I day hike with my dog all the time, and want to start taking her on overnight trips. My concern though is with an inflatable pad. Has anyone had issues with dogs nails puncturing or tearing your inflatable pads? tia
This was quite a few years back but when we hiked with my old dog (a lab), we just brought a rolled-up foam pad for him to lay on.
I second the foam. You can cut it in half depending on where you’re camping or stack it to double the R value. I got a crib fitted sheet to keep my foam mats together (do a lot of cold weather camping) and it’s perfect for them.
Genius
Lol, thanks! Taken me a few trips but I finally feel great about camping with my dogs!
Picking up a used Ridgerest today :)
Agreed. Foam or a yoga mat, fold in half.
I have a sleepingo pad that I cut into a square and resealed with an iron. I just took an old silk bag liner and cut it the same size and re-sewed it on three sides. I slip the pad into the liner and that helps protect it from nails.
After about at least 20 trips it did get some tiny leaks but those are easy to fix with silicon sealant. No way to know if they were from dog nails or debris from the tent sites. A more robust pad would likely not get any punctures or would get a lot less.
I got an Eddie Bauer camping dog bed for like ten bucks at the Ross near me, SCORE!
I got my dog a klymit sleeping pad for children, it's cheap enough that im not stressed about punctures but so far it has been fine.
I've never had an issue. I've had issues with things on the ground poking holes, like cacti, sharp rocks, etc, but never my dogs' nails.
No issues so far ✊🏻🪵 Dogs’ nails are kept trimmed and we grind the edges so they’re smooth, the dogs sleep on a CCF foam pad, and I use a silk liner over my pad because I sleep with a quilt and I don’t like to feel the texture of the pad but I also don’t want to be stuck inside a liner. We have used toddler socks on the dogs’ feet (trained at home first) when backpacking with UL tents to protect the tent bottom from tears.
For reference, we have used Exped, Thermarest, Big Agnes, and Sea to Summit pads over the years. FYI Big Agnes almost always wins.
70lb dog, 100 nights or so, no pops
My dog punctured both my thermarest neoair xtherm and nemo tensor. Luckily I carry patches in my kit. I don't let her get on them unless a quilt or sleeping bag is totally covering them now. I carry a short nemo switchback foam pad for her to sleep on.
Yeah, I’m not planning on letting her sleep on it. I just know that doesn’t mean she will never step on it.
Haven’t had an issue but I have a small dog and a fairly sturdy pad.
I would recommend keeping your dog’s nails short with frequent trims (once every two weeks) and giving her one the night before a trip. Don’t opt for a UL pad as they tend to be more fragile. Teach your dog “place” and build positive associations with their camping sleep spot so that they automatically go there.
I backpacked with my dog and an inflatable pad all the time. My dog did pop one once (thankfully on the last morning of my trip, and it was an old pad that I was ready to replace anyway), but in kind of an exceptional circumstance - it was first thing in the morning and he was super hyped up to start the day and bouncing all over trying to get out of the tent. Most of the time it was completely fine, and I wasn't really that concerned even after the time he popped one. You can get a foam pad if you're worried about it, but I personally don't like sleeping on them as much. Assuming you have a medium/large dog, I also think it helps if you go with a tent size that counts your dog as a "person" (like a 3-person tent if you're camping with another person and your dog, or a 2-person tent if you're camping solo with your dog). With more room in the tent, your dog is less likely to be constantly stepping all over your pad.
Seconding this: increasing the size of the tent greatly improved the dog-walking-on-everything situation.
It can happen, and has happened to us, but it was an extreme circumstance with an excited dog.
That said, we do keep the dog from stepping directly on the pad (on top of the quilt is slightly better), but for the most part, the dog is relegated to his own ZLite for sleeping and staying in the tent.
I carry a Z Rest for the dogs, have had a couple punctures in inflatables
For car camping I use 2-3 inexpensive basic inflatable pads. Then throw a queen size down comforter I got on Amazon. Just throw it in a pile in your tent and they will move it how they want. If it gets really cold you just cover them with it. Bonus if you are freezing your ass off you get to huddle with your dogs for warmth!
I've never had a problem with a pad getting punctured by a dog, but have had a tent floor ripped and a screen door torn (different tents, different dogs). They have to wear sled dog booties in the tent now.
I used to carry a small foam pad fog the dog, then a full size pad for two dogs to share, then an extra long/wide pad for all three of us, now I carry an Exped Duo 3R in warm months and the 5R Duo Dura in cool weather.
The Exped Dura series is particularly tough, though not lightweight.
Maybe the rubber nail covers at bedtime with your dog? Bc I have had a lot less fragile things ruined by dogs lol
I have a foam pad for her and she wears socks in the tent!
We used to camp in Colorado and we had two dogs using inflatable mattresses and pads. We never had an issue with the dogs paws but we did have issues with Cactuses.🌵
A dog doesn’t need an air mattress, a folding egg carton mat or even a towel will do for them.
Definitely. Just worried about mine lol
She’ll be happy to be coming along for the adventure. Depending on how deep in the woods you’re going, keep her inside the tent with you at night, or at least tied up on a long lead. Don’t want her running off into the night towards the coyotes that might be trying to lure her. You can also get her a doggy backpack so she can carry some of her own stuff, like food and water.
She’ll definitely be in the tent with me. Thanks for the tips though. I’m back and forth and getting her her own pack.
Ah that’s what you mean. Lol
socks
I take a 1/8 ccf foam pad that I wrap around my inflatable - protects the bottom from sticks and cacti and the top from dog nails.
I’ve had no problems at all
i didn’t till i did 🤓
Yes, retrievers punctured two Nemo pads on night 1. It was a bumpy trip.
Our dog has never punctured our inflatable mattress, and she’s a 50 lbs. German Shepherd mix.
Yes, my 60 lb dog puncture both pads one morning as she jumped up due to a noise outside the tent (bear or deer, we’ll never know). I was able to repair the Big Agnes AXL Air pad with one of the included patches and it still holds air. The Nemo tensor was not so luck got a huge T-shaped tear despite a tiny poke. We had taken precautions of covering the pads in a flat sheet or towel, but didn’t matter.
Perhaps socks or booties on dog would help as some have suggested, but the reality is, there is always a risk, especially with backcountry animals that might surprise them at dawn/etc.
I’m surprised by all the people who report no issues and wish they would advise what type of pad they use! Certainly an “air plus foam” type with thicker fabric would be fine. I use an old shirt thermarest for the dog now when camping.
Idk about inflatable but there’s lots of brands that are super absorbent so it feels light and airy: Always, poise, stay free, Kotex etc. hopefully you can find the right brand of pads for yourself!!!!
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I havent had issues and have had large dogs with untrimmed nails walk on my UL pads. Perhaps I’ve just gotten lucky, but I think with all the walking, dog nails get pretty rounded off and don’t pose the threat one might assume. That said, if you have a burrowing type dog, that could be an issue.