Is Dog Camp Right For My Dog?

Dog camp is a wonderful experience for dogs – but it’s not for every dog! 

Dogs who are not comfortable around other dogs or people are obviously not well suited for dog camp.  Although we hike our dogs on private land, there’s always a chance we’ll run into other people or dogs, so they need to be okay meeting strangers.  If your dog is fine with other dogs, they might be suited for camp.  My dog Roger is generally indifferent to other dogs.  He’d rather hang out on his own or with me than play with the other dogs, but he still loves camp!  He loves exploring, running around, and being outside.  If this sounds like your dog, dog camp could still be a good fit for them.

Dogs need to have excellent recall to come to camp.  This means they need to be completely reliable off-leash.  If they take off after deer or squirrels or scent trails, that won’t work at camp!  I need to feel safe that your dog will stay with the pack and not disappear.  If your dog’s recall is not reliable, let’s work together on recall training.  You’ll love the peace of mind that comes with knowing you can trust your dog off-leash. 

Lastly, dog camp doesn’t work for puppies.  Their growth plates are still growing and any injury to these growth plates may never heal properly.  Puppies under a year old don’t have the stamina of adult dogs – they’ll run all out until they over-exhaust themselves. Puppies also typically have pretty short attention spans.  It’s not fair to ask them to have the level of impulse control that we require from camp dogs, and they learn best in short spurts. 

If your dog has a history of aggression towards other dogs or humans, dog camp isn’t a good fit.  There are too many unknowns at camp, and we would never want to put your dog in a position that could cause them to snap. 

If you have any questions about your dog’s suitability for dog camp, please get in touch!