Camping with Dogs

Vagabonds

We hope to bring our two Golden Retrievers along on some of our camping excursions--about 140 lbs of love and fluff. Those who camp with dogs, especially larger dogs, can you share any experiences/best practices? (With the understanding we leash and follow common dog safety/training/courtesy.)

We are new to camping and expect T@b delivery late September. 

Verna

Be sure to get a "busy" print on your bedspread, one that won't show their footprints, whether dry or wet. It's a good idea to get a waterproof mattress cover. One Silver Shadow owner found a waterproof fabric shower curtain and keeps it on her bed in case the dogs get inside while wet. 

Keep a microfiber towel handy to wipe them down before entering the T @B. Microfiber towels and wash cloths dry very quickly and come in very handy for dogs and humans. 

Keep plenty of appropriate sized waste bags for the dogs. Your neighbors will appreciate you, as will the park management. Always clean up after the dogs.  6' leashes are the normal requirement, and it's also a nice length for your neighbors who might not appreciate larger dogs. 

Let them spend time in the T@B with you before the first trip.  It's new to them, too. Put a favorite blanket or bed in there to make sure they know it's their home, too. 

Depending on where you camp, think twice about keeping their food inside the T@B. Bears like the smell of dog food.  

Raccoons will use their water bowls at night to wash their food, so I always put Sunny Day's water bowl on top of the truck at night. And raccoons love dog food, too. Be sure to sterilize any bowls that raccoons may have touched-- they are not the cleanest, nor the healthiest of wild animals. 

My dog doesn't eat well for the first day or two, but eats better than normal after that. Be sure to take extra dog food.  Extra walks helps keep the dogs calmed down and helps them sleep.

I keep extra Chlorox wipes in the T@B in case Sunny Day gets sick. The wipes seem to remove the stain quickly, as well as any odor.

Next ?

gooselady

I use a 4 ft chain with swivel snaps on both ends and then chain a dog to the support brackets of the T@B.  My dogs are trained to a chain before traveling.  I kept 4 dogs that way for a week of trailing earlier this month.  The dogs overnight in their crates in the van.  No dogs in the T@B.

vito

I have a small, well behaved dog. We let her sleep with us in the T@b and it has not been a problem. However, if you like to sightsee, there are many if not most locations that will not allow pets. My wife and I are thinking that on future trips where we are not "going camping" but traveling to destinations and using the T@b as our "hotel on wheels" we will NOT take our little dog. Leaving a dog, or two, in the T@b while you go sightseeing is likely to be problematic. Even if there is no concern with heat or cold because your T@b can be kept comfortable if you have electric hook up, the dog might bark if left alone in this unfamiliar location. This is exactly what happened to us just a few days ago when we left the dog, in her familiar small crate, in the T@b while we went out for lunch. We returned to the campground to find a rather harsh note taped to the T@b that our dog had been barking and disturbing other guests. FWIW, our dog virtually never barks at all but must have felt frightened in the T@b without us. 

Personally, if I owned two large dogs and wanted to travel with them, I would not have bought a T@b. With my little 12 lb. dog we are OK, but the T@b really is a small space to live in for two people, let alone an animal.

bgualtieri

Microfiber mat, just fits the space between the galley and the benches in front of the door. We got it in grey to match the (Tabitha) flooring:

http://m.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/art/50221301/

jkjenn

boo said:

Best thing you can do is shave your dogs hair very short.
Taking him/her for a morning poo or wiping his feet on a wet day is not a big problem.
Shaving them keeps them cooler in summer and almost completely eliminates shedding.
We shave our medium size dog throughout the summer.
He slept in the bed with us on our last/first trip in our t@b. No problems.
He is well looked after, regular baths, all shots, flee, tick, etc.

ps: A tip if I may. If you decide to start shaving your dogs yourself, cheap clippers do not work well at all.

This varies by breed. I would never have shaved my coonhounds. My Shih Tzu gets short haircuts in the summer.


Regarding courtesy: if your dog is a barker, especially if he/she is nervous or has separation anxiety, don't leave him or her behind in the T@b without you.

sabel

We have a German Shepherd and she has her own small duffle bag for leaches,  e-collar, bowls, toys and food. She travels and sleeps in a crate in the car. We only take her where she's welcome and there are trails open to her. If we're going to Yellowstone, we camp in the national forest outside the Park. National forests are the best bet.

Mouseketab

I've met many folks that camp in their T@B with large dogs. They do what they need to do to make it work. I agree with the above poster though. Having the dogs along on a "camping" trip is fine, where you are there to hang at the campground, hike, and walk the dogs, but if they are not used to the camper, going on a "sightseeing" trip and leaving them in the camper while gone may not be good.

Verna

Lucky for me, Sunny Day knows I will be back and she rarely barks, and never tears up anything. If she barks, you better pay attention because it is important.  

At Catalina State Park, I gave the camp host a key to the SS because I didn't know how long the tour at the Biosphere would be. He and his wife had three dogs, so they were very accommodating. They told me they looked through the window a couple of times because Sunny made absolutely no noise. She's a good girl. But pay attention if she does bark. 

Vagabonds

Thanks for all the tips everyone!
Verna, thanks for the thorough list...I had not thought about raccoons in water bowls or bears and dog food--new challenges we don't see in a hotel room! 

As for space we do plan to get the pahaque tent before we take them along. They will not sleep more than a few feet from us at night. And we will only take them when we are expecting to be with them 24/7. 

Sabel, thanks for the note about the fact that trails may not be open to dogs--will make sure to check that when planning!

We don't shave our dogs. As jkjenn said it varies by breed. It can also be a touchy subject with dog people--some believe it helps dogs stay cool others do not. Anyway,  I have already bought a vacuum for the T@b with extra good suction! 

ELK

I respectfully disagree about shaving. Beyond the fact that it will ruin their coats, it also makes them more vulnerable to sunburn, bugs...and strange as it may seem...the coat insulates for both heat and cold....given shade and water....!!  I have shelties and collies who both carry more coat than Goldens....and as long as I am sure to brush out the undercoat when it's ready to go...they are fine.

boo said:

Best thing you can do is shave your dogs hair very short.
Taking him/her for a morning poo or wiping his feet on a wet day is not a big problem.
Shaving them keeps them cooler in summer and almost completely eliminates shedding.
We shave our medium size dog throughout the summer.
He slept in the bed with us on our last/first trip in our t@b. No problems.
He is well looked after, regular baths, all shots, flee, tick, etc.

ps: A tip if I may. If you decide to start shaving your dogs yourself, cheap clippers do not work well at all.

ChanW

When winter camping, something I realized with our (medium sized) dog in the Tab, is that the floor is not insulated. He's a floor dog, not allowed on the bed, so for winter camping, sometimes down to 5-below, I have put the extra cushions down for him to lie on when inside the Tab, and will bring a pad for the add-a-room tent for him.

vito

I had no idea people went camping when it was down to 5 below. Are the water and sewer lines in the T@b insulated? Right now I can't really imagine camping in the winter at all. I just picture two people coming into their T@b bundled up with boots, winter coats, gloves, hats, etc. and trying to undress and find a place to put everything, let alone worry about the water lines freezing!

ChanW

Vito, that's when the add a room is essential. A place for all the winter gear... We had our x-country skis, and skates, jackets, boots, hats, and mitts stayed out there.

Cooked outside over the fire.

The Tab's Alde was excellent, no problem keeping the Tab warm.

We had to knock the 3-4" (ok, maybe 1-2") of snow off the roof of the tent in the morning, the rounded tent roof doesn't shed snow too well.



Pipes stayed winterized. We generally used the campground facilities, except for using our toilet at night (#1 only). Flushed with a jug of water, and made sure there was antifreeze in the toilet when we hit the road. The inside of the Tab cools off quick at 50mph.

We had a great time.

I was on the road in March, when the piles of snow in western NY just wouldn't go away, only me and the dog, and that's when I gave him the cushions to sleep on. Used the truck cab for overflow, boots and stuff, til I got to warmer climes. The two of us had enough room that way without the tent.

Vagabonds

ChanW that is inspirational!  Although our weekend trips in the south will not offer that  i would love it! The husband not so much.  

ELK,  those are all the reasons we do NOT shave our goldens. But I understand boo's perspective, having grown up with terriers, considering hot spots. This is always a very opinionated issue in dog world. My biggest concern--is the dog well-cared for, healthy and happy . 

Nomad

The only people I know that camp in the winter are those crazy cross country skiers. Being from the north, I am aware of them. I find it more astounding that southerners actually camp in the 100+ temps with high humidity. To a northerner, that's not crazy, it's insane ;-)

ChanW

PXL, what surprises me are the crazy Canadians, who actually embrace winter, and have campgrounds that are open all winter!

Fancy that! Getting out and enjoying the cold, rather than 'holing up' til the fine weather comes. If only New York state could figure that one out!

Nomad

As I like to say - Us northerners can always put on another layer of clothes to keep warm. You can only take so much off to get cool without being arrested :-)

happyhour

We are new here and actually do not even have our t@b yet. I am reading everything to help learn about this small style camping.  We do have experience with our other larger camper with 4 small dogs... Yes We have 4 dogs, call me crazy... 3 mini wieners and a norwich terrier. Any one who has wiener dogs know they love to bark and when one starts they all go off even at home over nothing. Anyway our first camper we set up camp at home in the camper, us and the dogs. We slept out in it we watched tv in it and just made the dogs feel right at home and special because they even got to sleep with us.  So now they love the camper first problem solved. Next thing is to see if they bark when we leave them? They were pretty good but windows blinds open they watched for us and it eventually lead to some barking, so we left tv on and air on  and shut blinds and they settled good with the homey distractions.
We also have used and plan on using  the large screen room that attaches which gives them outside run around time and feet clean. Another thing we use is a portable roll up electric chicken fence sold by premier1supply  ( we also have chickens but they stay home)  We have not had to electrify it but it is an option, it keeps chickens in and predators out. If you are camping in area with lots of scary predators electrifying may be good thing with some training. It is 100 foot long with step in posts and sets up pretty fast. So we can attach that to the screen room and now they can have freedom while we are there with out running off to see what neighbors are cooking. The other thing we use at home,now don't judge me  we love our dogs they are our children but we use bark collars the pet safe ones. They get a couple of free barks and then a few unpleasant tingles then shut up.... They work !!! and at night they come off for sleep. 
I also have this nifty pet stroller that they LOVE as well as I do... We can fit 3 of them in it with good space to lay down and the 4th dog walks on a leash and they take turns on who walks the leash. We can take them almost anywhere with this, we have crammed them all in there and taken them into restaurants, just throw a baby blanket over it to hide them and the PET ZIP logo and everyone thinks it is a baby. If they get a bit antsy in there I unzip a corner and slip them each a piece of dog food and piece prevails. The stroller pushes incredibly easy it has big wheels and will carry some of your bags if your down town shopping.If you hike it can go there too as long as there are not a lot of logs and big stuff to cross, it even goes up and down steps pretty good.  It is a PET ZIP and I bought it on ebay.
So yes we carry as much stuff as people with kids but it works well and we can go this way. We can not afford to board 4 dogs at about $29.00 per dog per day... YIKES.
 We have a town and country mini van with the stow and go seats. All seats are down and it all fits good with extra space even with all of their cages in there. The dogs travel in cages for safety all tied down and stacked in the middle of the van. If we were ever rear ended they would not be thrown around or hurt. 
So this is how we do it, I do not want to disturb any one elses camping trip with barking unhappy dogs. I hope I will never have a nasty gram on my door when we return to the camper.
Just curious do any of you have a town and country mini van to pull your T@B with ? We are assuming it will be a good match ?

jkjenn

Left to his own devices, Rocky, my Shih Tzu would bark at every sound. I use the Zack George videos to train him and they are fantastic and free.


Also, if I leave Rocky in the T@b I like to leave the fan running and some white noise if possible (TV, radio) to minimize the distractions. I have started introducing the ex-pen to him outside and he like it. It folds flat and is easy to set up.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0A9SpCdRZg


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTmc6fjM_y4

ChanW

We leave the dog food in the TV. Wouldn't want to attract a bear to the Tab... B-)

Pepsi22

I have taken my 11-year old, 65-pound labradoodle several times. She enjoys it. I am mindful of the TN summer temps and choose RV parks with full hookups for AC or vent fan. This past week I took my 3 dogs to Pigeon Forge - the 11-year old labradoodle, 5-month old labradoodle and 17-month old toy schnauzer.  This was a trial run to see how all 3 would do together. Being mid-week and going into the off season, the campground was about half full. I walked them often and we stayed on the same schedule as at home. I left them alone in the TAB for about 3 hours and the 5-month old labradoodle was fine. He was my worry being so young. I keep a Dropcam inside to keep an eye on them. Dropcams are Internet surveillance cameras that have sound and microphone so you can speak to them if things get out of hand while you are gone. You monitor from your Smartphone. Unfortunately, the campground was repairing it's Internet service so they went "unsupervised" for the 3 hours. All went well during our two-night stay. 

Pepsi22

P.S. I placed a thick rubberized mat on the floor so the floor would not get dirty or scratched.

jkjenn

lunafemme said:

She has recently developed an aggression towards airplanes (I call them Pterodactyls) and barks when we stay at my daughter's who lives under a flight path (at least for the 1st couple of hours until she realizes they aren't attacking) and she barks when startled but the t@b is her home so she's comfortable in it.  

There has been a lot of loud noise from heavy machinery on my street since April because they tore up my street and infrastructure and are replacing it (was brick, now asphalt.) I have used the ideas from the 2 videos above OKs the one below and now my dog no longer barks at the noise. The "Look at me" command and teaching him the "quiet" command have been very helpful in modifying Rocky's behavior.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTPkqOwPoA0

Photomom

We've never taken Max tent camping because of barking - he'd alert to every little sound and smell outside. I hope to be able to take him in the T@B sometimes, partly because his boarding kennel is $45 a day but also because we want to spend time with him. He's half beagle and half Australian shepherd and barks loudly enough for two dogs. (At least nobody will ever sneak up on us.) Thanks for the videos, we're working with him and hopefully will make some progress over the winter!

lara9209

How did it go with the dogs?  We are gearing up to take our two English Setters in iur new T@b

jkjenn

Photomom said:

We've never taken Max tent camping because of barking - he'd alert to every little sound and smell outside. I hope to be able to take him in the T@B sometimes, partly because his boarding kennel is $45 a day but also because we want to spend time with him. He's half beagle and half Australian shepherd and barks loudly enough for two dogs. (At least nobody will ever sneak up on us.) Thanks for the videos, we're working with him and hopefully will make some progress over the winter!

I love how his videos give you transferrable commands/skills for your dog. I taught my dog "leave it alone" when he was young to teach him to stop chewing things that were not allowed and it has worked for teaching him not to beg, and other impulse control related commands, like, "stay." He does quite well at home, I need to work on his obedience in other locations, though. Once you step outside, it's a whole new world and you have to back the learning up a little. My dog loves working on training, too, which helps.

Nomad

Don't have a dog but get visitors...The camp host...
Couldn't keep her out of the T@B...

jkjenn

PXLated said:

Don't have a dog but get visitors...The camp host...
Couldn't keep her out of the T@B...

Reminds me of a certain dog I know.

Nomad

Ya - My dad had one and the camp host was an identical twin :-)

libertyo

Yes, he takes up a lot of space, but just look how comfy he is!   Only 2 short trips so far, still learning how to organize.   Having a short hair dog helps.  Washable cotton comforter.  I've left him waiting in the car in cool weather, but don't think I'd leave him in the trailer.