# trail riding dog help.



## phantomhorse13 (Feb 18, 2011)

This is not a situation that advice from online forum is going to help, IMO. There are a LOT of variables to this and I think finding a trainer local to you would be the safest course of action.

An out-of-control dog on a ride with horses is a potential disaster waiting to happen (for the dog, the horse, and/or anybody else around).


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

I've learned that it's best to leave the dog at home. They create more problems than it's worth.


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## jamesqf (Oct 5, 2009)

Do you have friends with trail dogs? I'm not claiming to be an expert, but from what I've seen, new dogs pick up appropriate behavior from the pack. We seldom if ever ride with fewer than 3, and sometimes as many as 10 or so (for 2-4 humans). The oldest ones have been going for a decade or so, and 3 new ones joined us this year.


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## ALegUp (Sep 26, 2013)

Is there a leash law in your area? Riding on public or private land? Just things to think about outside of whether the dog is trained to follow your horse or not. Fines can be accrued if you are breaking any laws. Plus the liability should your dog cause an accident or damage to someone's person or property, even though your pup looks super sweet. Your dog off-leash even playfully running towards another person, dog or horse which causes them to get hurt, could legally be your responsibility.

Just food for thought, as I don't know where you ride, if you're pretty remote and ride by yourself only on private land.


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## Comfortably Numb (Jul 16, 2013)

I took my dog only once and decided against it going forward. Here is the short version of the story.

He was fine (even happy) while we were walking.

At trot he became nervous as if he felt we could run away and leave him behind. As a result he decided that his best bet was to get behind my horse as close as possible - this of course got the horse irritated. I turned back to try to chase the dog away - he was literally centimetres away from the horse's hinds at this point - and the dog would not listen to me and allow any bigger distance. 
At this point I knew what was going to happen, tried to stop the horse, but too late - just felt her back right extending and heard a thump. The dog was then whimpering loudly and standing on three, not moving anymore. Dismounted and checked on him - fortunately nothing was broken - pure, pure luck and a huge scare.

This was the abrupt end of my dreams of happy trail rides with my dog joyfully circling around us. :-? (the incident was recorded on my gopro as a good reference for the future - just in case I forgot)

We were lucky.


Just something that might happen - there are dogs that are fine and have good "horse trail manners", but it is an animal and lots can take place unexpectedly.


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## 6gun Kid (Feb 26, 2013)

I almost always ride with my dog, I started when she was a puppy just by letting her trail along in the arena when I was training my horse. It was a natural progression from the arena to the trail


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## Foxtail Ranch (Mar 10, 2012)

jamesqf said:


> Do you have friends with trail dogs? I'm not claiming to be an expert, but from what I've seen, new dogs pick up appropriate behavior from the pack. We seldom if ever ride with fewer than 3, and sometimes as many as 10 or so (for 2-4 humans). The oldest ones have been going for a decade or so, and 3 new ones joined us this year.


We ride with our dogs all the time, and we have 4 dogs plus we always take Dad's dog Pepper. 

As jamesqf said, the dogs seems to learn from each other. Pepper spent years riding with Dad, and she showed our dogs how to run ahead of the horses and stay out of the way. My little Luna still will walk behind my horses, but that is not a problem. 

For their part, our horses seem to appreciate our dogs breaking the trail for them. They tolerate the dogs quite well.

We have a little JRT named ******, who wouldn't ride with us and didn't like coming down to the barn for the 2 years we have had her. But this last week, she has come with us twice! 

I don't have any pictures of horses and dogs together, but here are pictures of one of our many rides with dogs.

Our dogs ******, Raylen and Luna, in the truck, ready to go riding!








Dad's dog Pepper, resting after the long ride to camp:









My dog Luna tired too...









Me and the horses









Where we go...










Find a friend with a dog that knows the drill and watch it happen naturally! 

Happy trails!


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## Senneth (Nov 19, 2013)

Does your dog completely panic while you're on your horse or is it more avoidance? 

Is there any aggression toward the horse?

The best thing you can do in this situation is to consult a professional dog trainer, especially one who has livestock or has worked with dogs that are around them. I'm not a trainer myself but I have worked in the pet industry for 10 years now so I can help a little.

If your dog doesn't completely wig out or become aggressive, I would suggest starting with having someone she trusts put her on a leash while you ride and keep her at a distance that's not quite comfortable but not to the scary point either. Mark that spot and return to it until it becomes comfortable for her. After that, start closing the distance. Baby steps are best here, you don't want to rush her or you can make it worse. I'd love to say "do this for X amount of weeks and she's cured..." but it doesn't work that way. You'll just have to move at her pace since she's already had bad experiences with horses in the past. And in the end, she may never truly get over it. I have a dog that is terrified of chickens... I've been working for over a year with him and although he'll tolerate their presence, if they give him the eye he's running for his life screaming like a stuck pig. 

As for your Lab, it wouldn't take much to get her physically fit to a point where she can go pretty far without tiring much. That's all about proper conditioning. Labs are designed to have a great deal of energy, all you have to do it learn how to tap into it. My brother runs with is Lab 3-8 miles per day and that dog still has enough energy left to run around the yard. Their pace is quite unforgiving as well, they don't slow down much. Start slow and you'll be able to build her energy in no time. 

I hope this helps. Good luck with your fur babies!


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## jackboy (Jul 8, 2012)

My dogs only got kicked once each funny how they learn after that


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## Wallaby (Jul 13, 2008)

I guess I did it a bit unconventionally, but then again, I didn't have any other dogs around to "instruct" the dog I wanted to bring on rides. 
I already knew my mare ponied well, so I attached a long lead rope to the dog [who was initially terrified of my horse - for him, the fact that he was close to my mare..but she was ignoring him, was enough for him to get over his fear since he was a "ignore me and I'll be fine"-type. Once he realized she could run faster than him and they could "race"..oh boy, he was sollllld] +held it like I would if I were ponying a horse, and off we went. We stuck to a walk, maybe a few steps of slow trot, for that first ride and on the way home, since the dog was tired [and therefore more likely to stay close], I let the dog go off leash.
After that, I just shortened the amount of time the dog was initially being "ponied" and extended the amount of time he was off-leash. 
It did take him a while to realize that "come"/"sit"/etc still meant "come"/etc whether I was on a horse or on the ground. That, however, was easily remedied by a single ride where I carried treats in my pocket and tossed treats off my horse to him when he responded correctly [of course, it helped that he was utterly under control when I was off the horse].

Anyway, that dog unfortunately died of old age a couple of years ago, but, by his death, he was a fabulous riding companion. My mare even grew attached to him [or, at least, she seemed to enjoy having him crashing through the woods around us on rides]. I have fond memories of cantering along, looking back to make sure he was keeping up, and seeing him galloping at top speed behind us with a HUGE doggy smile on his face. 
I was even able to train him to use the stirrup to hold himself up so I could attach his leash, when the need arose [other people on the trail, etc], without dismounting.


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## BlooBabe (Jul 7, 2012)

I'd find a local trainer or someone who had trained 'trail dogs' before. I've done it with a few dogs before and all of my dogs ride with me but mine are trained with medical training and don't think twice about being around horses or really anything as they're exposed to it all right from the start. And if you can't then you're just going to have to leave the dog at home. No sense in ruining either relationship with horse or dog by forcing something that just won't happen.


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## thenrie (Sep 10, 2012)

My dog is my trail buddy. I hate going riding without him. He has proven to be the perfect horse dog. He's not afraid of them, in fact, I wish he were a little more cautious around them, however, on the trail he's perfect. Best I've ever had. I can ride with him in neighborhoods, near roads, crossing roads, etc. When we come to a road I call him and he comes to me. I tell him to sit and he sits calmly until I give the signal to go, then he crosses the road with the horse. If we are moving along next to a road and he starts for the road, I just call him and he comes back and trails along with the horse.

When I was a boy, I had a dog get killed by a car while he was out with me on the horse. Since then, I have made sure my dogs will respond to commands from me on horseback.

I've had a dog or two that were unsure about horses, but once they realized they were going to have to get used to the horse if they wanted to be with me, they got over it. Others were a bit too unafraid and it took a kick or getting stepped on for them to develop the proper caution. That's something they have to learn on their own, though. You can't train them to be cautious.

Good luck.


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## Foxtail Ranch (Mar 10, 2012)

thenrie said:


> My dog is my trail buddy. I hate going riding without him. He has proven to be the perfect horse dog. He's not afraid of them, in fact, I wish he were a little more cautious around them, however, on the trail he's perfect. Best I've ever had. I can ride with him in neighborhoods, near roads, crossing roads, etc. When we come to a road I call him and he comes to me. I tell him to sit and he sits calmly until I give the signal to go, then he crosses the road with the horse. If we are moving along next to a road and he starts for the road, I just call him and he comes back and trails along with the horse.
> 
> When I was a boy, I had a dog get killed by a car while he was out with me on the horse. Since then, I have made sure my dogs will respond to commands from me on horseback.
> 
> ...


thenrie, your dog looks like my MIL's dog Pepper! Great dog, and good comments. My little brown dog, Luna, is like you describe. She can ride with me on roads and trails, and follows my commands nicely (except at the whippets house, she loves to run up and bark at them!). 

I agree that my dogs are my true trail buddies. They love to go, no matter the weather. They will go anywhere for however long I want, and come back for more!


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## Faustinblack (Aug 16, 2011)

I don't think dogs belong on the trail, unless they stick right by your horse. I don't know how many times my horse has spooked because some fool's dog comes bursting from the brush with no person in sight. I've been thrown cause of this.


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## thenrie (Sep 10, 2012)

Faustinblack said:


> I don't think dogs belong on the trail, unless they stick right by your horse. I don't know how many times my horse has spooked because some fool's dog comes bursting from the brush with no person in sight. I've been thrown cause of this.


Not so sure this is a problem of " some fool's dog". I think some horses and riders don't belong on the trails, myself.


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## Faustinblack (Aug 16, 2011)

So it's ok for the dog to go running all over the place? I don't have a problem with people riding with their dogs as long as they can control them. Where I ride its an issue, I've had a dog ATTACK my horse. And I agree with you, some horses and people don't belong on the trail.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## jamesqf (Oct 5, 2009)

Faustinblack said:


> So it's ok for the dog to go running all over the place?


I'd say it depends on where you ride. Where I ride, it's unusual to even see a person other than the ones in our group, and almost all of the ones we do see are on quads/ dirt bikes (and thus more likely to spook our horses), or occasionally hiking/biking.

Question: if your horse is going to be spooked by a dog, what about deer, bears, mountain lions, free-range cattle, and all the other critters you might meet? To say nothing of the quads & dirt bikes, low-flying aircraft, people doing target shooting on the other side of the meadow, freight trains passing by... 

Every one of those is something that I have encountered while trail riding. I won't say I was exactly happy about a lot of them, but I never thought that they should round up all the bears, or that the Air Force should stop flying its transports at treetop level just to suit my convenience.


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## Herosbud (Dec 14, 2013)

thenrie, I'm with you. I enjoy having my dog along and I'm convinced that the horses like her along too. Especially out in front to protect them from scary stumps and such. The trails that my wife and I ride are "public use" trails and we have to share them with hikers, mountain bikers, hunters complete with guns and bows, and fellow horse folks that might have dogs too. There are some trails that are restrictive and no dogs are allowed. One more thing - The term "some fools dog" speaks volumes to me.


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## Darrin (Jul 11, 2011)

Faustinblack said:


> So it's ok for the dog to go running all over the place? I don't have a problem with people riding with their dogs as long as they can control them. Where I ride its an issue, I've had a dog ATTACK my horse. And I agree with you, some horses and people don't belong on the trail.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


If someone has a dog that attacks horses/people on the trail that is their fault, for everything else it's just a dog being a dog. If you and your horse can't take unexpected surprises then the two of you shouldn't be outside of a controlled environment like an arena. It's not some strangers responsibility to look out for your riding safety.


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## Faustinblack (Aug 16, 2011)

I'm just going to say we can agree that we disagree. I ride where there are leash laws because I don't like dogs running lose, but no one follows the law.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## jamesqf (Oct 5, 2009)

Darrin said:


> If someone has a dog that attacks horses/people on the trail that is their fault...


And maybe this is belaboring the obvious, but if a dog attacks horses*, it almost certainly isn't a trail dog. 

*I mean really attack, not just bark to warn its humans of the stranger.


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## Faustinblack (Aug 16, 2011)

It got a hold of my horse's back leg. Like I said, if the dog behaves, I have no issue, same with horses or people.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## thenrie (Sep 10, 2012)

After reading your posts, I think I'm getting a clearer picture here. The "leash laws" comment clued me in. What you call trail riding and what I call trail riding are apparently very different. Sounds like you are actually riding around and through neighborhoods. I can see, then, why you are dog shy. Dogs in neighborhoods will protect their "area" if you come near it. Out on the trails...I mean real trails...dogs have no territory to protect. It is rare to have a dog attack a horse under those circumstances. A dog trailing along with a horseman out on a trail will protect it's "horse and owner" from other dogs, though, and you have to watch out for that. Still, if a dog gets aggressive with my horse, I simply turn the horse into it and let the horse go after the dog. They back off pretty quick with that, and the horse learns not to be afraid of them.

So, what I'm saying is that your comments and the comments of myself and some others on this thread are simply "apples and oranges". They really don't make sense in relation to each other.


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## Faustinblack (Aug 16, 2011)

I guess your talking about the backwoods kind of trail riding? I have absolutely no problems with dogs there, they are actually useful then.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Painted Horse (Dec 29, 2006)

Dogs and horses just go together. I don't even own a dog, and I enjoy them when my friends bring them along. In fact one group that I ride with, I feel like I'm on a Fox hunt, because they bring such a gang of dogs that run all over the place. I occasionally help the ranchers round up or push their cows. My horses have to deal with strange cows and strange dogs and the horses do great


I took a neighbor and his boys for a ride, They brought the small kids that had to sit in their dads and big brothers laps and Basset hound that struggled to cross the rivers.


I enjoying meeting new folks and riding new trails. That often means that I get to meet their dogs. Again, I've never had a problem. The dogs figure out how to trail along with the horses


I for one have no problem with them on trail rides


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## Ripplewind (Mar 22, 2012)

I think some dogs are just better cut out for it than others. My red-heeler is a saintly trail dog, even though we never trained her to be. I take her to the farm as often as possible, partly because she is fat, and partly because she will protect me and alert me if something is amiss. I did most of her training. Sit, lie down, come, stay, shake, jump, high five. And she naturally keeps a safe distance from horses, most of the time. If she gets too bold, I say "Remy, move" and she does.

My other dog, Oreo, is a lab chow mix, and I trained him too, but not well enough for him to respect me at all times like Remy does. He is very ornery and likes to do his own thing, so while I can take him on trails, I typically don't because be might stray too far and get hurt. We have to cross a road and he doesn't always go across, sometimes he'll just run alongside or even in the middle! He also likes to run off. He comes back, but I still don't like him out of my sight.

Sure, if I had been better about training him (I was only twelve, and I was gone for three months in the summer, so I didn't quite understand the importance of strict obedience training), he would be much more reliable. But he would still have the urge to go off on his own, while Rem naturally sticks with me.

Plus, he is WAY too friendly to guard.

Again, training + the dog's natural disposition play very important roles into what makes a good trail dog.
_Posted via Mobile Device_

EDIT: Oreo does everything that Remy does, except for "come". They also both roll over. Not very useful, but still. Remy enjoys pleasing her humans and Oreo likes a pet/scratch/treat.


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## jamesqf (Oct 5, 2009)

Painted Horse said:


> I enjoying meeting new folks and riding new trails. That often means that I get to meet their dogs.


Just the opposite here. I enjoy riding new trails, and meeting new dogs. I usually manage to get along with the humans, too 

Kinda funny story: when I broke the wrist, the ER nurse was someone we occasionally ride with. So I say hi & ask about her dogs & horse by name, but it wasn't until my friend came in and started chatting that I got her name. And I can't remember it now, though I do the critters.


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## 6gun Kid (Feb 26, 2013)

I honestly just cannot imagine trail riding without my dog. I have taken her when it is just her, my horse, and I. I have also ridden in groups of 50 or more with at least 2 dozen dogs. Goes together like ham and eggs, peanut butter and jelly, or Scotch and water!


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## tiffrmcoy (Apr 13, 2012)

Maybe try walking your dog on a lunge line while you ride? 

My dog was, I guess you could say natural at it?? When I first took him out on the trail he did amazing listen to every word I said and stayed by me and my horse even when there were other dogs, horses and vehicles he did not wonder off, now I bring on as many trail rides as I can but I did teach him a lot before I took him out I made sure he listen good and I was the one who taught him to do his "tricks" (sit, stay, lay down, ect.) So I would say a good bond between owner and dog is definitely key to having a good trail dog.


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## ecasey (Oct 18, 2013)

Whoa, what's all this about? You guys don't really think it's okay for a dog to be running around biting horses on a public trail, do you? 

I think people who have dogs that will attack a horse in a public riding area should have the dog on a leash (and the law agrees with me.) Besides ... that's just plain manners. It has nothing to do with a person's skill level at riding. Public spaces are for the enjoyment of the entire public, not just a few members.

Dogs that are well-mannered are awesome and welcome around me and my horse anytime.:lol: Dogs that attack are not.:-(


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## Island Horselover (Apr 4, 2012)

Saddlebag said:


> I've learned that it's best to leave the dog at home. They create more problems than it's worth.


I have to disagree with that. 

I would never go again on a trail ride without my dog, she chases whatever (other animals) comes close or aggressive towards the horses away and takes care of "her" herd. 

Well that might be because she is half Border Collie, but she sure takes care of all those "non listening" off leash dogs around here that are thinking about chasing or bugging my horses. :-o

I so enjoy taking my dog out on trail and beach rides and would not want to miss it at all. 
They way I got her listen perfectly to me and my comands is a shock collar, I used it about 5 times and that was all it takes. 

So I think it was worth a few shocks to have a great dog life like her.... 

think she agrees::lol:


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## Painted Horse (Dec 29, 2006)

jamesqf said:


> So I say hi & ask about her dogs & horse by name, but it wasn't until my friend came in and started chatting that I got her name. And I can't remember it now, though I do the critters.


I find that is because most folks are calling their dogs name all day. "here Fido, get over here" But we are not necessarily calling peoples names all day.

I remember names that I repeat.


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## Slave2Ponies (May 25, 2013)

My dog and my horse are trail buddies too, they love each other! But it can be a problem to take the dog near residences or roads if you don't have complete control. I longe the dog and horse together too, but the dog will only go clockwise -- it's so funny.

One note about attacking dogs, there is a rottweiler in my neighborhood that charges us whenever we go by his driveway. After a while I was prepared for this (can't let it stop me from riding) and I started playing chicken with him. He never gave up and eventually the owner was contacted and asked to control the dog (mostly because a pedestrian could have been hurt!). I can see both sides of that issue, but out in the backwoods, a dog is a real help when you are riding alone.

Does your horse live at your home? My dog and horse spend a lot of time together just across the fence from each other, and I walk in the pasture with the dog all the time too. Here they are grazing together.


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## jamesqf (Oct 5, 2009)

Painted Horse said:


> I find that is because most folks are calling their dogs name all day. "here Fido, get over here" But we are not necessarily calling peoples names all day.


No, in my case it's because I generally like dogs & horses better than humans, and so pay more attention to them


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## jamesqf (Oct 5, 2009)

ecasey said:


> Whoa, what's all this about? You guys don't really think it's okay for a dog to be running around biting horses on a public trail, do you?


Of course not. Did anyone say it was? What we said, I think, is a) it doesn't happen where a lot of us ride; and b) since you can't control other people's dogs, any more than deer, bears, or mountain lions, you & your horse have to learn to deal with the possibility.


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