Dog Camping Gear for a First Overnight
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One night out changes the arithmetic. A day hike needs one snack and one drink; an overnight needs two meals, a dozen water stops and a way to carry all of it, with no car five minutes away when something turns out to be missing. This kit is the pack, the bottle that doubles as a bowl, a second bowl for camp, a light snack for the miles, and the case you hope stays shut.
Overnight, with the car nearby
This is a car camping list for a dog, not a backcountry load. You are driving to a site or a trailhead, sleeping out one or two nights, and walking from there. The planning side of that, from choosing a site to what the evening looks like, is in our guide to car camping with a dog and across the trail and travel hub.
What goes in the pack, and the pack itself
Five pieces. Two of them are bowls, which is deliberate.
Rubyloo's Original Doggy Bag is the carrier: two compartments, insulated dry food storage, two BPA free collapsible bowls, a built in poop bag dispenser and a ten pocket system. It comes in Dusty Pink, Grey, Black, Beige and a Paw Print, and Rubyloo sizes it to fit under most airplane seats. The insulated food compartment is the part that earns the price on a second night, because measured meals in a sealed space beat a bag of kibble rolling around a trunk. Skip it if you already own a duffel you like and a separate food container.
The shared water bottle is food grade stainless steel with double wall copper vacuum insulation, and an 8 ounce bowl detaches from the base under a leak proof chug lid. Rubyloo sizes the base for car cup holders wider than 3.6 inches and offers nine color and graphic options. On the trail it means one bottle covers both of you at a stop, and the insulation keeps water cold enough that the dog actually drinks it at two in the afternoon. Rubyloo items are sold and shipped by Rubyloo through Shopify Collective and arrive separately.
The Onyx Heart collapsible bowl from Pink Papyrus Co. is the camp bowl, black food grade silicone holding up to 1.5 cups, collapsing flat with a gold clip for a leash or a pack strap. Two bowls sounds like one too many until the evening you are rehydrating dinner in one and want water standing in the other. Pink Papyrus Co. says to run it on the top rack of the dishwasher and dry it completely before storing. Pink Papyrus Co. items are sold and shipped by Pink Papyrus Co. through Shopify Collective and arrive separately.
Our freeze dried sardines are whole sardines and nothing else, sold in 1.5, 3 and 6 ounce bags, with crude protein listed at a minimum of 52 percent and about 94.9 kcal per ounce. Take the 3 ounce for one night and the 6 ounce for anything longer. Whole fish holds up in a pack better than anything soft, and the smell does work for you on a busy campsite where a dog has forty new things to look at.
The Rubyloo first aid case rounds it out, with a handbook, a tick remover, tweezers, saline solution and a thermal blanket, and Rubyloo describes it as made with vet approved, pet safe materials reviewed by veterinary professionals. It comes in an Essential Size and a Travel Size, and the Travel Size is the one that disappears into a pack. Skip it only if the kit already in your own bag covers a dog, which most of them do not.
What we left out
No dog sleeping bag. A dog that sleeps in the tent with you is warm because you are there, and a dog sleeping in the car has the back seat. If your dog is short coated and the forecast is cold, a blanket from home does the same job as a purpose made bag for none of the money. We also left out a tie out stake, because established sites are usually gravel or hard pack and a stake that will not seat is weight you carried for nothing.
The first night, in order
Walk the dog before you unpack anything. Set the camp bowl down with water as soon as the dog is off the leash, because a dog arriving at a new place drinks less than it should. Feed at the same times you feed at home, out of the insulated compartment, so one variable stays fixed. Sardines are for the trail the next morning rather than the evening, since a dog that has been paid all night has nothing to work for on the walk. Pack the first aid case where you can reach it in the dark, not at the bottom of the main compartment.
What this replaces
A grocery bag of kibble, a folding bowl from the glovebox and a bottle each. The pack is the real swap, because everything for the dog ending up in one bag is what stops you leaving the bowl at the last site. Two bowls replace the awkward routine of rinsing one bowl between water and dinner with water you were saving to drink.
Questions
Overnight trips raise a few things that day hikes never do.
How much food should I bring?
What the dog eats at home, measured per meal, plus one extra meal. The insulated compartment holds it dry, and measuring it before you leave saves guessing with a scoop in the dark.
Is one bottle enough water?
For a walk from camp, usually. For the drive and the site itself, bring a larger container and treat the bottle as the thing that goes in a pocket on the trail.
What is worth adding for a longer trip?
Two things travel well. Montana Dog Food Co makes a 3 ounce pork tenderloin Trail Snack in Bozeman, Montana, single ingredient, which gives a second flavor for the second day. Lillian Ruff's drawstring travel kit holds four 0.33 ounce waterless shampoos, a leave in conditioner and detangler, a breath spray and an ear cleaner. Montana Dog Food Co items are sold and shipped by Montana Dog Food Co through Shopify Collective and arrive separately. Lillian Ruff items are sold and shipped by Lillian Ruff through Shopify Collective and arrive separately.
Related guides
Overnight kits are filed under trail on the bundle guides hub, next to the day hike lists. Want something other than sardines? Compare the freeze dried dog treats, or filter the whole range by protein and format on Explore.
