Mountainsmith K9 Dog Pack

This Mountainsmith K-9 pack is definitely a sold, well put together pack. I chose a medium size for my 73 pound American Bulldog/Pitbull mix and it great! Spot is stocky, has broad shoulders and a deep chest so I was a bit worried whether it would fit properly, but glad to say this pack functioned well above my expectations. I hate dealing with returns on online orders, as i'm sure everyone does, so we were really happy with this packs performance. We backpacked in early spring for 3 nights/4 days in the Texas hill country/canyons in rugged, undeveloped, steep terrain. The weather was sunny, rainy, warm, cold and windy and this pack held up great! My thought is if it's built in Colorado for backpacking, then your boy's good! The packs have great capacity, the stitching and fabric is durable, the padding is comfortable and the reflective strips and definitely a plus. I did some trial runs a couple weeks before our tip, gradually adding weight on small hikes and he definitely didn't mind it. I'm sure the padding helps retain body heat since it seemed like he preferred to have it on, even during camp. We packed 10 cups of dog food, a first aid/trauma kit ( I.V. fluids included), treats and medications. ( I don't mess around when I take my boy backpacking with me ). The straps stayed cinched down, no signs of irritation on his skin/underarms. MAYBE some occasional adjusting but that's normal. Big fan of the sternal/back padding and padding under the buckles. I've experienced a lot of movement with other packs, but didn't with this one. Everything seems to hold well in place. My boy is active, fit, has high endurance, kind of a big boy and LOVES to go backpacking and this pack definitely suited him perfectly. As a veterinary technician, I have been recommending this pack to my friends, family and clientele. I love to go backpacking and I'm a firm believer of " if you cant carry your own weight and gear, then stay home" even with my dog. It was a bit pricey at first, but definitely worth every penny.

A great, GREAT pack!!!! I was honestly somewhat surprised at the quality and workmanship that went into making this pack. It fits my 70+ lb pit mix like a glove, I purchased the medium and followed all the sizing guidelines...let's just say that my buddy (Cholo) and I were VERY HAPPY!! I've never been one to rate anything, unless I was disappointed with a product and wanted to warn others. I was looking at the Ruffwear pack that MSRP'd for around $150 (that's HALF of MY ULA pack!!!) but decided to opt for this, figuring if it was poor quality I would deal with the hassle of returning. I'd read other's reviews and looked over photos of how the pack sat comfortably placed away from the hips, significant in larger breeds. I'm perfectly fine, happy, grateful, ready to go packing etc. So is he, he's sleeping with it on right now, empty of course. Will upload images as well. I'm taking him to the vet tomorrow for his pre-trip physical and am having the vet check it out so will update it he approves/disapproves and eventually how it performs on our short hike to test our new gear. So far I definitely say BUY THIS!!! Especially if you're looking for your pup to help carry his load of dehydrated dog food, toys, regular food on a short trip. Just remember that although your dog may be large, he can only carry so much and to balance each side appropriately. Get him or her conditioned before heading out, just like yourself! Have fun Fidos!! Photos; notice with flash there are excellent visibility decals sewn on, the sewing seems meticulously done throughout. If anyone is concerned about the water repellent qualities, it is not waterproof, however all you need to do is simply buy some Kiwi Campdry at your local retailer and follow the directions and it'll help considerably. You could also seam seal the sewn parts as well, keep in mind this may nullify the manufacturers warranty however. For those who sew it wouldn't be very difficult and inexpensive to make two raincovers or one that covers the unit. Also for any rubbing that may occur I bought some Mushers Secret, he doesn't do well with shoes, so they are ideal in all weather for his paws and will work to prevent chaffing where the pack may rub after long hikes. Please remember to take the pack off your dog when YOU STOP AND TAKE OFF YOURS...they NEED breaks TOO!!!! Another thing I noticed about the pack is while the ring is strong and durable for line attachment it was messing with the adjustment of the pack with him pulling against it. I simply left his regular collar on and lead him that way and the pack stayed put after full adjustment and locking the mechanisms. AGAIN, great pack IMHO.

just got it, but so far so good, fits her well, lots of padding so shouldn't chafe, buckles and straps don't touch skin, lots of room in bags, moves with dog and allows dog to have full range of motion. materials seem good and reflective, easy to open and adjust. only drawback i found is the straps on the front that are just held by rings not clips can slide loose. i folded the strap before the ring and zip tied it into place. its secure and works well. not sure if i can post links, so instead, on youtube search up: How to prevent a webbing strap from slipping - Ron Gallant

My fur kid and I do a LOT of hiking and we've gone through quite a few packs (for both her and I) and this is the first dog pack that does what is promises, it performs! Other packs are always sliding to one side or the other, no matter how well I try to balance and you shouldn't have to strap it so tight it's uncomfortable for your furry friend. I have literally scale weigh everything she carries down to the ounce, just like my pack and until this model, no luck. The way that this pack buckles underneath is the game changer, and the adjustment straps on top are the final touch of a great design. I would have like a lead hook up at the tail of the pack instead of the lead, but that's not worth taking off a star. (But maybe a suggestion for future models Mountainsmith?) The saddle bags are also the roomiest I've found so far as well. Now that doesn't mean weighing the poor girl down with heavy things (a six pack of beer does sound tasty after a long hike, but neither her nor I are packing that in) But having room for some bulkier light weight items like her camp throw and a towel is super handy. In the pictures, she's carrying everything that she would need for an overnight: sleeping throw, towel, 2 collapsible dog bowls, food, two bottles of water, tie out line, garbage bags for packing out, and and line lead. 4 pounds approximately and not too bulky. She carried it six miles in our trial hike and zero slippage. You'll find cheaper packs, but save yourself the headache, the game of chasing those cheap packs down the trail (flip back to top...watch it fall left....flip it up again.....watch it fall right), and your poor buddy's comfort on a long trail and just get this one. You won't regret it.

I haven't actually gone on a hike with this backpack yet, but I have put it on my dog to see how it fits and it fit's great so far! There are several straps to make it easily adjustable to fit him comfortably so it fits a lot better than his old backpack. It's easy to put on him and stays in place well so far. My dog is a mixed breed, so he is short and stout with a big chest and head, and he's about 70 lbs. I got him a size medium based off the information I got from other reviews. The size medium seems to be just right. I'm glad I didn't get the size large because that would have been too big for him. The quality looks good on the backpack and there's plenty of space in the pouches. I think this is a really good product for the price.

Great pack, well made and dog seems to like it. I was worried that he was going to take some getting used to with this pack just because he wasn't very fond of his collar or a gentle leader the first time, but he has never tried to get the pack off once and wags his tail when he sees it because he knows it's adventure time. He really does seem to like it and it looks comfortable and well designed for a dog's physiology. I put a small amount (250mL or so) of water, a collapsible dog bowl, some treats and some bags in the pack, adds about two to three pounds and he hardly seems to notice. I think he knows that he's carrying his own treats and water and I think he likes having a job. The D ring is strong and I like having the handle to help pick dog up over big rocks or questionable terrain. Don't go just off of weight for sizing. My dog is a 45 lb short hair border collie, and I bought the medium the first time and it was too big. So if your dog is a lankier breed and you're on the border of two sizes, going for the smaller may be your best bet. Good adjustability but the straps only go so small. One minor nit pick is the chest straps occasionally loosen while he's wearing it but it's a quick fix. Overall, great pack and I highly recommend for any furry adventure pals.

Our dog absolutely hated this pack. Every time we would take it out she would walk away and avoid us even though we were going to go for a walk. After several months of use, she never changed her mind about it, although after a few minutes with it on she didn't seem to mind or really notice it. This pack works very well and seems to be well made. We packed a total of 10 pounds of weight equally distributed on each side using water bottles, which made it possible to reduce the weight if necessary by dumping out some of the water on each side. Once properly adjusted, the pack fit very well. Every time we put it on it took a bit of walking around for our dog to adjust to the extra load, looking like she were drunk, bumping into things and staggering, until she got used to it again (since she would use it every day). It worked extremely well to burn off some of her energy so that she was reasonably content for several hours (wouldn't recommend a Husky if you aren't able to seriously exercise them daily). I usually removed the pack when we got to the park while she would run around off leash, but sometimes it stayed on, which was not a problem. Even when our dog was running at full speed the pack performed beautifully. Our dog was unable to corner or maneuver as well as she could without the pack, but that is to be expected. Check out the video I uploaded to see how it performed with 10 pounds of weight and a full speed take off. She wore the pack for about 45 minutes each day, running several miles alongside a bike. It never seemed to irritate her skin or body, and we never saw any symptoms from her wearing it, other than the fact that she was significantly more tired exercising with the pack than without. Would definitely recommend.

We purchased this pack for an entirely different purpose, and one that the manufacturer probably never intended. We are using this on my son's 2013 Honda CRF110F dirt bike as a lightweight pannier system. We like to go on off-road enduro/forest rides, and these panniers allow his mule to carry trail supplies (e.g. tools, snacks, water bottles, etc) just like dad's bike. It's (almost) impossible to find a suitably-sized bag for small enduro bikes, and I'm pleased to say that this works PERFECTLY with minor modifications. The colors aren't exactly Honda Red, but it's close!. I'm sure that this setup will work on other small- to mid-size dirt bikes equally well. I removed the chest yoke, then modified straps and buckles to fit the rear subframe of the motorcycle. Now it secures to the bike with 4 quick-release buckles and the back pad sits over the rear of the seat (see the attached pictures). To remove it, just unclip the 4 buckles, grab the handle and go. It is mounted backwards so the tapered end of the bags are facing rearwards. I cut some rings and side profiles of thin, stiff foam and made liners to maintain the bag's shape regardless of content. I also placed a small patch of heat shield behind the right bag to protect from the muffler heat. There are no clearance or interference issues with the rear suspension or tire at all. The bags are water resistant, but a liberal coating of Kiwi Camp Dry silicone spray certainly helps. Anything that absolutely needs to stay dry is enclosed in Ziploc bags inside of the panniers. We bought this during a Lightning Deal sale for $37.99. The cost of the modifications was about $5.00 and one hour of labor. So, for a total investment of $42.99 and an hour of time, we have a very nice set of off-road enduro bags. Try to do that with "proper", name-brand motorcycle gear for even triple the price! Thanks, Mountainsmith for a well-made product... even if it isn't being used the way that you intended!

el tamaño mediano le quedo excelente, no batalle para ajustarsela, al inicio si sentia algo raro mi perro, pero ya que quedo bien ajustada y que empezo la travesia ni se inmuto, aguanto 12 horas con ella sin quejarse, le cupo una botella de 1 litro en cada lado, mas sus croquetas y premios y ademas sus platos para comida y agua (de los que se pueden doblar outward hound o algo asi la marca). Bastante durable, no se ven signos de desgaste y eso que anduvo como loco metiendose por todos lados. Si parece que va a durar bastante.

I have a lot of trouble finding any items for my giant breed dogs (Great Dane and wolf hound mix). This pack is very adjustable and was able to fit it onto both of them, this also allowed me to have it fit snuggly without rubbing or slipping. We cannot wait to go hiking!

Great pack. Just used it on my last 150km back country hike with my pup. Very well made and enough space to carry 5 + days of dog food. The chest brace/pad seems To have great support, no restrictment in movement jumping or climbing etc.

Fits very well on our hound. He's 75lbs and lean with a narrow belly and the bag adjusted perfectly to his shape. We trained him to walk with it for about a month prior to completing a 3 day back country hike. It was large enough to carry his food, water, two folding bowls and his first aid kit. The materials are very durable and well put together. Our boy loves to wear it and had no chafing over the 34kms of hard hiking. Buy this bag with confidence.

Took it on several hikes - it's great for the dog to carry his own food (in a ziplock bag to prevent it from getting soaked) and water bowl. We originally hoped he could carry his blanket but it doesn't fit and would probably get wet as the pockets aren't waterproof. You have to ensure you distribute the weight evenly on both sides otherwise it starts to sag. So even if you can fit a smaller blanket on one side, you have to make sure the other side is filled just as much.