Too many Bells & Whistles??

By WallDiver7 Ranked #120 - Backpacks May 2, 2009

I like this pack; it has everything you could possibly want in a dog pack and is very well made! For Piper and me it had too many features and, in the small, not enough capacity. The hydration system of the Palisade is just not needed (in fact it takes up valuable pack space which he needs for his food) since I typically backpack in the mountains where my dog has access to many streams. The other feature of little use to us was the compression system. I congratulate RuffWear for coming up with such a well thought out system to cinch down the bags, but we just didn't use it since maximum pack volume allows my dog just enough food for 5 to 6 days (with the bladders removed in a size Small). He needs enough pack capacity to accommodate him for 7 to 9 day trips.
The packs are removable from the harness. At first I thought this was sweet(!), Then I realized it was faster to take the entire pack off of him than it was to unfasten the saddle bags from the base harness (4 clips versus 2). Besides if (and he has in the past) he does a swift water swim across a river, I'd like for him to be as "clean" as possible to avoid hang-ups.
Sizing note: If you’re dog is close to the upper limit for a particular size… go UP one size instead of Down! Piper is a pit-bull hybrid (a nice way of saying he’s a mixed up Pit with taller legs than his true Pit cousins!) with a girth measurement of 29 inches and a neck to tail base length of about 21 inches. The Palisade small really didn’t work and I am planning to return it for a Medium in the Approach.

View Details: Ruffwear Palisades Dog Pack

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