Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Can DOGS be affected by high altitude too?

I have always wondered about this, and thought this board would be okay to post this question.

Has anyone ever had a problem with taking dogs to a high altitude? I wonder if they can be affected just like humans can.

Was just kind of curious about this, and has anyone taken there dog to a high altitude and how did he or she do?

Thanks all
Anita

<a href="http://www.americasroof.com">Roger Rowlett</a> has hiked a number of high peaks with his Golden Retrievers. He used to have a page on his site dedicated to the pups, but the link comes up broken at the moment.

I also know of several others who regularly hike Colorado's 14ers with dogs, so it is certainly possible. As with humans, it's going to depend on the dog...I rather doubt my wife's aunt's Cavalier King Charles Spaniel (perhaps the ultimate lapdog) would make it up anything of significance, but the larger and/or more energetic breeds certainly can.

I'm no vet, but I would imagine that the same altitude effects would bother dogs as humans...one of Roger's tales of his pups involves the dog recycling breakfast at the summit of one of his climbs.

Dogs and humans respond to altitude in much the same way. Dogs can handle altitude if they are acclimated, and the process is the same. I do SAR and am training a dog, and this is a question that comes up frequently.

I climbed Mt. Langley a few years ago, and another hiker had two mid-sized dogs with him, maybe half a mile or so from the top. Those poor dogs were absolutely miserable -- they were barely moving along, and I don't think they made it to the top. Not sure if they were suffering from altitude or sore paws, or just plain exhaustion, but I thought the guy should have been carrying them in their condition.

They obviously were not conditioned to the elements there.

my golden has climbed several 14ers in colorado with me and never seemed to notice the altitude as a puppy. as he gets older it's slightly more noticeable, with more frequent rests. like people, i think a lot of it depends on the biological makeup of the dog. goldens have notorious amounts of energy.

That and the conditioning. I have an Aussie (another breed known for boundless energy), but he's from a show line, so he tends to be stockier and furrier. As long as I keep him in good condition, and give him plenty of water, he'll go all day. Of course then he goes all day, whether I want him to or not, but that's worth it to me.

Langley must be fairly popular for owners and their dogs. When I first hiked up Mount Langley a couple years ago, I met a fellow with a dog on the way up and we climbed up Langley together. I say climbed because we ended up in the class 3 rock. I thought the dog was going to be a problem, but that dog could climb up rock amazingly well.

On top Darhma the wonderdog didn't seem to be suffering from any obvious AMS symptoms.

The bigger problem is probably the same as with humans: is the dog in shape for such an adventure? The breed I'm sure makes a big difference too.

If you do bring a dog up, the most important thing to remember is to bring lots of water. Not only enough for you, but enough for your pet. They get quite thirsty too.


Darhma the wonderdog on Mount Langley

I have frequently taken my two goldens up to 13,000 without any significant problems other than trying to keep them from burning all their energy up in the first few miles. Hydration and food are big considerations. My dog's appetite seems to change as much as mine does at altitude. Unfortunately you can not take dogs anywhere into the Whitney zone...on or off leash.

While I own a dog, hike with him, and do Search with him, I am not for allowing dogs everywhere. Could you imagine the chaos of allowing dogs on Whitney? There's enough chaos with the sheer numbers of people on the poor mountain.

I completely agree about dogs on the main trail or at the summit of Whitney. I would love to take them up the north fork to UBSL though. Oh well, there are lots of other places to go with them.

Thanks everyone for all your responses!

Alan thank you so much for that link..that is really a great site, lots of very interesting information there.
Steve C, That is horrible about the two dogs you saw on Langley, I too have seen a few times dogs on the trail where I did not think they should be there...because of the type of trail, amount of water it has. I love taking our dogs on hikes or backpacking trips, but
I always consider 1st what the trail is like, if it is more rocky then soft dirt, if there is a creek along the way for water, all that before I take our dogs. There are certain trails I do not take our dogs on, looking out for there interest 1st.

Thank you Rick for sharing the picture of Darhma on Langley, what a pretty girl? Or boy doggie, that is a great picture!
It does makes sense that dogs could be affected by the altitude just like us humans could be..and being in good shape im sure would help them, along with water and a good diet.

Yes, I agree that having dogs allowed on the summit would not be a good thing for the environmental impact, us humans do enough of that already. There are so many other places to take them hiking, so I feel okay about dogs not being allowed in the National Parks, just think of how the cute little marmots would feel if they had to deal with dogs on the summit, I do not think they would like it to much.

Again thanks everyone for all your post!
Anita

When I hiked Elbert over the Summer I reached the summit to find as many dogs as humans...a while later another dog arrived with his human; this dog was obviously a male, as he hadn't even stopped to take a breath before he was doing something any nice message board would filter out to one of the female dogs up there. The owners had to separate them before it became an interesting experiment in high altitude biology. No altitude effects evident there! Nonetheless, the oxygen cascade is what it is, and it stands to reason that a dog's physical condition is going to be a critical factor in such hikes.

With regard to places like Whitney, aside from the fact that there's enough damage caused by humans already, I also wonder if dogs are susceptible to giardia. I can't imagine trying to keep a thirsty dog from dipping his snout in a creek as you cross!