If you are looking for dog-friendly activities that you can share with your four-legged friend, hiking is a great adventure to explore. The sights, sounds, and smells of the great outdoors offer a lot of enrichment and physical activity for the whole family.
With the proper preparation, a walk in the woods can relieve stress for you and your dog. Japanese studies have shown that time in forests can reduce human stress. And because of the enrichment opportunities dogs experience in nature, the same is true for our dogs. Giving them access to sniff new landscapes boosts mood and gives them mental stimulation.
Here is our recipe to help you fully take in nature’s embrace while with your dog:
Embarking on a nature walk with your canine companion can be delightful. Still, it requires preparation and training to prevent surprise stressors from killing your relaxation vibes!
Finding The Best Dog-Friendly Hiking Trails

Your first step should be finding a trail that allows dogs and then confirming their dog rules.
Please respect the rules if a trail is not open to dogs. While there are many reasons a trail may have this rule, many times it is to protect wildlife or even plants in a delicate ecosystem.
Hike with your dog lists trails by state that allows dogs. This list focuses on state and national parks but is a great starting point. AllTrails is another excellent resource. While not all trails listed allow dogs, trails are tagged with “dogs on leash” for dog-friendly trails.
AllTrails also has another vital feature for those of you starting out. Trail information such as distance and elevation is super important when you are first starting out. If you and your dog are new to hiking, it is best to find a loop trail under 1 mile. It is better to walk a short trail a few times than to find yourself (or your dog) 5 miles out with no way to get back to your car other than to walk back.
Online forums are also a great place to get other dog owner’s opinions on trails. Just remember, some of these dogs and humans have been hiking for years, so their definition of “easy” may not be the same as yours.
Dog Trail Training: What To Train Before You Take Your Dog For A Hike

Dog trail training starts before you ever step foot on a hiking path. When built correctly, these skills will help make your hike safer and more fun!
When building any new skills with your dog you want to set them up to succeed.
So, when building new behaviors, you want to work with your dog in low-distraction areas, such as your house. Once you are happy with the behavior, you will repeat your base-level exercises in a variety of environments, starting from the least distracting to the most distracting.
How do you know when your dog is ready for a different environment or criteria? Follow the Push-Drop-Stick method made popular by dog trainer and educator Jean Donaldson. Here are the steps:
Ask for a behavior (i.e., sit) 5 times, then change your criteria based on the results:
If you have trouble finding a successful transition, you need to reevaluate your training plan. For instance, if your dog sits 5 out of 5 times in the living room and you bring them to the front yard and they only perform 2 out of 5 times, it is time to start brainstorming an area that has more distractions than your living room but less than the front yard.
So, now that you have a plan to help you build stronger behaviors, let’s look at the most useful behaviors to build before taking your dog hiking.
Train Your Dog To Check In
This exercise will teach your dog to check in with you regularly. We will teach this by capturing attention.
Checking in is an excellent foundational behavior for building other important cues (like coming when called). I always recommend spending a lot of time building attention and focus. Because if you can’t get your dog’s attention, it doesn’t matter how great their sit is!
Start in a small, boring room. Set your timer for about 2 minutes the first time you play this game. Once in the room with your dog, you will just wait for your dog to look at you. When he does, mark the moment he looks with a yes (or any other marker you use, e.g., a clicker) and follow up with a treat.
Keep sessions short at first. You always want to leave your dog wanting more. You can do this several times a day. Work up to doing this exercise outside on a short leash (the less room we allow our dog to explore at first, the easier it is for your dog to focus). As they develop this skill, you can start to use longer leads or even try it off-leash if you are in a safe, enclosed area.
Note: People often want to add a verbal cue to this exercise. But we are trying to build a dog that checks in regularly without being asked. This is useful in the woods, especially if you find a trail where dogs can go off-leash. My labrador retriever is very good at this, and if she runs out of sight, I know she will come to find me shortly to check in.
Here is a great video from Cold Nose College that shows how to build this behavior and how it even helps to develop a good recall.
Teaching Loose Leash Walking
Most hiking trails require leashes, and this is the safest way to hike with dogs. But if your dog pulls on the leash, a walk in the woods may not be very relaxing.
So put some time in before you hit the trails (full of fun but distracting smells and critters) to build value for keeping the leash loose (and your shoulder in its socket!).
Loose leash walking is a whole article in itself! So, for a complete rundown of where to start depending on your dog, read Start Leash Walking On A Positive Note.
The goal for hiking is not a perfect heel. To take full advantage of the enrichment hikes offer, we want our dogs to feel like they can leave our side to sniff around. We aim to keep the leash loose so they aren’t pulling us around. With this in mind, this simple exercise that teaches dogs to give in to leash pressure will be helpful while walking your dog on a leash (and it also helps with our following recommended behavior).
Teach Your Dog To Leave It
Your dog will find many things on the trail he may want to taste test. But for his safety, you need to be able to tell your dog to turn away from any mysterious treasures he may find.
Even if your dog responds to a “Leave It” cue, you want to proof it with hikes in mind. So often, we teach our dogs to leave it while stationary, so when the context looks different, your dog won’t connect it. Set up training sessions where your dog is leaving things on walks. Here are the steps to take:
- Set up some low-value food on the floor.
- Walk your dog at a distance, around 5-6 feet away. It should be far enough away that your dog doesn’t pull to get to it. When your dog walks past it at this distance, mark it with a “yes” and follow up with a treat.
- As your dog is successful, move closer to the food.
- Note: People often want to push their dog closer than their dog can handle. It is important to understand that we are building value for leaving the food alone. We want to train the dog, not test the dog.
- Repeat this exercise from step one using moderate-value treats and toys. Slowly work up to high-value treats. Remember, the stronger your foundation, the more stable the behavior.
Coming When Called
Does your dog come to you 90% of the time when you call them? How about outside? If your dog only comes when there is nothing better going on, it is time to start training!
If you think, “Well, they come when I call them inside the house, but they ignore me outside,” you need to do some work before going on hikes. Even if you plan to keep them on their leash, you want a good recall in case of an emergency.
Dogs do not generalize well. So, while you may have built meaning for the recall inside your home, it doesn’t automatically transfer. This is true for any cue. So, you want to do some base-level work outside in various locations.
It is all about creating a positive association with your cue. You can even start conditioning a recall word simply by saying “come” and following up with a treat.
Then, you want to start slowly adding some distance. Here is how the basic exercise will look:
- Place several low-value treats on the floor. As your dog is eating them, take a step or two away from your dog.
- As your dog finishes the treats, call him using your recall word.
- Mark the behavior with a “yes” or a clicker as he approaches you. Treat him – I recommend treating him on the floor between your feet. This will minimize the chance that we build in overzealous recall with our dogs jumping on us! It also ensures that we are conditioning our dogs to come in close enough to us that we can gain control of them if they are loose.
Following the Push–Drop-Stick protocol mentioned above, start adding more distance. Then, you want to start setting training sessions up with distractions and in new environments, as illustrated in this video by Kikopup.
Proper Physical Conditioning For Hiking With Your Dogs
Training obedience is one of many considerations when preparing for hikes. You must also ensure you and your dog have the physical conditioning to tackle your chosen trail.

Be Cautious When Hiking With Puppies
Before puppies are fully grown, their growth plates are not closed, putting them at greater risk of injury. Repetitive motions are generally more risky, so less is more. If you are walking on pavement, take stops for free play. Read this article to dig deeper and compare an x-ray of a puppy’s growth plates to that of an adult.
These short walks will also fit better with your training plan. By the time it is safe to take longer hikes, you should be able to have lots of quick and fun training walks!
Start Small
Even if your dog is fully grown, if he doesn’t walk a lot, start slow and build up his stamina. Like humans, we can’t expect them to go from couch potato to 5k overnight! Overworking them can result in tender muscles or even injury. Observe your dog the day after a walk. If he seems tired or even cranky, it is likely a sign that you need to start slower, or you should check with your vet to make sure there isn’t something physically hurting him.
Warm-Up Your Dog
Like with us, warming up a dog prepares their muscles for higher-impact activities. When I get to a trail, I like to do the following. Click on each exercise name to see a video demonstrating:
Cookie Stretch
Hold a cookie at your dog’s nose and lure it back to the hip. Hold for a few seconds, then release the cooking and repeat on the other side. This warms up the spine and increases flexibility.
Play Bow
Hold a cookie at your dog’s nose and lure their head between their front feet. When the dog’s head is down, mark and treat. Watch for subtle elbow bends before the mark treat as they get more fluent with this. This warms up your dog’s front legs.

Paws Up
Lure your dog slowly over an elevated object. If your dog jumps onto the object, then move even slower. Mark and treat when a paw goes on the object. Then, build up to two paws. Most videos will show teaching this behavior with a training platform (such as a Klimb of Cato Board). While I love these tools, you can teach this on any elevated surface, such as yoga blocks, aerobic steps or even a book. This works the hind end.
Bonus: Teaching this position can help create cute positions for photos in the woods!

Start teaching these behaviors before you hit the trail. You can do short walks in addition to the warm-ups to help you determine the dog’s fitness level. Watch for signs of fatigue, such as heavy panting and muscle shaking. This lets you know it is time to give your dog a rest for the day, and you will need to build up to longer walks.
Trail Etiquette When Hiking With Dogs
Be a responsible dog owner when you hike trails with your dog. If we all respect the trails and other hikers, dogs may be allowed to hike in more areas! We’ve already discussed finding dog-friendly trails. So, what else can we do to be good stewards of the trails that invite our furry friends to come along for the adventure?

Respect Leash Restrictions
Leashes keep other hikers and wildlife safe from having to interact with our dogs. The trails should be safe for everyone, particularly for the wildlife that calls it home.
Don’t Leave Anything Behind. Even Poop!
Many dog owners believe that since the wildlife poops in the woods, their dog’s waste will blend right in. The nutrients in our dog’s waste are not native to this ecosystem and can negatively affect it. Read here for more information on this.
Pass Politely
Respect the right of way. Commonly, hikers going uphill have the right of way.
When passing people going the opposite way, prevent your dog from jumping up on them. Decide before you start your hike what will work best for your dog. I often throw treats on the ground so they are busy sniffing while people pass. However, your dog may need more space to keep from getting overstimulated. If so, walk to the path’s edge and keep your dog’s attention.
Other Frequently Asked Questions
Here are common questions posed about hiking with dogs that we haven’t covered yet:
Can I put a hiking backpack on my dog?
Your dog can wear a backpack made for dogs! Any backpack you choose should have a snug fit (while you should still be able to insert two fingers). But you also want to make sure to build up the use of the backpack. Put it on (empty) for short periods and make positive associations with it. Start to build up both the weight and the time they wear the backpack. Like hiking, you want to take them on short walks where you can observe your dog to ensure they don’t seem fatigued or stressed while wearing their backpack.
Can you put a dog in a hiking backpack?
Some dogs love riding along in a hiking backpack. As long as you have trained your dog to ride comfortably, it is a great way to get your dog out to see new sights and smells when they may not be able to walk as far. We had a small dog that would ride along in this carrier. She would let us know when she wanted to walk and would jump up to let us know she was ready to ride. She explored miles of the Smoky Mountains this way.
Should I take my dog up a mountain?
Dogs in good health and appropriately conditioned can climb mountains. But just like people embarking on a mountain climb, you must build them up with training. Work separately with longer hikes and grades of trails. If you want inspiration, I highly recommend the book Following Atticus by Tom Ryan. While he doesn’t give advice about climbing mountains with dogs, the challenge he takes on and shares with his little dog will delight any animal lover who is thinking of hitting the trail.
Do dogs need shoes for hiking?
Having your dog wear shoes on hikes has benefits. It gives them added traction and protects them from sharp trail hazards such as thorns, sticks, or rough surfaces. You must train them to accept the boots, which can take some time. An alternative to dog shoes is a dog paw trail wax like Rhino Wax.
In Conclusion
While there is a lot to consider when getting your dog ready to hike, with some preparation, it can be an excellent activity to share with your pup!
A little research will help you discover many great places that welcome your dog, but you will also go in with info on the trail and how challenging the hike may be.
Spending time training some basic obedience and doing physical warm-ups will make walks much more relaxing, which will improve the bonding experience for both you and your dog!
So get ready to go out and have some grand adventures!

Authors
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Devene obtained a BA in Journalism from Michigan State University and spent several years working in marketing. However, when she adopted her first greyhound (who came with some behavior challenges), she began researching ways to modify her problem behavior and found help with a local dog trainer. She became a volunteer assistant to learn more, and eventually started teaching classes and conducting private lessons. She currently trains puppies full-time to become scent detection dogs. Devene lives in Michigan with her husband and kids, as well as 4 dogs, 2 cats and a tortoise.
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