While bringing along man’s best friend on our backcountry adventures comes with many advantages, especially when backpacking it also comes with an extra set of dog-specific gear. Dog food, a section of foam pad, dog jackets, bowls, leashes, and perhaps even a sleeping bag for your dog all serve to increase the weight carried. The solution of course is to have the dog carry some of their own gear or other gear to help offset some of the weight – most importantly of course without overloading the dog.

Ruffwear, maker of dog specific gear that often fits well with an outdoor lifestyle offers 2 solutions – the $150 Palisades pack which they’ve designed specifically for multi day backpacking trips, and the cheaper Approach pack at $100 that they market more for full day hiking. However, over the past 15 years I’ve found the smaller Approach pack to be all one needs for any length backpacking trip, and as a nice bonus this model is also lighter and cheaper.

Ruffwear Approach Design

The Approach pack contains 2 saddlebags that each have a large, zippered main compartment as well as a smaller zippered pocket. The bags are attached to an adjustable harness system with strategic padding, and the top of the pack features lashing loops, a metal leash attachment, and a convenient grab handle. The pack is currently offered in two colors and 4 sizes based off chest girth. Reviews on sizing vary: the medium is perfect for my 45lb cattle dog even though she was, according the sizing guide, in between the small and a medium. I would suggest using the sizing guide to start, and then if in doubt, use the general characteristics of the dog to finalize the decision process. Simply put, is the dog a small, medium, or large dog?

Either way, the harness provides a lot of room for adjustment up or down. The pack uses heavy duty zippers, and heavy, rip stop nylon fabric with an even heavier duty fabric on the bottom half of each saddlebag. I’ve found the fabrics to be highly water resistant, but the zippers and seams are not. While Ruffwear previously offered a dedicated rain cover as well, I just go with a pack liner approach (gallon Ziplocs or rolltop dry bags) for gear that must stay dry. As an example, the medium sized pack can (barely) fit an 8 liter Sea to Summit roll top dry bag on each side.

The backpanel and sides are minimally padded, but enough to provide a little protection from bumpy objects in the saddlebags...some care when packing is still in order however. The pack is designed to carry the weight more forward on the dog and features a light loop and reflective trim for nighttime visibility. For the medium pack reviewed here, Ruffwear lists the pack at 1.15lbs / 18.4 ounces, but I was pleasantly surprised to measure 16 ounces on my scale. 14.5 liters of storage are spec’d on the medium. Storage will however vary depending on the size you go with, and ranges from 6 liters for the extra small all the way up to 24 liters for the large.

The Ruffwear Approach has plenty of capacity, a water-resistant construction, and in my case the fabric has stood up to years of use across many backpacking trips.

How Much Weight Your Dog Should Carry

Before hitting the trail, it’s important to do a little math. Dogs simply aren’t by nature, a pack animal. While Ruffwear suggests that a dog carry no more than 25% of their body weight, I’ve found this number to be much too high. Any backpacker knows that carrying this much weight isn’t that much fun, and 20% max...hopefully lower...is usually a more reasonable number for happiness and comfort on higher mileage trips. I target even less for my dogs: 10-15% of the dog’s body weight including the weight of the pack usually keeps the dog happy (after all, they can’t talk to tell you if it’s too heavy), while still allowing the dog to take a reasonable amount of weight out of my pack – several pounds even for a small to medium dog. Many also fall into the potential trap of only packing dog gear in the dog pack. In the end, I always pack the Approach with a combination of dog gear and my own gear that 1) equals about 10% of my dog’s weight, 2) can be split evenly between the two saddlebags, and 3) is comfortable for the dog.

Going over your gear list and doing a little work with a digital scale is key to this approach. Just make sure if your dog is a runner, that you don’t pack any critical group gear in the dog pack, and utilize that leash attachment point! Dog food is one item that can be weighed out precisely and molded perfectly to fit the saddlebags, but I prefer to keep all food items separate and I like to not worry about food smells on the dog pack itself. Dog food is always changing in weight throughout a trip as well and will require constant rebalancing between each side. I prefer items that are light, but of a static weight. The pack even features lashing points on the outside where you could attach stuff sacks or lash a foam pad, but with maneuverability in mind it’s much easier to simply carry my dog’s foam sleeping pad on the outside of my own pack.

On the Trail

Once you have the pack adjusted, which can be a bit tedious the first time, no further adjustments on the trail are needed unless your dog changes in weight, and any excess strapping is easily tucked away. The dual quick release buckles make taking the pack on and off relatively painless, and once on the freedom of movement that the pack allows is excellent, I haven’t found that the pack inhibits the motion of a dog on the trail or when sitting or laying down. With the leash attachment point on the pack, leashing even a dog who doesn’t quite have the heel command down yet is still comfortable for the dog since the whole system is harness based. The grab handle is one of my favorite features of the pack – it makes it so easy to assist and guide the dog over fallen logs on the trail or through rocky areas.

If you do plan to use a dog pack, I’d suggest introducing it your dog at a young age when possible (without weight) until vet approved. At any age, providing extensive positive reinforcement when the pack is introduced and testing with normal walks at home goes a long way towards a great trail experience, along with being diligent to not overload the dog. And even with these steps every dog is still different...I’ve had dogs where I ended up never using the dog pack again as I just couldn’t take that dejected stare any more, and others that can’t wait to put it on and seem to completely disregard its presence on their back. In the end, it’s up to each dog and each dog owner to determine the right direction to go when it comes to a pack, as well as weight carried.

Conclusion

While the Ruffwear Approach dog pack is perhaps a little heavy at around a pound, in reality it’s not that bad. If this were a pack for people it wouldn’t be an ultralight offering, and it wouldn’t be the heaviest either – it’s designed with some cush and durability in mind. As your dog scrapes the full saddlebags against rough granite rock and fallen logs across the trail repeatedly throughout the day, the extra durability is appreciated.

With 4 pockets, organization comes easily and even though the Approach pack isn’t the largest pack Ruffwear offers, I’ve found the saddlebags are very much large enough to meet the weight percentage targets when packing for a backpacking trip. With sufficient at home adjustment and proper saddlebag balance, the pack is very comfortable for the dog – provided that you don’t overload the pack.

The Ruffwear Approach dog backpack retails for $100 and is available in 2 colors and 4 sizes. You can find it here at REI Co-op as well as at Backcountry.com, and additionally you can take a look here at Amazon.

Editor's Note: This review originally appeared in Issue 39 of TrailGroove Magazine. Read the original article here for additional photos, pros and cons, and our rating of the Ruffwear Approach dog pack.