Camping with Reactive Dogs

Yes, you can go camping and enjoy nature with your reactive dog.

Know your dogs limits

What stage is your reactive dog at in his or her training?

Stage 1. Hide, you haven’t developed your dogs coping skills and like to avoid triggers as much as possible. Encounters still stress you out.

Stage 2. Cope, you don’t mind a few distractions but still prefer to avoid them or at least be in control of the distractions.

Stage 3. Seek, your comfortable with your training and your dogs made huge progress so you like finding distractions so you can work on your dogs triggers.

Find the Right Spot

Manitoba’s campground are extremely diverse some are close together, wide open with no privacy while others are lush and ultra private.

Keep in mind not only the site but also the walking trails and areas to exercise your pup.

  1. Is the site treed & private?
  2. Are there lots of walking paths?
  3. Are there open places to play ball or dog friendly swim areas

1. Private Sites

On the Manitoba Parks Reservation site you can view photos of every site. Look for sites with lots of privacy, avoid corner sites adjacent to the road. Keep your dogs triggers in mind and use caution picking sites that are adjacent to walking paths, water pumps or bathrooms.

2. Escape Routes

The best camping sites for S1 & S2 reactive dogs should be on a looped road vs dead end. This allows you to have an escape route if any unwanted surprises show up on your walk.

Look for campground with lots of walking paths as this will reduce the amount of foot traffic in front of your site and give you options for your walking routes.

3. Extra Considerations

Know your dogs triggers and keep them in mind when choosing a campground.

If your S1 dog is scared of kids avoid campgrounds with lots of family amenities like big play structures or splash pads as these will attract more campers with young children.

Instead of looking for dog friendly beaches where off leash dogs are common I prefer to look for an off the beaten path area to take your dog swimming. Tip, check out areas near boat launches

If your dog is high energy look for campground with a large open areas to play and hang out with a clear view of any distractions.

Reviews of Manitoba Campgrounds for Dog Owners

More reviews coming soon

Spruce Woods 5stars
Kiche Manitou Campground

-Large campground, sites are generally spaced well, private and quiet.
-Lots of walking, biking paths to choose from. Very limited bay traffic
-Sandy beach area to take dogs swimming or for a run, away from official beach area where all the kids are.

Reviewed Site: Bay 4 Site 19

Nutamik Lake 3Stars
Whiteshell Provincial Park

(Best for S2-S3)
-Mid Sized Campground -All bays are loops
-Private sites
-Busy, lots of foot traffic depending on bay. -Limited walking trails, can be busy
-Limited swimming area for dogs by boat launch, other swimming areas accessible through popular walking trail.

Reviewed Sites: Bay 1 Site 16, Bay 3 Site 11

White Lake Campground 2stars
Whiteshell Provincial Park

(Best for S2-S3)
-Smaller Sized Campground
-Semi private or open sites
-Moderate foot traffic depending on location.
-Minimal walking trails
-Decent swimming area for dogs by boat launch, other swimming areas near by.

Reviewed Site:

Hecla Campground 4Stars
Hecla Provincial Park

(Best for S2-S3)
-Large Sized Campground
-All bays are loops
-Privacy varies by site
-Busy, lots of foot traffic depending on bay.
-Good amount of walking trails, can be busy
-Dog friendly beach & swimming area for dogs.

Reviewed Sites: Bay 4 Site 3

What are you waiting for? Go book your site and enjoy camping with your dog.