and chases squirrels and birds and comes back. Last time I attached a GPS to him and it showed he runs 6 miles per day(rain or shine). The day I take my bike I go for 6 miles and he runs around 8 so he is super fit. How old is your dog?

If you are going for AT , there is not much serious fording as much as I know but PCT is another story in some years. Try to keep your dog on proper weight and fitness and I think he can hike with you.

[Ginger Snap]

The "bassador" is cracking me up! I had originally bought a ruffwear approach pack, and the volume that I thought appropriate for my pup had chest straps that were too small , so we just added length to accommodate our pittie's chest.

But back to the bathing-I think on some level if we are willing to tolerate our own stinky dirtiness, why shouldn't we tolerate the pups? Worst is the deer poop roll- ugh. But mud and general goo? Mostly I wipe off and forget the rest!

[Longfan]

I've thought about a solar shower but Fido's coat is really water repellent. He's a Bassador (Lab), and the water just beads off his back. Much like his Basset parentage his underside picks up trail dirt like a feather duster. I use wipes now to clean off his paws following a simple urban hike in our hood. But when we've come in from a local trail now that it's Spring then it's bath time old school.
I suppose that I'm borrowing trouble but I also want to be prepared to do a major de-skunk on trail if need be.

Not sure it is the Basset; Labs are water repellent ass well. By the way bathing of a dog can cause dry skin by removing the oil from the coat and skin especially in dogs like lab/lab mix where they have that oil to be water repellent. Both of my lab mixes have not smelled nor been really "dirty dogs" and neither were really water dogs. My current one will go into water if I take him; meaning I walk into the water and call him in; he did go in once on his own accord while h\being lead astray by a grup of ducks (I was suprized and embrassed). My first lab mix was rasied where bodies of water was 250 mile in any direction.

[Chaco Taco]

I would be more concerned with ticks. Get a dog pack. Another vote for Ruff Wear. The Palisades is expensive but the saddle bag detatch from the pack, leaving a nice harness. Granite Gear makes a similar pack I think called the Howl. Its the pack we will probably go for when its time to buy Grayson's first. Honestly though, bathing a dog with a wet bandana and a little bit Bronner's works great, esp if you are using tea tree or peppermint. Tea Tree is good for the skin of a dog as it can dry out when hiking. My only concern would be washing off any Frontline.

[Ginger Snap]

Just make sure your frontline is applied when your dog is dry for 72 hrs ( or basically dry to the skin), and delay bathing another 72 hrs. The product travels across the skin with the help of the dog's natural skin oils.