Hiking Sobo with 10 week old puppy in Maine

[peakbagger]

http://www.vftt.org/forums/showthrea...y-Rd-6-22-2-23

From VFTT, someone reported two South bounders hiking with 10 week old puppy they had adopted the day before. I am not a dog owner but this sounds somewhat young for a dog to be hiking and doesn't bode well. Is this out of line with dog owners experiences?

[Water Rat]

To be blunt - Yes. That is a lot of hiking for such a youngster. There is a lot more that could be said, but I think the odds are these SOBOs won't get very far. That, or the pup will be re-homed along the way.

[atmilkman]

With any luck they're carrying him/her most of the time.

[Nutbrown]

10 weeks? Sure they'll carry her. There are plenty of people that bring along a cat and carry it on their packs. Whether or not it's a dopey thing to do is another question entirely.

[Longfan]

I will only say that my vet told me when my Lab mix was 5 MONTHS OLD that a dog less than 10 MONTHS OLD should only walk about two miles a day. After 10 MONTH of age the dog can walk as many miles as the dog will tolerate but the dog needed to build up to miles of walking/hiking just like a human. So a 10 week old pup; NO!

[Malto]

This seems well thought out.

[Sarcasm the elf]

http://www.vftt.org/forums/showthrea...y-Rd-6-22-2-23

From VFTT, someone reported two South bounders hiking with 10 week old puppy they had adopted the day before. I am not a dog owner but this sounds somewhat young for a dog to be hiking and doesn't bode well. Is this out of line with dog owners experiences?

Speaking generally, a 10 week old puppy should only be doing a couple of miles a day. All trail dogs need to start hiking a little at a time and build up gradually to big miles. A good ballpark number is that a dog should be over a year old before hiking full days on backpacking trips and many of the larger dog breeds will need two years for their bodies to develop before they can safely handle full days on the trail. Pushing a dog that's too young to handle the rigors of the trail puts them at risk for many injuries, particularly joint problems.

Every situation is unique, and I won't comment on the story in the link too specifically beyond saying that I hope they're carrying the pup most of the way.

[peakbagger]

Practically, the dog is going to be walking in many sections south of the Crockers. Western Maine has a lot of serious ups and downs that require both hands and feet to scramble up and down. Plus the somewhat infamous Mahoosuc Notch requires packs to be removed and passed forward. Plenty of slippery cracks and crevices for a small dog to fall into. Unfortunately I am not aware of any animal shelters close to the trail until North Conway NH so finding a new home for the dog is going to be difficult.

[Swordpen]

They are asking for future hip problems (soon like by the time the dog is 3), dysplasia exacerbations, that might have never surfaced, if they had waited until the pup was a year old.

[evan_rolltide]

I saw this couple coming down Mt Webster headed towards Zealand Hut back in July. I was pretty shocked to see them descending uch steep terrain with a dog that age. The guy was carrying it on his back across his shoulders. I hope they are doing well!

[Chaco Taco]

Speaking generally, a 10 week old puppy should only be doing a couple of miles a day. All trail dogs need to start hiking a little at a time and build up gradually to big miles. A good ballpark number is that a dog should be over a year old before hiking full days on backpacking trips and many of the larger dog breeds will need two years for their bodies to develop before they can safely handle full days on the trail. Pushing a dog that's too young to handle the rigors of the trail puts them at risk for many injuries, particularly joint problems.

Every situation is unique, and I won't comment on the story in the link too specifically beyond saying that I hope they're carrying the pup most of the way.

I Agree with this statement 100%, but it also depends on the breed. We get Grayson checked regularly by the vet. He has been hiking since 12 weeks. He is a beautiful medium lab mix. He has 9 4000 Footers in NH and he is almost 9 months. He is in excellent health, his growth is right in line. We incorporate chiro and massage into his recovery in camp. He loves sleeping in a tent. We only have put his pack on a couple of times with nothing in it. He does just fine. We take extra care of his pads and always carry Mushers as well as Dogbooties for sharp rocky areas.
WIth that said, hiking SOBO with a puppy that young is going to be difficult and could get expensive. Wish them the best, betcha anything beats the shelter for pup!

[Hipcheck]

Dogs are not fully mature until 18-24 months old, I would not recommend a thru hike for any dog under a year and a half. Until their bones are fully fused, they are more susceptible to fractures.