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Take while caching?


kazan182

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Hello all....

 

I am new to caching, just starting after picking up a PN-40. Only 4 finds...

 

I just went through numerous posts about suggestions on what to take while caching but had

two questions.

 

One being taking my puppy. He is a year old GSD and does well both on and off leash. I have a 30'

retractable leash I use when I take him caching. If I get near sticker bushes, etc. I simply tie him

to a nearby tree and he waits for me with no problems. Some folks say never to take the dog in the woods.

I take him to socialize him with others (people and pets) and to get him out for the exercise. How do

most people with dogs feel about this? Do you take your dog? Does taking your dog depend upon the

info from gc.com on the cache?

 

Next is the two way radio thing. I have an FRS/GMRS (yes, i am licensed) portable. I remember reading

cachers used FRS Ch 2 so I have starting taking it with me. How may other people bring radios? Do you

ever chat with anyone else caching? Trying to find out if it's worth carrying. It's small but why if I am not

going to use. I carry a cell phone and I have a PLB I can take if think I am going anywhere it maybe useful

(most caches probably not since most are probably in an urban environment).

 

Thanks...

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Next is the two way radio thing. I have an FRS/GMRS (yes, i am licensed) portable. I remember reading

cachers used FRS Ch 2 so I have starting taking it with me. How may other people bring radios? Do you

ever chat with anyone else caching? Trying to find out if it's worth carrying. It's small but why if I am not

going to use. I carry a cell phone and I have a PLB I can take if think I am going anywhere it maybe useful

(most caches probably not since most are probably in an urban environment).

Leave the radio at home, unless you're going with a group, and have planned ahead of time to use radios. The percentage of cachers who carry them and have them on, is very, very small. The chance that two of them will happen to be in the same place at the same time is ridiculously small.

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I carry a radio, but it's my Fire Department Radio. I only talk on it if we're doing search and rescue. As for the dog...My dog loves to be out in the woods. The only problem is she's a beagle and she just wants to keep going and going and going and going and going and going and going and.........

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My wife and I go with 3 count it 3 weimaraners. Make sure to have all your rabies and vaccination tags that your state requires and most of the time on leash very rarely will you find a park that will allow off lead. Like state forests do that should be fine i usually keep mine on leashes because they are hunting dogs and they get pretty birdie while in the woods.

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I try to plan my cache trips around caches my dogs can go on. My dogs are my favorite cache partners.

 

You do need to be sure your dog is not running wild. There are places where the dogs can run of leash (remote forest service roads, or trails.) However, be sure they will respond to verbal command and are not inclined to bother the wild life.

 

I also take my dogs to the side of the trail when meeting horses, or bicycles. They don't bark at or bother either, but the people you meet on the trail don't know your dogs, and do appreciate the little extra consideration.

 

As for the radio, I think about taking one, but never remember too.

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I also take my golden retriever with me when I cache. We live in Sacramento and hike all along the river and the foothills. The 2 biggest concerns I have for her are stickers and ticks. She has long golden hair and just gets tons of stickers in her paws, legs, and belly. This is also a problem for the ticks, unless they are large enough to see right away.

 

Make sure to check your dog whenever you leave a bushy area and before you get in your car and when you get home and the next day. I use the flea and tick ointment on her but have still found a tick or two on her a couple of days later. Because of this, it is a good idea to have a tick puller in your bag not only for the dog but yourself.

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I take my dog (8 month GSD) with me almost all the time!! He responds very well to commands, but is still playful and likes to run around so I keep on leash most of the time. He has been through several training courses and I have even begun to teach him to play a game called "Find the Cache" he is doing very well. As it warms up we will start playing outside. He had found two caches in the wild by himself in the past. Also no one will mess with you if you have a GSD at your side. See my gallery for pictures of him.

 

StaticTank

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I carry a radio, but it's my Fire Department Radio. I only talk on it if we're doing search and rescue. As for the dog...My dog loves to be out in the woods. The only problem is she's a beagle and she just wants to keep going and going and going and going and going and going and going and.........

 

:laughing: I know what you mean about beagles. See the leash? She cannot be trusted without it!

 

2196868860103331371S500x500Q85.jpg

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Hello all....

 

I am new to caching, just starting after picking up a PN-40. Only 4 finds...

 

I just went through numerous posts about suggestions on what to take while caching but had

two questions.

 

One being taking my puppy.

 

My opinion? I hate picking ticks off my dog after a wander in the woods. Your mileage may vary.

 

 

Next is the two way radio thing.

Thanks...

 

These are great if you left your wife in the car and need to talk to her 200 feet away. Otherwise, they have very limited range and a cell phone is FAR superior.

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If you can, take the dog!! We would love to take our two with us, but there are very few areas where we live that it is possible/safe. :)

 

As for radios, here in NZ you can use limited range/limited frequency 'walkie-talkie' type radios without a licence, so depending where we are, PB and I will both carry ours. We can really only talk to each other on them though - if one of us is back at the vehicle or a bit further along the trail or what ever - it can be quite helpful.

 

It could be fun being able to talk with other cachers, but it sounds like the chances are slim for you to be able to talk to anyone. :P

 

Annie

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I take my dog, an Australian Shepherd, on as many caches as I can. Sometimes, he helps by giving me an excuse to be in the area (ie micros in parks), and the rest of the time he's just a great hiking buddy. We vaccinate for Lyme Disease anually, as we live bordering woods, and he has a pack to carry his own water. (Make sure that you work up to this and never to have your dog carry too much.) Also, its nice because he's great at tracking so when we have found a cache, we turn the gpsr off, and between the two of us, we can find our way back. :)

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Just my 2 cents. I do not take a dog caching,but maybe a good idea would be to take a small can of pepper spray(if legal) especially if you tie her/him up and leave her/him alone. just in case your dog encounters a wild animal or stray dog. It shouldn't permanently harm your dog and could quickly break up a situation that could lead to serious injury or worse to your pet or yourself. Just my 2 cents.

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I bring Maggie with me all the time. Everytime I find a cache, I let her sniff at it and get her excited about it. Hopefully she will get the idea that she should be hunting for them and signal me if she finds them. So far, she sucks at it. I found one buried under pine needles and she actually stepped on it and kept walking. She even had her nose to the ground, sniffing away. Useless mutt.

 

I have a 2-way radio, but was unaware of a "geocaching" channel. I'll have to do a forum search for that. I wouldn't mind meeting new people that way. Sounds like fun.

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I take my dog ( 3 year old border collie) whenever I can. I keep him on a leash most of the time unless there's a chance to go swimming. There's even a dogs only cache near me filled with dog swag.

I take my beagle with me for protection :laughing: and companionship since I hike alone a lot. I'm actually more afraid of the weirdos I meet on trails than bears or cougars, and carry bear spray all the time. He's an unusual beagle because he can be very aggressive if threatened. He also has a built in GPS system which points him to all balls, and an automatic tracking system that allows him to "find the car" where ever we are.

 

Yesterday while hiking in a remote area of Vancouver Island I came across a massive stray Great Dane. Weirdest thing ever to see this dog way out in the middle of nowhere. Tracked her for 30 minutes before I could convince her to get near me, she was obviously terrified. Then, once I got her back to my car, I had the dilemma of what to do next? There were no cars driving by, it was getting dark, all I knew was there was a campground a couple miles away and a coffee shop a few miles the other way. Of course, the dog had NO ID, just an electric shock collar. Can't believe people do that. Always have your phone/cell number on your dog's collar!

 

The dog solved the problem by hopping into the back seat of my tiny Mazda 3 (had to open the side window so she could stick her head out, otherwise she was too big.) My beagle was NOT IMPRESSED but knew she was way to big to take on. I headed to the coffee shop thinking they would know who owned the dog and came across a woman walking her dog. She was flabbergasted that the dog had escaped her neighbour's electrified fence. She relieved me of the massive canine and off I drove, feeling so glad I wasn't the owner panicking over a lost dog.

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