Countryside walks

[Sunnypiddle]

How do you navigate country stiles with your large pooch?

I'm wanting to adopt a dog (lurcher) and I live in the country with stiles everywhere, thinking this is a pain if the dog can't independently get over the stiles?? Some are quite high and difficult to get over...and the dog would too heavy to carry!

How do you manage?

Mine gets over it herself. She’s the clumsiest most pathetic creature, but manages it, with zero elegance.

But also, many stiles have a little dog gate which you lift up.

Depends what kind of stile it it is . Now I've got a Dalmatian she basically crawls underneath them all , and the wooden ones round our way have a space by the side to wiggle through , but when I had greyhounds they absolutely refused to crawl through anything so would grizzle hopelessly on the other side until I lifted them limb by limb over the obstacle 🙄

The stiles here are barely human friendly! I'll try send find a pic. Def no crawl spaces or gates

Often there’s a gap they can slip through. Worst case scenario you lift them over. I used to have to lift the old lab over, he was about 30 kg not easy but manageable

Like this. High, with just one low plank of wood. No clear space underneath or side access.

Jesus, I don't think my clumsy and very heavy Akita would get over that. Every normal looking stile causes utter confusion and a flinching "must be super quick" run under it or through it. Never over.

My dog happily leaps over most stiles, but I tend to put her over a shoulder and carry her over ones like that...

This is the thing - practically speaking, how on earth am I going to go on walks! Every footpath here has crappy stiles like above. No other way around.

Not sure I could safely carry a 35kg lurcher over them. I'm 50kg and very short myself!

I've honestly never come across a stile my beagle can't either crawl under or climb over. If they're steep (like the one you pictured) and there's two of us, one of us will go over first then the other will send the dog up after and we'll kind of lift him over that way.

That said I would never own a dog I couldn't pick up and carry short distances if I had to - he weighs 17kg so he's not small but he is manageable and I've been very grateful for it when there's been smashed glass etc on walks.

I know lots of people aren't bothered about that aspect though imo it is something to carefully consider when choosing a dog.

I have an ungainly, lurcher-shaped mongrel who manages to scramble over any stile we encounter, sometimes with a bit of encouragement, so I bet your dog will find a way. And mine is a rescue too, had never lived indoors and was very baffled by the concept of ordinary doors when she arrived!

We had such stiles in the village- so tall that I found them difficult to navigate, let alone a child or a dog

The wonderful Rambler's Association volunteers came and replaced them all with kiss gates. Worth a call?

My terrier and small lurcher climb 😂 We walk predominantly in countryside all over the country and have never had an issue.

I lift mine over but he's 35kg and that is at the very limit of what I can lift.

My next dog will be smaller because I'll be older and need something easier to pick up.

We've got a few awkward ones round by us and both of my spaniels weigh around 20kg so we tend to avoid them! Standing the other side with a treat sometimes works on the younger dog but my older boy is arthritic and has to be lifted.

Some stiles are really hard for some dogs to get over.

You can train your dog to balance on the steep of the stile if not too high and have a lift harness with a handle that you can hoist the back end up. So you are not carrying the full weight of the dog but guide them over on to the other side.

Has to be a calmish sensible dog though!

Land owners do not have a legal responsibility to make footpaths dog accessible (some may use this to their advantage)

Also if the field has life stock in it the stile has to be used to keep the animals in so again farmers will choose a stile type that is hard for animals to navigate

We had a 12-13 kg standard dachshund - obviously he was great at going underneath gates and through small holes but some stiles (especially the 'ladder' type over walls) could be tricky, definitely a two person job with one to lift up and the other to receive and lower.

We're 62 now and he lived to nearly 17 - our decision not to get another dog is mostly because of the fact it'd probably be too physically difficult to manage stiles and stairs when we're in out late 70s. If we change our mind it'd have to be a mini.

You're very wise to think about this up front, OP. Maybe a smaller whippety lurcher might be better for you than a big one?

The point about stock is a good one - when our dog went under gates we'd have a 'receiver' go over first not let him run in alone.

I had a 30kg lurcher and he absolutely would not and could not navigate a lot of the stiles we encountered. We had to lift him and it took two of us. We’ve since got two much smaller lurchers and were saying just today on a holiday walk that we don’t think we’d have managed with our old dog. It’s a very sensible thing to consider.
i would never again get a dog I couldn’t carry, due to the circumstances of his death.

We don’t have stiles like that so our lab just jumps them but he’s struggle to jump that due to the sticking out ‘steps’. He’s 30kg and I can lift him but I’d rather not especially if he’s wet and muddy and there are lots of them. I also wonder if they’re designed not to be dog friendly.

My first Labrador (30kg) would hop over stiles. Number two (30kg) wouldn't but would balance on Cornish stiles, up one side of the hedge and down the other. Young one hasn't seen either yet. They can be taught.

Thanks for sharing this - useful info. I was reading this thread thinking, how on earth do you navigate these if you have any kind of physical mobility issue or use any kind of mobility aid but are still keen to exercise.

It is tricky sometimes. I live in Cumbria. Lots of not very dog-friendly stiles as well as lots of good ones. I have a big wuss of a 33kg 9yo pointer who would not tolerate being lifted over a stile even if I could manage it.

We've always found a way though, by taking a slight detour, walking back along the edge of the field to find a gap in the hedge or a lose bottom but of wire fence to crawl under. If not, he can be persuaded to scramble over the top. He only once hurt his leg a bit.

I have the same problem, no way can I lift 20kg pooch over a stile while balancing on a plank!
As pp said, footpaths do not have to be dog friendly or buggy accessible or anything else other than accessible to people.

Have you tried asking dog walkers specifically in your local area? They might have more useful tips