Pet Care
Tips for Camping with Dogs
Ensuring your trips are safe and enjoyable!
We are very experienced campers, and have often camped with our dogs, so we wanted to share our best tips for making your camping trip enjoyable and safe.
Start with Short Trips
If your dogs are not used to long drives in the car and not used to going camping, start with something close to home for a short period of time, like a weekend.
Depending on how they fare, gradually expand your horizons and extent the length of your trips.
If your dogs are used to doing their business in your fenced yard, consider taking them for leashed walks around your home for a week or two before your trip. Dogs who are used to going off-leash and rarely go on walks might hold it and then wake you up in the middle of the night needing to go.
Safety and containment
Dogs and dog food attract wildlife. Keep your dog’s food sealed in the trunk of your car, or in bear-proof storage (not a cooler or tent), when not in use.
Please keep your dogs on leash at all times, except when using a designated leash free area. This is especially important on hiking trails as there can be horseback riders, wildlife, and fellow hikers using the trails. Please be safe and considerate, and always pick up after your dog — take lots of doggy bags!
Bring your dog’s tie-out, leash, X-pen, and kennel if you can. Tie-outs are great for the beach and for use around the campsite. X-pens can be great for use in Yurts or in the campsite as well, especially for dogs who tend to get themselves tanged up in their leash or tie-out, or who are not used to being kennelled.
Be conscious of the weather. Dogs’ cooling systems are not as efficient as ours, so they heat up more quickly. If possible, choose a campsite that has a lot of shade. You’ll need to pack a water dish for your dog and ensure they have regular and frequent access to fresh water.
Manitoba’s Park Reservation Service does allow you to check out the privacy and shade of your campsite prior to booking:
Visit our previous post with advice for preventing heat stroke in your pets for more tips.
The smaller, more rustic campgrounds tend to have quieter, private, and shaded sites. The trade-off is you are then usually further from amenities (and may only have a privy rather than modern washrooms), so you’ll have to do a cost-benefit analysis to determine which luxuries you’re willing to forego — or not.
Make sure you speak with your dog’s veterinarian about flea, tick, and heartworm prevention as these are a higher risk when you’re camping and hiking.
Consider your ability to explore
Dogs are not allowed to be left unattended in campsites, so you’ll need to take them with you everywhere you go, or have someone stay back with them.
Dogs are also usually not allowed on the main beach, so you may wish to pick a campground that offers a dog beach, or that has a shaded grassy area behind the beach where you can set up.
Some campgrounds that offer dog beaches:
Note: Manitoba’s campground dog beaches are usually the rocky shore on the far corner of the main beach, or near a boat launch. They are not usually very large or fancy, although some are quite nice. We recommend finding a campground that you like that happens to also have a dog beach, rather than selecting a campground based on its dog beach.
Asessippi Campground — North of Russell, MB and West of Riding Mountain National Park. Approximately 4 hours from Winnipeg. The “Point” can be accessed on the northwest side of the Shell Mouth Dam — follow the gravel road approximately 500 meters north to a small parking lot.
Grand Beach — another popular day trip beach and campground, only about an hour Northeast of Winnipeg (an hour and a half from where we are, West of the city). Grand Beach has designated dog swim areas at the far East and far West ends of the beach. **Please be careful, as there are a lot of sharp zebra mussels on this beach.** That aside, it is otherwise a gorgeous beach with lots of room for families and dogs to enjoy.
Hecla Island, Sunset Beach — Hecla campground is about 2 hours North of Winnipeg. The dog beach is near Gull Harbour point, the Northeast corner of Hecla-Grindstone.
Manipogo Campground — Northeast of Dauphin, about 3 1/2–4 hours from Winnipeg, depending on where you live. The dog park is past the Main Beach, West of the designated swim area.
Paint Lake Campground — near Thompson, Manitoba, Paint Lake is a solid 7–7 1/2 hours North of Winnipeg, the farthest campground from Winnipeg in this list. The dog beach is across from the main Paint Lake Marina, which is on the West shore of the campground.
Pioneer Bay Campground — Clearwater Lake (not Clear Lake). Clearwater Lake is North of The Pas, also about 7 hours North of Winnipeg. The dog beach is at the Hugo Bay boat launch.
Rainbow Beach Campground — this campground is on Dauphin Lake, about 3 1/2 hours Northwest of Winnipeg. The dog beach is past the Main Beach, east of the designated swimming area.
Spruce Woods, Kiche Manitou Campground — this is a very family-friendly campground that tends to be busy in the summertime, located approximately 2–2 1/2 hours West of Winnipeg. There is a small dog beach next to the footbridge along the southeast shoreline.
Turtle Mountain, Max Lake Campground — Turtle Mountain Provincial Park is about 3–3 1/2 hours Southwest of Winnipeg. Max Lake is a small, rustic campground, meant as a basecamp for backcountry campers and hikers.
Wekusko Falls Campground is up by Snow Lake, East of Flin Flon and Northeast of The Pas, about 7 hours Northwest of Winnipeg. The dog beach is on the Northeast shore of Wekusko Lake on the north side of the boat launch. This is North of the day use area, down a path and across a footbridge from the campsites.
Winnipeg Beach Campground— a popular day trip beach and campground, as it is only about one hour North of Winnipeg. The dog beach is on the South part of the beach, with access South of the water tower.
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Dog-friendly swimming areas in Manitoba
Adventures to Have with your Dog in Manitoba
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