Good "camping" breeds?

vanillasugar

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#1
So one of the things Matt really wants to stress in future dogs is that they be good "camping" dogs. Dogs who (with training of course) can be reliable off leash, want to hike, swim, canoe, etc. It's something we want to do more of, and Sierra would NOT be suited to join us on any serious trips, which bums us both out :(

I have a few breeds in mind that might be more suited for this, but thought I would throw it out to you guys to see what you think :)
 

Zoom

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#2
Sawyer makes an awesome camping buddy. Stays close, great recall, enough protectiveness to alert if someone/something comes up to the camp after dark.
 

Sunnypup

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#3
Both of my guys are champs at it.
Sunny is an aussie (zoom calls him the "un aussie" cuz his coloring/fur is wrong)
Stormy is a GSD/Husky mix
I imagine any dog that isn't a hound could fit those qualifications, and even a hound could be trained on a looooong lead. It's just a training process with any dog.
For my two their recall is stellar on trails because they aren't on "home turf". They feel the need to protect me so they stay close. Normally they are "good" but on our camping trips they rock my socks with how quick they are.

I would assume a border collie would do pretty well, and a JRT if properly trained or maybe with a long lead. Any assortment of mixes could do the trick. I've seen people backpacking with anywhere from Irish wolfhounds to cocker spaniels . :) Good luck. It's a lot of fun . It's the best exercise for all of us. By the end of the trail the dogs are so worn out by the new smells and the long walk they sleep hard. :)
 

CaliTerp07

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#4
We took our lab camping with us once in a while when we were growing up. He was older by the time I can remember it, but he liked to be outside and explore with us.
 

FoxyWench

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#6
i was gonna say lol
ANY breed can be a good camping/activty breed.
heck the cresties whent on their first camping weekend and did absoutly great and loved it! i just had to make sure i sun screened them lol.

i think though for what your describing
id say most likley a medium/small breed, with a great energy level that will take on anything without hesitation.
the only reason i say small-medium breed is
1: ease of travel
2: ease of camping, remember you want to share your tent with a dog the size of a small pony, your going to need a bigger tent lol.
3: some campsites are putting restrictions on dogs on site.
4: a dog the size of a small pony wont fit in the canoe

*as a side note, if going camping in actual camp grounds/parks be sure to not only check if your dog is allowed but check the leash laws, thanks to some people in the world rules about off leash dogs and even acess to camp grounds have changed making camping with dogs something that needs to be prior reaserched in many places.

id think many of the terriers would work well, however id be warey about offleash recall in the "wilds" of some terriers.
mabe some of the hearding breeds too, again they have the energy and drive to spend a day hiking and most are willing to try anything.
spaniels do well in the feild too!
 
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#7
Any breed realisticly can do fine camping. a good trained dog comes in any breed.

Blaze is a amazing camping/cottage dog. he goeson 3-5 camping trips a year and 3-5 cottage trips a year (we have a camping and cottage trip coming up at the end of a month) Blaze is a dog who is fine with change. We took him boating and canoeing for the first time last year, he did amazing. he is perfect offleash, but most camping places they need to be leashed any way, unless you are outback camping way up north (OP will know what Im talking about) which is what I assume your talking about? We just stick to "real" campgrounds. I tend to find ones that are very dog friendly, they have dog beachs and dog parks in them (bon echo is amazing for this)
 

bubbatd

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#8
Any breed that is a " family dog " enjoys it . They basically want to be with you .
 

Pops2

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#9
i have to strongly disagree w/ tankstar.
when thinking in terms of breed you have to think of the behavior of the majority not the exceptions. for this reason i would caution against sighthounds, scenthounds, terriers, feists & some lines of cur bred strictly for hunting. if these types of dogs are high on your want list then look for individuals from show lines w/ severely impaired hunting drives and a slightly clingy nature.
 

Romy

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#10
Wirehaired pointing griffons would be great for what you want.

They have tremendous all day staying power when you're out hiking/hunting, and when you're not they are pretty content with an hour or two romp or day long access to a large yard, and happy to settle down in the house.

This is very unlike most other pointers. GSP and GWP have endless energy, no off switch whatsoever. The brittany spaniels I have met were the same way.

Also, some of the gun dogs were bred to work far afield, flushing and pointing game. WHPGs are a close working breed. Charlie has taken very little recall training to become reliable. It's bizarre, but out in the pasture/fields/woods it is like he is on an invisible line. He will trail out to the end of it, about 50-60 feet out, and then come zooming back to check in with us every 5-10 minutes. This is how they are bred to work, if you read the french working standard. They are rare enough that it is easy to find a good working bred WHPG with correct style in the field.

They are also cool to hike with, because they point naturally and creep as close as possible to the bird without scaring it away. Charlie points quail and grouse that we would normally walk past, so we see more wildlife with him around.

They do very well in all kinds of terrain. They have huge rubbery feet to keep them from sinking in deep mud and the perfect coat for traveling through brush and stickers. Charlie is WAY strong. Robert tires him out by throwing branches down a 25 foot waterfall near our house. He runs down a near vertical slope, grabs it, and runs back up again. His muscles are awesome.

They are smart, durfy, and extremely handler focused.

Another big bonus, is dog aggression of all sorts, including same sex aggression, is unheard of. Out of the 12 breeders we contacted, every single one said that it does not exist within the breed. That was a huge factor for us getting one.
 

happyhound

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#11
GSPs definitely do have an off switch and many people on the GSP board I go to both camp/hike with their dogs.

If you were interested in a GSP, find a breeder that breeds a closer working calmer dog. One of mine could run all day non stop (that is no exaggeration -- she is heavily field trial bred) and the other is content to sleep in bed all day and then turn it up a notch when we go places.

I think you could find what you want within any breed as long as you commit to the necessary training to make it a great camping dog. But GSPs definitely do love the outdoors and the short coat is convenient after walking through thick prickly cover. Mine love the water, too.
 
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#12
the german shepherd i have and the gsd mix we had, they just KNOW how to be off leash. Yes they require training. But I have never trained chance really in off leash but he KNEW not to run away. I have noticed that a lot about gsd's. they stay close to their owner.

I went camping couple years back before I had chance. Brought out gsd mix that the ex has now. The ppl we were with lost their golden, she wandered off with another guys old dog. We brought moose and we searched for miles. When we both became too tired to walk, my ex picked us up on the quad and moose jumped right on and rode back. he was bulletproof that dog.
 

Maxy24

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#13
Boxers always struck me as good camping dogs, good activity level, nice medium size but I don't know what their prey drive is like.
 

Dekka

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#14
You want Dekka :D :D... She is a fantastic camping dog, stays close, loves the canoe, loves swimming all in a neat compact and easily portable size!!! But I don't know where you would find another one.

Surprisingly whippets would be good. Yes many love to chase things... but they are VERY strongly bonded to their people, after the race is over most dash back to their 'mom' or 'dad' and can walk back off leash no prob. Though they don't like swimming.

Most herding breeds would be good as they are biddable and like to stay pretty close. Though they could be a bit rowdy if you were going on a canoe trip (esp when they are young)

Don't count out Sierra yet. It might take till she is a bit older but I bet you will get there with her!!
 
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#15
i have to strongly disagree w/ tankstar.
when thinking in terms of breed you have to think of the behavior of the majority not the exceptions. for this reason i would caution against sighthounds, scenthounds, terriers, feists & some lines of cur bred strictly for hunting. if these types of dogs are high on your want list then look for individuals from show lines w/ severely impaired hunting drives and a slightly clingy nature.

And I would have to disagree with you. I know many scent and sighthounds who are amazing and perfect offleash. and aroun small animals.
 

Pops2

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#16
and i know just as many if not more that have absolutely zero recall once they start a track or a run. most of these dogs, mine included, are extremely good handling off leash at the house and the occasional dog park. however as soon as they hit the woods they are all business and the presence of game will cause selective deafness. while this is more true of huntbred dogs it does happen w/ shocking frequency among showbred hunting breeds. for example, their is a show dale breeder up the road from me who averages one return per litter that must be carefully rehomed because of an extremely high hunt drive. if she bred more than once every couple of years this could be a real issue for her. fortunately for her there are plenty of dog hunters in the area and she knows many.
i'll say it again hunting breeds (dogs that actually have to find & catch the game) as a whole are not the best choice for this sort of activity. if one must choose a hunting breed for this, look long and hard for dogs bred heavily away from hunting for the best chance of success.
honestly how many is many to you? i'll be around 150-200 bear & deer hounds from oct-dec. terriers, curs, feists & longdogs much less about 1/2 -2 dozen of each all year. of all these dogs only the curs have a high percentage of good recall off a track. out of the other maybe 5 total would be what the OP wants. none of this is counting the neighborhood dogs. counting those would add about another dozen each beagles, JRTs & other terriers. of these only two beagles & one JRT have good off leash recall when there is a squirrel or cat around. thats what i'm seeing right now and it's been over 30 years since i went on my first dog hunt, so i'm pretty sure i've got a good handle on what hunting breeds AS A WHOLE are like.
 

RD

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#17
A lot of herding breeds do well off-lead. My BC usually keeps her eye on me and makes an effort to stay within sight of me.
 

drmom777

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#19
I grew up with parents that were nature photographers and may have spent more time tent camping than not. Whe we finally got a dog it was an unlikely choice, a Scottie. But Bessie turned out to be a terrific camper.

I would have to say that for extensive camping trips, the most important thing is size and hiking ability. This dog would have to spend a lot of time in the car, so portability is essential. Not knowing for sure, I would think something like a Corgi would be just about perfect. Small enough for portability, but sturdy enough for long hikes, and with a good all weather coat.

I had another, much grouchier Scotsman later, Ahoj, who also was a champion camper. The sturdiness and size more than made up for the feisty disporition.

And on an unfortunate sidenote, in the USyou need to avoid anything that could even be mistaken as a pittie, because many states ban them in parks and campgrounds.
 

Tenebrion

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#20
i would say a ridgeback would be a great dog off leash, but i know.. brute's one concern when we go anywhere in the wild is to protect me from every pebble.. leaf and piece of dirt that falls.

Seriously though, he's wonderful with little to no off leash training, from what i've noticed with being around him and some of his family and a friend who's owned them the better part of his life. They are extremely protective and will stand by their person's/families side.

Don't get scared if they happen to take a few steps ahead and stop, I've never had a time where he went anywhere he couldn't see me, and i couldn't see him. I somewhat felt like i had a secret service detail. Made going to the bathroom rather... odd.

With all the protection, it is nice to just sit down somewhere and toss a stick so he gets to run around all wild like for a bit.
 

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