[pct-l] Hiking the trail with your dog

[dae151 at psu.edu (DANIEL ALAN ERDMAN)]

Sorry this response is late.  If the issue is dead then ignore it.  Sure PCT
dogs are house dogs, but then again PCT people are house people.  Hiking 2700
miles is as strenuous on a human as a dog.  Then again, only certain people can
and will hike the PCT.  Only certain dogs can and will hike the PCT.  It is the
owner's responsibility to know if their dog is that kind.  To make a
generalization that it is cruel to hike the PCT with your dog or that all dogs
cant handle the PCT is very irresponsible.  To me that is the same as saying
all people cant handle the PCT.  Ive owned two dogs, one that would make a PCT
hike and enjoy every mile and another that could not have.  I know because i
know my dogs.  

dan

On Fri, 12 Mar 2004 12:23:13 +0000, "yogi yogi" wrote:

> Sorry Dave, but you're not getting it.  To make a statement comparing PCT 
> dogs to Iditarod dogs is laughable.  You're comparing apples to oranges.
> 
> The dogs on the PCT are not the Indian dogs you saw hiking 18 miles in 
> blazing heat.  The dogs on the PCT are not Iditarod dogs.  PCT dogs live in 
> people's houses.  They are pets.  They run around at the park on the 
> weekends.  The dog owners think the PCT would be a fun adventure (which it 
> is), and they selfishly force their dogs to come along.  It's not about the 
> dog hiking the PCT.  It's about the person who forces the dog to hike the 
> PCT.  The dog doesn't have a choice.
> 
> I have never seen a dog on the PCT who even slightly appeared to enjoy 
> hiking with a dog pack.  Sometimes at breaks, the PCT dogs bark and wag 
> their tails.  Sure, they'll chase a thrown stick, because that's what 
> they've always done.  But as soon as you put that pack on, and they 
> instantly adopt a stance that any fool can see as the dog saying, "come on, 
> man, don't make me do this again."
> 
> Horses, burros, mules, llamas, goats???  Perhaps you could start a new 
> thread.  The topic of this thread is dogs.
> 
> I usually don't jump into these threads which are reborn every few months.  
> The two sides to this issue will never agree.  It just seems to me that 
> those of us who feel that dogs shouldn't be forced to hike the PCT care more 
> about the well-being of the dogs than the dog owners do.
> 
> And that is all.
> 
> yogi
> 
> ----------------------------------
> Sorry Yogi, but you are being dogmatic on this. To make a blanket statement
> that ALL dogs don't want to hike just doesn't make sense. I've seen Indian 
> dogs
> GLADLY hike 18 miles in the blazing heat. No one forced them to. Some people
> have mentioned the Iditirod dogs
> How does one know whether horses want to hike. Or burros or mules or llamas
> or goats.
>    I don't own a dog. Some dogs are a real pain on the trail. Some aren't.
> Kind of like people. Some dogs shouldn't be on the trail because they aren't
> trail wise when it comes to coyotes and rattle snakes. Some people shouldn't 
> be
> on the trail. I thought some people would finally "get it" when they 
> suffered
> terrible blisters and decide that different footwear just might be the 
> answer.
> But they don't. They just assume whatever they are suffering from is the 
> norm
> and nothing can be done about it except toughing it out. A dog will refuse 
> to
> hike if he has such foot ailments. Therefore I must conclude that some dogs
> are smarter than some people. They KNOW when to let it go and say enough is
> enough
>    David C
> 
> _________________________________________________________________
> Learn how to help protect your privacy and prevent fraud online at Tech 
> Hacks & Scams. http://special.msn.com/msnbc/techsafety.armx
> 
> _______________________________________________
> pct-l mailing list
> pct-l@mailman.backcountry.net
> unsubscribe or change options:
> http://mailman.hack.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
> 
>