Dogs on 14ers?

Dogs, dogs and even some cats
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Should dogs be banned from 14ers?

No
119
71%
Yes
48
29%
 
Total votes: 167
joe-g
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Dogs on 14ers?

Post by joe-g »

Should dogs be banned from 14ers?
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Scott P
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Post by Scott P »

It depends.

As long as a dog owner keeps the dog on a leash (or under control) AND cleans up the dog crap, then I don't mind them. Unfortunately, these seem in the minority (?), but kudos if you do.

Even the most well behaved and trained dog can't clean up their own crap, so this is on the owner. Also, a dog doesn't have to be "out of control" in the eyes of the owner to be out of control. A "friendly welll behaved" dog whom wants to play, can easily scare or knock down a child, or be annoying to adults.

On Mt. Belford on July 4th last year, my three year old son and I were eating lunch by the trail. A big dog ran up the trail and stole my son's lunch. He was crying and it scared him. The owner came up behind and passed us without saying a word. No, "I'm sorry", or anything. He was lucky I was a nice guy, otherwise I would have thrown the dog off the mountain. During December 24 last year, we had to turn back on our hike, because our 18 month old daughter got dog crap all over her pants. Shame on the owners.

As I said, if your dog is leashed, or completely under control, and the messes are cleaned up, I have no problem with them at all.

Even the most well behaved dogs and owners are inappropriate in some areas. Studies in CO have shown that even the mere scent of a predator can change habits of big horn sheep and even cause them to abandone their trails.
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zacob
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Post by zacob »

I love dogs have three myself...all would be perfectly suited for 14ers, one is Malamute, another Husky/Sheppard and finally a husky border collie. I have never brought them with me nor do I intend to.

As a climber who loves dogs I say keep your dogs on a leash :evil: I am sick and tired of having unleashed dogs come sniff all over me because of the scent of my dogs and cats.

I always try to be polite but I am getting tired of it.

Dog should only be allowed on a 10 foot lead or less...
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Devin
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Post by Devin »

I also think that it depends. Dogs not on a leash just annoy me no matter where I am. But, even if they are on a leash, I think that the owner really needs to evaluate the mountain before bringing a dog along. I have seen a dog (not on a leash) start a pretty decent rock slide down a gully. Luckily, nobody was in harm's way. But, the fact is the dog had strayed away from it's owner and was somewhere it shouldn't have been.

If it is just a simple class 1 or something with a good solid trail all the way up, I don't mind dogs on leashes at all. Otherwise, I say just leave 'em at home.
snowtweeker
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Post by snowtweeker »

why stop at dogs, how about liberals and republicans. they spew as much s##t as dogs and you can't clean that up. how about white hikers, because there are too many of them, and ethnic hikers, because there are too few. my whole point being, step down from your high horse, because there are more than enough IRRESPONSIBLE CLIMBERS out there than there are dog owners on a weekly basis. these mtns. are meant to be enjoyed by all, and just like everyday life, some people just do not have good manners, dog owners or not.
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ColoradoGuy
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./

Post by ColoradoGuy »

My answer is:

No, but dogs should be on a leash.

-Steve
It's a tough job, but someone has to photograph the mountain. www.MtPrinceton.org
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kesue22
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Post by kesue22 »

I'm gonna have to go with snowtweeker on this one. What is the real difference between having dogs on the trail and having PEOPLE on the trail? Yeah, dogs wander a little more than people, but the people I go with tend to be more annoying that any dog I've ever bumped into, HAHAHA, no offense to those of you that fall in that category. I don't know, maybe I'm missing something; but, to me, if you're going to kick dogs off the trail then maybe none of us should be on it either.
It is not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves.
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zacob
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Post by zacob »

Its too bad that most of the last 20 post on this topic are gone...

Here are some of the issues listed by those that don't mind dogs on the trial but on a leash:

loose dog presents danger to dog and other climbers
some of the stories of loose dogs include:
stealing a three year olds sandwich
peeing on a climbers pack
sniffing other climbers
tripping climbers
I have witnessed a dog fight
sniffing in and attempting to open a pack

most are not opposed to dogs we are opposed to dogs roaming free.
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tragal
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Post by tragal »

I hike usually with my miniature wienie dog, he is like my chidl. I am one of those crazy dog people I guess. He'll go pretty much anywhere with me, because he likes to "go" and he doesn't know any better. He has to date done four 14'ers and I'm sure we'll do more.

I actually don't leash him for a couple of reasons:
He is a little nervous and his best defense against anything that comes at him is to run and hide, he can get into small spaces. He has been chased by other dogs. When required to be on a leash, I hook his leash to my belt so my hands are free to use poles. I can not run, nor could I keep up this him. This is probably the main reason I keep him off leash, for his safety.
Plus, I don't know if this happens with other people but I tend to stumble and occassionally fall while hiking and I don't want to smash him or rip his little head off.

He does not run up and smell people, if you are standing there he will smell you, right up to about your shin. He has never pee'd on a bag or taken food from anyone, or any of that. He has rarely even pooped on a trip, but when he has I pick it up.
He always follows directly behind me, I've almost gotten out of the habit of looking around for him since he is always right on my heals.
He has on one occassion gotten a little curious about a marmot but changed his mind when it stood upward, that was rather funny, several people on Quandry got a good laugh about it.

I've always kind of thought of the mountains as my therapy and my dog is my therapist. That is my two cents from a dog lover.
jandjrhodes
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Post by jandjrhodes »

no way they should be banned....as long as you can control your dog and clean up after them then I see no real problem. I think a dog owner has to know their dog and where they can or can not take them safely and without being a nuisance to others.

We have 2 dogs, a belgium malinois and a golden retriever, and without kids at this point in time they are our family. My retreiver is just a puppy and has not been out hiking...yet...but my malinois climbed 4 14ers last year with my wife and I without a single incident. I keep her on leash at the start of the hike then let her off as we get away from the masses. She is usually in great voice control except when other young energetic dogs are around and then she runs and plays with them. if she bothers others at all, i put her back on her leash. I never take her up trails or into terrain where she may cause more danger to her, myself or most importantly other hikers, and I always clean up after her (she gets to carry it out in her pack though!). I think these things are key to dogs on any hike....owner control, curteousy, and clean up after them. If my dog took someones lunch, i would be buying lunch for that entire family! As for dogs' scent causing issues with wildlife....what do thousands of humans do? just my opinion, but hope to see you all out there....i will be with my dogs this year!
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flatlander
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Post by flatlander »

I don't think they should be banned, but just remember not all people are dog lovers. Be respectful and polite and maintain control of your pet.
Always remember, the mountains don't care.
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TheKanes
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Do we forget what a pain in the a$$ people can be?

Post by TheKanes »

Rather than worry about bio-degradable dog poop or a crotch sniff at 13,000ft up in the untouched land lets start to worry about all these day hikers who tend to leave trash all over the place! What is this California? If we don’t act on it before it’s a problem it will be the sad state that California is. I’m sorry if I seem a little worked up about this but I have seen this happen a few times on our mountains and it’s disgusting that someone can have no concern for what they do! Stay home and hike on your Nintendo’s!
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