Caching With The Furkids

[+Rdut&Gabwp]

How many of you take your furkids (dogs) caching with you? What do you do in advance for this activity? How do they do with the caching? We have two corgis that I would like to take caching with us, but I don't know if they will need any special equipment. They are both UTD on shots, flea and heartworm prevention. They are both in decent shape. I would pack a doggie first aid kit for them and water. And, of course, they would be on leashes. Which, brings up another question. What type of leash do you folks use? I have the standard 6' leash, and then 2 retractible leashes for them.

 

Gabwp

[+sbell111]

Bring lots of water; more than you think they'll need.

 

As for leashes, I used to use a heavy-duty retractible, but once when I was signing a log, Darby the Wonder Pup wrapped it around a sapling and broke loose. Within a few seconds, she had quitely snapped the lead and was gone. It took me a couple of sweaty hours before my wet and happy pooch returned on her own. She's pretty well trained, but looses it all when she sees something furry (or fishy) to be chased. I now use the strongest nine foot lead I could find.

[+Miragee]

Lots of people take their dogs with them. They have an advantage over those of us without "furkids" because the dogs sometimes find the container.

 

There have been some recent threads about dogs and geocaching. If you do a Forum search you'll get lots of info, and see pictures of other's dogs.

[+Rdut&Gabwp]

Wow! Didn't think about that with the retractibles. Okay, no retractibles for my two evil furkids. I might look at getting longer leashes though. 6' seems kind of short when hiking/bushwhacking with these two monsters. I'm glad you found your dog. That had to have been a horrible time until she found you.

 

Gabwp

[+WhatsRNutts]

I have one 6 month old lab that goes with me....she can't sniff out tupperware yet. I use a retractable leash sometimes...most of the time she is off the leash. I'm thinking about getting a standard 6ft one though.

[+Rdut&Gabwp]

What a cutie! No problems with the furkids hurting their feet?

[+sbell111]

What a cutie! No problems with the furkids hurting their feet?

I've never had a problem with it. Generally, however, I only bring her to caches that are in parks or involve a nice hike. Therefore, she isn't subjected to caches hidden in fields of broken rock or urban areas.

[+Rdut&Gabwp]

Oh, that would make sense. I'm assuming that there is a icon for pet friendly caches now? I would take my two monsters on a easy one first anyway, just to see how they react to it. The girl had knee surgery almost 3 years ago, so no majorly hard ones for her.

[+WhatsRNutts]

I live in the city. all the caches I have done are in the city. Well, except for the one I did yesterday at an old abandoned zoo/amusment park... being west texas, the only thing I have to worry about is cactus. she does well and when we get home I do a really thorough check for any needles or stickers.

 

edited for spelling...its monday and I had to go to work WAY to early! lol

Edited August 15, 2005 by wreckelite

[+TheAlabamaRambler]

As pet owner and an old coon and deer hunter, I can tell you that interacting with dogs in the woods is a great experience!

 

I can also tell you that it's a major PITA if you expect to make any time at all, because no matter which side of the tree you choose to pass on, the dog is gonna choose the other!

 

Plan LOTS of extra time on your hunts, because your dog's mission is anything but get to the cache and get back!

 

If your dog is not trained to return on command, you are going to lose him. If your dog runs off dragging his leash, it's likely to hang in brush and kill him.

 

And, [Pet Peeve Alert]Please don't share your beloved dog with us at events and campouts! That you love him for snagging food off tables and barking all night, that you might enjoy hollering at and chasing an unresponsive dog, does not mean that WE enjoy it![/Pet Peeve Alert]

["Paws"itraction]

I've found a 6 foot leather leash works extremely well. The 6' leash is long enough for Kai to wander around a bit, but short enough that he doesn't get himself tangled too badly around the underbrush. And the leather is dang near indestructable.

 

And, [Pet Peeve Alert]Please don't share your beloved dog with us at events and campouts! That you love him for snagging food off tables and barking all night, that you might enjoy hollering at and chasing an unresponsive dog, does not mean that WE enjoy it![/Pet Peeve Alert]

I'm assuming this is just to the pet owners who think that disciplining a dog is for the birds and likes to have their Itty-Witty-Wootsy-Bootsy-Puppy-Dog with them everywhere and not to those of us who've trained our Caching Canine to behave in crowds, not to bark, and definitely not to table- or counter-surf?

Kai goes with us to Cache Events (unless they're at a restaurant) and we've had nothing but compliments about how well-behaved he was. Well, except for the one woman whose dog insisted on racing right up and jamming its nose in Kai's face (and in his dangly bits) every fricking time it was anywhere close. She wasn't real happy when Kai took to growling at this dog to back off after about 3 rounds of RAMMING SPEED! (Which she thought was FUNNY, by the way) - so yeah, she could've left good old RS home, wouldn't'a broken MY heart.

[+dogbreathcanada]

I cache with my dog. I'd rather be gutshot than cache with a furkid.

[tinkernoonoo]

I cache with my dog. I'd rather be gutshot than cache with a furkid.

Yeah, really. "Furkid" makes me think of some guy in a fox costume yiffing in a furpile and philosophizing about the conflict between his human and "otherkin" selves. Not that there's anything wrong with that!

[+tabulator32]

That DID make me think of that hairy kid in the Guiness book of world records. Remember him? Wolf boy kinda guy?

 

I'll bet HE would like geocaching!

[+sept1c_tank]

I've heard mtn-man keeps puppymonster on a real short leash.

 

 

Edited August 15, 2005 by sept1c_tank

[+soreyes]

I use a regular length? leash with the Geomonster. I have knots tied into it at various stages so that I can shorten it up when needed.

I keep a caribiner on the loop end so that I can hook it around itself to a tree or like. I usually have him tied up while I do the actual searching within 20 feet. It makes it a lot easier to log the find in peace as well.

I recently picked up an Easy Walk harness to cut down on the pulling. That can be critical when headed down a steep trail. It seemed to work out better than the gentle leader for both of us.

The dog is a great cover for geocaching.

 

BTW, I would never cache with a Furkid. I would think they would have trouble with burrs matted in the costumes.

Edited August 15, 2005 by soreyes

[+Corp Of Discovery]

I've heard mtn-man keeps puppymonster on a real short leash.

<snipped picture>

 

Don't you have that backwards?

[+sept1c_tank]

Sometimes, my dyslexic tendencies confuse me.

[hide & seekers]

My German Shepherd is with me on almost all cache finds. I will only use a 6-ft leather leash. Those retractable ones can break (never used one but seen it happen) and I hate the feel of the nylon ones. The leather ones last forever too! Never thought about shots, but she's always up-to-date anyways. I just check her for ticks after walking through tall grassy areas. I recently got her a doggie backpack so she can carry trade items and her own water. Nothing we've done so far has required excessive hiking or climbing so that's no problem.

[+sept1c_tank]

...I recently got her a doggie backpack so she can carry trade items and her own water.

You make that poor dog carry your trade items, or does she do the trading in the family?

[+Camo-crazed]

I wonder, if you fed a dog out of a tupperware container or an ammo box, and gave the dog a treat when he/she found a cache, would that make them more likely to find it for you, or just fatter?

[+SuzyQhoo]

And, [Pet Peeve Alert]Please don't share your beloved dog with us at events and campouts! That you love him for snagging food off tables and barking all night, that you might enjoy hollering at and chasing an unresponsive dog, does not mean that WE enjoy it![/Pet Peeve Alert]

Very funny TAR! Can I post a KID PEEVE for the Events too? I'll bet MaceyBB is more well behaved than most children under the age of 10 these days! Haa haa! She did go to Puppy Kindergarten and Obedience School and graduate after all!

 

In all seriousness, my English Bulldog, MaceyBB, caches with my friends and me when the weather is cool enough. She enjoys both urban and rural caching. Heck, she just enjoys going! Whenever she sees the caching gear and her harness come out she goes nuts!

 

I have used a 4 foot, rugged leash for 5 years with no problems. Macey's instructors were not fond of the leashes that let out and retract (me either). I also use a harness on her when caching instead of a regular collar...she can't slip out of the harness. She also has a doggie backpack, but she's only used it once.

 

Macey has never had any cuts on her pads. Really her only problem was one day when we first started caching, we went to a local state park and I picked off about 15 ticks...this with her on Frontline Plus! I do keep doggie first aid supplies in the car though...and as someone posted earlier, PLENTY of water and those collapsible bowls...she drinks alot and sloshes it everywhere!

 

She has logged over 100 finds! Haa haa!

 

Happy Caching to you and yours!

 

SuzyQhoo & MaceyBB

[+Smukke]

Lakrids, the amazing Geo-Pet, goes with me most of the time on a 6-foot leash. Once we are away from civilization (e.g., out on a trail somewhere deep in the woods), I usually drop the leash so I can concentrate on looking for the cache rather than trying to keep her from tying herself to a tree. She's good off-leash unless she sees other humans, in which case she just can't stand it that they don't run over and pet her.

 

She has found one cache that I almost stepped over. This once she just sat there while I walked off, looking at me like, "Isn't this what we were looking for?" Usually, she is more interested in the squirrel smells, lizards, ducks, or whatever else is moving in the woods.

 

One note: If you do take your dog in the woods with you, and it's a typically urban animal, make sure it is prepared for ticks. That is, put the tick goo on the dog a couple of days before you go out. <-- (advice I wish I had given myself a few weeks ago when the dog & I met up with our first ticks.)

[hide & seekers]

...I recently got her a doggie backpack so she can carry trade items and her own water.

You make that poor dog carry your trade items, or does she do the trading in the family?

I must confess, it's my trade items! But at nearly 80lbs, I think she can handle carrying a few things, especially her own cookies!

 

Here she is modeling her backpack with a travel bug inside.