I was wondering what others are doing in an effort to keep their dog out of the bilge water in the bottom of the canoe. My first thought was to use a closed cell foam pad (like a Thermarest) in the bottom to give the dog a softer surface to lie on and be able to grip, as well as keeping them out of the water.

What do others use?

My first line of defense is a giant sponge like you get in the tile section of Home Depot. With that, and careful paddling and boot draining, I get a lot of the bilge water out. Hard to keep up on rainy days though. I've thought of either blue closed cell pad, or maybe even one of those kneeling pads that have adhesive, but have not tried yet.

I put down a piece of an old yoga mat. I do this mostly to keep her from slipping on the wet floor of the canoe. Her double coat is pretty thick so she rarely feels the cold and I'm not sure that moisture makes its way into her skin most of the time. Whatever the situation, she seems to enjoy having it. It also designates "her" spot so that's good too.

That's all for now. Take care and until next time....be well.

snapper

My dog tends to stand in the bow like a giant hood ornament so I don't pay a lot of attention to the bilge water in the boat other than trying to minimize it to keep the packs as dry as possible.

Some sort of foam pad should be all you need though and there are a lot of options that could work. Biggest thing for me would be trying to find a way to secure it to the bottom so that its one less thing to have to deal with at a portage.

I don't do anything for Echo...... he just lays on the bottom of the canoe. He never complains which makes him a great tripping partner ;)

I use a bailing sponge to wipe it dry but unless I'm travelling in the rain there's really no need. My border collie has a thick undercoat and will just shake herself dry at the landings if she gets wet. I don't have a pad for her in the boat but she's got some synthetic down and fleece for a bed when we camp. She's ok roughing it in the boat.

I use a big box dense foam mat, folded in half. It's always sufficient for the water off my boots and paddle. It gives Daisy a designated spot that has traction and is more comfortable too. When it's raining, the mat gets wet, of course.