Question - what breed is your dog, hound dog? cattle dog? Sled dog? Most dogs that are of the working breeds like stimulation. You can try the backpacks, put a water bottle in each side, that way you will have extra water for their walk as well. You might want to see if there is a flyball organization in your area becasue working dogs not only need the stimulation of lts of walkies they benefit highly by having a job, they prefer lots of direction. They thrive when they know they are being productive. My Aussie use to go with me everywhere, I always had a ball in the cr for him, and I would always tell him to guard the car when I left for an errand. If I was gone for any length of time, I would find him with his ball having sought out a kid to play with him. Good luck

My first husky Aleksander was our pack dog. You can safely add 10% of their body weight. It didn't slow him down at all though. Not really sure he even noticed.

If you're in an area prone to emergency evacuations (hurricane, fire, etc.) a pack could be useful.

I know some people who keep their dog's emergency supplies in a doggie backpack to make any evacuations easier. Doggie can carry her own supplies and copies of her paperwork. Having the dog lug her own water around on day trips keeps her comfortable with the backpack in the event of an emergency.

My 22 lb. American Eskimo's groomer sells dog backpacks - functional/cute - BUT - the recommended minimum weight for the dog wearing such a backpack is 40 lbs. Of course there are the useless, accessory type of backpacks that you will see on teacup dogs, but these are the real thing - such as Cesar uses. My dog is strong, but I would never put that extra weight on his back - worried about the pressure on his very long legs. And of course - I used to have mini Dachshunds - dogs of my life - surgeries to prove it - so I really worry about pressure on backs. If my guy was large enough to carry a pack and did not have back issues as many large dogs do, I might get one.

I was just thinking about posting about dog backpacks, but you've beat me to it!

I was thinking about getting one for my high energy German Shorthaired pointer. Currently, we are doing 3-5 mile walks every morning, which is great, but we live on the east coast, and winter will be here before I know it. I thought I could cut down on the time and length of each walk with a back pack. I was planning on putting a water bottle on each side to start... I've also heard of people making their own backpacks, but I would want something safe for the dog.

I found this link yesterday, so I'm thinking about ordering this one.

Here is a link that might be useful: dog backpack that looked pretty good

I like that backpack.

Here's Aleksander wearing his pack:

But like I said, don't expect the dog to tire out quicker just because he's wearing a pack. Aleksander never even noticed.

I've contemplated the backpacks, but still haven't decided. There are several on Amazon.