One thing I am asked a lot about when I go camping or head out on road trips is what I do about feeding my dogs. Answer? The dogs get their same food as always 😊
Here are some of the things I’ve learned along the way.
Invest in a good cooler!
After the first couple of overnight camping trips, I realized that I needed something for road trips and camping that would keep the food cold for more than a day and wouldn’t need fresh ice every couple of hours during warmer months. I got lucky and found a YETI on sale and it has not disappointed. It almost works too well but, more on that in a bit.
(Their cooler has also become a bit of a record of where we’ve been.)
Preparing for the trip
I like to have the meal(s) for day one defrosted and portioned into a couple of Messy Mutts bowls. This makes things so much easier if you’re feeding breakfast at a road stop on the drive to your first destination. And, after a long travel day, the pups can happily enjoy their meal at your campsite or accommodation while you set up camp or relax after the drive.
The remainder of the food I pack straight from the freezer. I prefer having the 1 lb or 1.5 lb packages on road trips as this makes portioning easier. They also pack better into the cooler and create less garbage bulk. I have found that, when packed frozen solid, I do not need to add any ice to the cooler for the first couple of days (depending on weather). The food slowly defrosts over the next few days, giving me 5 days before needing to restock. Five (5) days is also the maximum time I feel safe to keep the meat in the cooler as this is roughly how long it takes for the individual packages to defrost.* Always check the packaging as well on details about how long the food can be fed safely once defrosted.
As a side note, my dogs are okay with eating food that it still partially frozen. Some dogs are a little pickier. You can always remove the portion for their next meal a little ahead of time. Keep in mind that food will defrost and spoil a lot faster during the warmer months. You will have to find what works for you 😊
A quick note on raw bones such as turkey necks, sardines or herring. I have found that these will defrost VERY quickly in the cooler. I will only bring a small quantity for the first couple of days, if at all.
*please note that this is a guideline I have for myself based on how my cooler works. You will need to see what works best for you and the gear you have. I check all packages every day. If things are defrosting faster than I had hoped, I will add ice and toss anything that has spoiled.
Planning a restock location for longer camping or road trips
I’m still a pen and paper kind of girl when it comes to planning my trips. I write out the different dates on a piece of paper and make note of the meals needed that day. For example, if I plan on feeding the dogs at home the first day, I only need to plan on one meal to pack for that day. Once I have my meals/day figured out, I can plan on when I need to restock based on what fits and will safely keep fresh in the dogs’ cooler.
This also helps for planning how many packages of dehydrated raw I should have on hand in the event of a longer remote camping trip or greater distance between retailers where I can restock on our preferred brand of frozen raw. Which brings me to the next point and a big lesson learned.
Always have a backup!
I love camping in the fall, especially up in Northern Ontario. One of the things about Ontario falls is that the weather can change very quickly. You can have a warm t-shirt day followed by, well, bundle your
butt up because it’s freezing! And, you never know what you’re going to get from one year to the next.
A couple of years ago, camping up at Agawa, the temperatures climbed upwards of 25°C (77°F) mid October. I went up again for Canadian Thanksgiving the following year and Juni, Jethro and I woke up to snow. Needless to say, when the temperatures drop below freezing, frozen raw no longer defrosts! I had 1 lb bricks of raw that I was chiseling away at for the dogs.
Lesson learned? It’s always good to have a backup when you are camping at a time of year when temperatures can fluctuate between bikini weather and balaclavas. On multi-day road trips, it provides peace of mind in case you miss the opening hours for your restock location.
We currently use TREK as our backup. There are two different flavour combinations: Turkey & Beef and Turkey & Salmon. One bag reconstitutes to 4 lbs of food.
Keeping things clean when traveling
One of the most important things when feeding raw is making sure to keep things clean. This is even more crucial when you don’t always have immediate access to hot water and soap. For myself, I keep bottles of hand sanitizer in the door pocket of the car, so I always know where to find it. Additionally, I use disposable gloves when preparing their bowls to keep my hands clean. I also pack Lysol wipes or another type of disinfectant wipes to clean up any spills.
The bowls, and anything I use for portioning such as a fork or spoon, are kept in their own reusable bag (not cloth!) after feeding if I cannot wash them right away. This way they’re not contaminating other things in the car until I find a place with a bathroom or am able to boil water at our next stop.
Don’t forget the extras!
The raw I take on the road is complete and balanced according to NRC standards. I do add certain supplements for their joints as well as an Omega-3, such as Herring Oil. A small Rubbermaid container is perfect for keeping their supplements, and anything else such as special treats, rubber gloves and feeding fork/spoon, small scale (if needed), easily accessible at all times.
If there is space, I put the dogs’ medical kit, hiking water bottle, extra rolls of poop bags, and, in this case, dehydrated raw bags, in the bin as well. It truly makes things a lot less stressful having things in one place.
One last thing
The most important thing to remember is that you need to find what works best for you. If you plan on using a dehydrated raw as an occasional meal replacement or to make things easier while traveling, make sure to let your pup try this meal before your trip. The texture and flavour will be different from what they may be used to, and you don’t want to find out on your trip that they don’t like the food. Especially since dehydrated raw is also more expensive than frozen raw.
Happy T(r)ails!
A HEART FOR ADVENTURE 