Dogs and Tarp camping

Two reasons I use a tarptent instead of a tarp are:

(1) My dog is crate-trained so regards the tent as just another crate–it's his den, a place of refuge where he lies quietly until morning.

(2) It provides a bug-free space for the dog as well as for me. The bugs like to bite him around his eyes. Most dogs don't take well to headnets. Combine a tarp for two, a bug net big enough to protect my 80-lb dog as well as me and a ground sheet, and you have the same weight as a tarptent anyway.

I do keep the leash on the dog, just in case. If I were tarp-camping, I'd probably fasten the leash to something, because he'd most certainly wander off.

I've struggled with this for years. I use a short leash that I clip around my waist when I sleep. I have a far bigger Issue with a filthy wet dog and my squishy down bag. Hike for serveral hours in the rain and good luck getting them completely dry. Im working on a doggy bivy kinda like a burrito ontop of a small foam pad.
I'm very fortunate that I have built up a very srtong immunity to poison oak/ivy. I think that this is one of the largest dangers of having a dog in the backcounty. I've never had a lion come into my camp and for at least my experience bears are little to no threat to dogs. I have had black bears skirt my camp for a few sniffs with no reaction from either the bear or the dog. if your dogs are small enough a down vest makes a perfect sleeping bag. Good luck. Ali

Yah, she's crate-trained too.

I'm thinking of making a crate out of a foldable laundry hamper, with a foam pad for a floor. Luckily she's small and has plenty of fur for warmth, so I don't have to get her a sleeping bag for 3 season conditions.

Re the wet and muddy dog issue:

My dog's pack contains a couple of Handi-Wipes which I use to towel him off at bedtime. They remove most of the mud and make him a little less sopping. I then put on him a sweater I made out of an old lightweight polypro base layer shirt of mine. This puts a buffer between his wet fur and my sleeping bag yet allows him to dry during the night. With the polypro sweater and the DWR of my sleeping bag shell, this appears to be sufficient to protect my bag. I also don't let him roam around getting muddy after we've set up camp.

I discovered that even though my dog is mostly Lab, he starts shivering on really cold nights (even if not wet). That's because at home he's an indoor dog. The polypro "sweater" plus his pad (1/8" GG Thinlite) keeps him warm enough when it's below freezing. If it's a relatively warm night and dry, I don't use the sweater–overheating is always a problem with Labs.

If it's a dry night, I spend a few minutes combing the dog at bedtime. This procedure removes dust, dried mud, excess dog hair (my dog sheds perpetually) and any ticks that might be crawling around. (The ticks will die, thanks to Frontline, once they've bitten, but they may spend an hour or more lookinhg for the best place to latch on.) He loves this procedure, too.