skiing with dog

Hey buddy, you think just because I'm out of the country, it means you're going to be able to slip that by? 

Just checking you're paying attention Marcus and not in a meat coma!
Love your Ushuia TR's. I'm jealous but glad you made it work as well.

Congratulations on your new buddy.

As others have noted above, ski edges are terrible weapons for dog legs. Be very careful. My friend's avy dog is permanently crippled from having his tendon cut as a young dog.

I trained my dog to "follow," which means uphill and behind me. Works pretty well when I'm skiing slowly enough for her. Otherwise, a stay-come command series if it's steep enough for me to get well ahead of her works. I have to think carefully before I go jumping over cracks and holes to prevent her from falling into them. Being able to stop and direct your dog from a distance is a great help.

As far as beacons, I have a pair of the old frequency beacons I use for my dog (one on her, one for me to search with). That way they don't interfere with human searches. I got them from a ski patrol that, obviously, no longer needed them.

Bag Balm or some other grease on their pads helps prevent icing and cracking. I carry it with me. Show Sheen (for horses) prevents snowballs, which aren't likely to be much trouble with German Shorthairs.

As so many others have noted, they will kill themselves to keep up, so be mindful of their condition. Working in snow is very strenuous for them and can easily set puppies up for arthritis later, so go very easy until he is at least a couple years old. Even though he may appear to be fine, overworking those joints before they and the muscles supporting them have fully developed is likely to shorten his active life.

All that said, it's great to have our dogs along to play with us and I think can add to the safety factor, too. Have fun!

hey i am not a dog owner or expert, but i recall that my ski buddies with large dogs are very carefull to not excersice a puppy vigoursly during their growth stage.
this may not be a concern for a german shorthair, but here i a short excerpt i found with a 2 second "bing" search -

Puppy Growth - Large Breeds
The information provided on this page relates specifically to the various stages of Growth and Development & Behavior you can expect to see in your puppys first year. In respect of the larger dogs, such as the Mastiff, caution must be taken during growth periods in the first 18 months of the puppy's life. Excessive exercise such as jumping obstacles or over long walks can cause joint damage.

from this page
www.dog-names.org.uk/puppy-behavior-growth-development.htm

(:skip

hey i am not a dog owner or expert, but i recall that my ski buddies with large dogs are very carefull to not excersice a puppy vigoursly during their growth stage.
this may not be a concern for a german shorthair, but here i a short excerpt i found with a 2 second "bing" search -

Puppy Growth - Large Breeds
The information provided on this page relates specifically to the various stages of Growth and Development & Behavior you can expect to see in your puppys first year. In respect of the larger dogs, such as the Mastiff, caution must be taken during growth periods in the first 18 months of the puppy's life. Excessive exercise such as jumping obstacles or over long walks can cause joint damage.

from this page
www.dog-names.org.uk/puppy-behavior-growth-development.htm

I've heard this many times from Berner breaders/owners which is why I did not take my dog up with me this past spring when he was only 6 months or so old. They say not to take him on long hikes over a mile or 2 until he is at least a year... He is now 13 months and by Jan when the snow is good I'll be taking him up Hyak for his first snow hikes, and running descents. So far I've only done short hikes with him about halfway up the mtn..