just got back from Macugnaga and have a question for those of you who are more experienced regarding scotland than me.
whilst we were there there were a few people who had taken their dogs up the chailift or got them to follow when on the tow, the dogs then ran behind them (or in one case between their legs) down to the bottom.
so my question is, can the same be done in scotland?

Good idea. May give the Aberdonians some cover for all the sheep-worrying that they are blamed for around Glenshee.

Our GSD once chased a sheep which bust through a previously intact Nevis snowfence under the quad and just kept going. The dense mutt thought the bits of fence was better entertainment so let the sheep go have a heart attack in peace.

There is a famous jack russell belonging to snopatrol girl at Glenshee which has been known to follow climbers/skinners to Ballater by mistake.

Up the dog lobby!

I've been on a quad in Whistler with a dog! It queued along with the rest of us (and it's ski patrol owner), got on and off the chair unassisted and generally seemed to be enjoying itself.

I don't know if there are any rules regarding dogs but a year or two ago I felt like reporting what I witnessed to the RSPCA.
A man went up in front of me on the fiacall ridge poma with a young dog, not much more than a puppy, on a lead. I don't know if it was the effect of the cold or the amount of effort the puppy had to put in to keep up with the poma but it had an effect on its bowels. The poor wee thing obviously couldn't stop to relieve itself so it did it as it tried to keep up with the poma. Eventually the owner realised how distressed it was and left the tow, but I felt what he had put that pup through was disgraceful.
Not very nice for following skiers either! Yes you expect the occasional rock on a tow track, but not that!

Mick,
i think the dog belongs to kate @ the gsp :-)

Think that's bad Helen?...our dogs have been near CPR state chasing us up tows, nearly drowned dropping through drifts into burns, stuck in snowholes for hours, had the cops APB them, their eyeslashes frozen shut, had paws skied and boarded over etc etc. Oh aye and emptied their bowels and puked in every vehicle we have owned (and a couple of hotels)- funny now but maybe not at the time. The last time I left one at home she jumped the (6ft) fence and had the local bobbies play hide&seek with her for a few hours and then suggest we donate some £ to their funds. Don't you just love woofs.

Aye euro its Kate's and he's a friendly wee guy who knows its quality not quantity that counts.

so it would appear that if the dog is very fit, has a good thick coat and is well behaved and skilled it shouldnt be a problem?
i dont think that the fitness should be a problem as she comes mountain biking with me, she dont get cold when we go walking in snow (obviously she wouldnt be working as hard in these conditions so would be more likely to get cold), and the behaviour issue is a non starter, she doesnt do any tricks but knows everything practical she needs to ,
thanks for the replys guys
any more opinions, especially from those of you who may have objections.

i'll chime in on this as a non dog owner

i'm happy to see well behaved / looked after dogs on the hill esp when hiking off piste & in the summer.

but i honestly recon there's enough hassle dodging rocks , heather , streams , beginners and bits of fence and such a lack of piste width that a dog owner might cop a fair bit of abuse from some folk.

it's bad enough passing a dog on a forest track without it jumping in front of you or running beside you trying to snap your ankles :-O


its really the space and control issues that come to mind.

Dave

I go touring on the hills and in forests with my colllie and she loves it (apart from swimming through powder!) but I wouldn't take her on a piste. I remember someone att glenshee who had the dog running beside them on a poma and running down behind them, was asked to take the dog elsewhere as it was a hazzard. Away from crowds I think dogs are fine but the runs are usually too confined to have mad dogs running around!.

Even if the dogs are very fit, think if you could run up the mountian at the speed of the M1 Poma! This is generally frowned up on, its hard on the dogs esp if they are not used to such conditions, and there is also a real risk of the dog getting badly injured in a collision, esp when the pistes are narrow and crowded.

Do remember a chair coming into the Top Station on the gorm with two dogs on it... lifite opened the bars and they hoped off and sat by the wall for the next chair which turned out to have two guys from the mountain rescue team. Wish I had a camera, thought I was seeing things at first!

[%sig%]

hmm mixed opinions
for what its worth, my other half does not want her to go, not for any safety issue, just becuase she gets lonely when me and my hill partner go away (just had my ear bashed that there is a safety issue)
hadnt thought about the narrow piste issue, having got used to the super wide ones in Italy. maybe we should just move to europe instead, at least we would be (almost) guaranteed good conditions,
jurys still out, but its never nice to piss someone off
andy and eurotelle do you seriuosly think that i would consider taking a dog if i wasnt totally sure of her not snapping at ankles or being 'mad'?

george
...should have said " mountain biking in the summer on forrest tracks " whoops !!!!


as i said earlier iv'e no objections to dogs on the hill but ski resorts here just dont have the space

eurotele
i can def agree with the probs with dogs and bikes or running, they are a damn nusciance, but only when they get in the way. dont know what it is about mine but she aint interested in people, maybe its because they are not squirell or rabbit shaped. looks like she wont come with me then, shame

quote
"andy and eurotelle do you seriuosly think that i would consider taking a dog if i wasnt totally sure of her not snapping at ankles or being 'mad'?"

As a dog owner I meant "mad" in a nice way i.e playfull, etc....Dogs have never pissed me off when i'm on the hills and it's great to see them enjoying themselves but you can't have dogs running around the pistes in scotland - personally i'd be worried about other people smacking into them.
Why not go ski touring with your dog if you want to take it skiing - thats what I do.

Just got back from Aviemore and amazed to see this thread -- there was a dog up at Ptarmigan bowl yesterday! He was running up and down for what must have been an hour or so in the blizzard conditions we had up there yesterday. Wasn't a shaggy variety either; it was a short-haired one! Very brave considering the windchill yesterday.