Taking a dog on a backpack sheep hunt

[Iron Glove]

I'd chat with a decent Vet and Breeder to get their thoughts on weight carrying at that age.
No point in buggering up something at that early age.
Like the idea of the dehydrated raw food - our dogs are 100% raw and we use the dehydrated stuff as back up or if camping / away from refrigeration.
It's pretty light as you know so who knows, a few days worth of that might be easily on the dog to pack.

[Big Lew]

I would take him on hikes in moderate territory first so that he learns about the drop-offs
and how to handle steep terrain before going into the extreme situations, especially if he is
going to be wearing a loaded and bulky pack.
I have taken several dogs along with me into the rugged mountains with few problems, but
have had others bring along inexperienced dogs which got into trouble. It can result in serious
injury or death, and usually is quite difficult to retrieve them if they've slid or fallen off an edge.
My current lad, at 18 months and 80 lbs, had no problems in handling a bulky but fairly light pack
when on a 4 hour hike.

[albravo2]

at 10 months I would be concerned about obedience. some puppies are well trained but i can't say any of mine have been that obedient at that age.

i'd ask a vet about the knees/hips question. i think that is a very valid concern.

[BRvalley]

at 10 month's I would only expect him to pack his own food...not over burden him with loads of water/gear, I'd rather be cautious on his joints

I know I wouldn't trust my dog to not blow a stalk, and that's my "fault" for how I've trained him otherwise, if I was hunting with a partner I'd have no problem bringing him...I do hope to hunt solo with my dog someday, but I know I need to work with him before I get to that point

it sounds like you will have ample time to train him, so make that judgement call when the day arrives

[swampthing]

The poodle certainly looks out of place but a good dog is a good dog! I spend a lot of time solo and have wanted to take my lab but he just wont hold steady enough when I need him to.

[NORTHERN HUNTER]

I took my yellow lab on a sheep hunt two seasons ago... She was a bit wound up (she was only 2) but was well trained at the time and packed all over her own dog food for the 8 days we went.

What I found was that when it came time to creep up to a ridge top or when I did stalk a ram she was MORE than happy to lay down and stay put, mostly out of pure exhaustion than obedience im sure. There were 2 occasions where we had her lay down with the backpacks while me and a buddy checked some things out, both times were gone over 3 hours in length and both times she hadn't moved an inch from where we left her.

I would post post some pics but they are on my other device.

Chris

[bruin]

I took my 2 year old choc lab guiding this year. He made it through 2 sheep hunts packing 10% most of the time and occasionally 20-30 lbs off kills. It was suggested to me to wait till 2 years for packing weight for proper joint and bone formation. He lost weight quite rapidly (high energy dog) so pack LOTS of food.
It was an absolute BLAST having a dog in the mountains! Enjoy!

[BromBones]

I started training my dog for mountain hunts 5 years ago and he's been hunting with me ever since. I never go without him.

I'll pm you when I have some time with a few things I've learned over the years.

[325]

The poodle certainly looks out of place but a good dog is a good dog! I spend a lot of time solo and have wanted to take my lab but he just wont hold steady enough when I need him to.

Yeah, I bet I'm the only sheep hunter in BC whose trail dog is a poodle! She has been awesome on my hunting trips, though. She is extremely obedient, and doesn't chase game (other than bears). In fact, two years ago, she sat quietly beside me as a bull elk was screaming and crashing around about 25 yards away. We've also sat together on a mountain side with sheep no more than 30 yards away, and didn't make a peep, or move, although her heart was pounding (my hand was on her chest). EXTREMELY good impulse control.

[Sofa King]

The poodle certainly looks out of place but a good dog is a good dog! I spend a lot of time solo and have wanted to take my lab but he just wont hold steady enough when I need him to.

standard poodle, one of the smartest dogs out there.