Camping with dogs

[ChickensHaveNoEyebrows]

I'm considering it. Is that totally mad? How hard is it? We've put the tent up in the garden and the DC are sleeping out tonight. I'm considering slinging the dogs out there, too, just to see if they settle.

Thanks Officelady, that's really encouraging...just need another patch of dry weather and we'll go for it!

If you have a sewn in groundsheet and the dog is zipped in with you at night surely they can't escape unless someone unzips the tent?

My dogs are sighthounds so short haired I worry that they'd be cold at night (although like the idea of them keeping me warm).

PareyMortas - we dont crate our dogs. ever. even when alone in tent.

oops. that should say totally unaggressive! we've never crated our dog either. He has been known to push at the zips and squeeze his way out of the tent, but I think only when there has been a gap to start with.

Our dogs just sleep on their beds in the tent and camp in dog friendly areas. They love it!

We have a sewn-in groundsheet and our dog can open a zip if she is determined! The only way to prevent her doing so would be to secure the zip further using a tie or even a small padlock but I'm not going to do that in a tent in case of us needing to get out in an emergency - we do sometime "lock-up" from outside if we're going out for the day. She has never actually escaped from the tent by the way, but we will not leave her unattended in case she did. She's the kind of dog that would run off, find a new family to camp with and go home with them quite happily. Especially if they had sausages.

We used to take our Lab camping when the kids were small. Apart from one infamous occasion when he joined the kids in their tent without using the door (the kids said his arrival in the tent that morning was like a scene from The Shining..."Here's Johnny") it was mainly plain sailing. He seemed to really love the outdoor life, we used one of those corkscrew stakes too.

I too have a mad spaniel type who can be a bit barky and is obsessed with birds, but he is a brilliant camping dog. We don't use a crate on a regular basis so he just sleeps in a 2 man tent with the kids and they all think it's the biggest treat in the world. We don't use a spiral tie out any more as he once pulled it straight out of the ground trying to chase a wood pigeon. I usually find a suitable tree (so also shady for him) or use the tow hitch loop thing on the back of the car. We do always ensure one really epic walk every day so that he is tired, but those are the kind of holidays we like anyway. Give it a try - camping with dogs is fab. Just go for a night or two to see how it goes.

Our dog's never been in a crate. I suppose if that's what they sleep in at home it would make sense to bring it along. You'll probably find your dog is so knackered from running around on the beach that they'll sleep like a log. The first time we took our dog, we couldn't wake him up when he got back from the beach. He was completely zonked out! It is nice to have your dog in bed with you, if you can, like a giant hot water bottle.

We don't crate our 3yr old rottie she sleeps on our feet - like she does at home - in a zipped up sleeping area. Top tips are find a dog friendly site as not all campsites accept dogs, remember lots of poop bags, their bowls, some toys and lots of towels for rainy/messy days.
Only problem we ever had was when she was tethered up and saw dh walk across the campsite and she made a mad dash for him snapping her collar, this wouldn't have been so bad had she not got distracted by a smell in a neighbouring tent on her way to dh - It turns out they had took back a huge leg of lamb bone from their dinner at the local pub the night before for the dogs on the site to share! Safe to say no other dogs got a look in after she found it!

We camped for a month through Northern Europe with 2 dogs and 2 dcs. It was absolutely fine. We had to be careful where we let the dogs off lead and pay attention to a different view of pet dogs. Some campsites are more dog-friendly than others. It's worth doing a bit of research before you head off!