The vizsla was bred for woods and water, which makes Ramzi, a 48-pound, 8-year male, the perfect Boundary Waters paddling companion for Aaron Opp, 35, a Creative Project Manager in St. Paul, Minn. The American Kennel Club describes the vizsla as “a versatile dog of power, drive, and endurance in the field.” Its drive is so valued that should one’s show vizsla have scars from woods and water, no points will be deducted. For some judges, the more battered, the better. Unfortunately, once Ramzi’s battering got the better of him.
Courtesy Aaron Opp “On one Boundary Waters trip, I noticed him limping and refusing to put much weight on one leg,” Opp remembers. “I immediately thought about having to carry him over the portages the next day. I gave him a look-over and noticed a bruise about the size of a quarter on this leg. What I think happened was that while he and I were out looking for firewood, he had been running underneath the pine trees, breaking through a lot of dried branches.”
When one wrong branch hit the right leg muscle, Opp had an issue: What do you do when your rough and ready dog isn’t ready?
“We had him stand in the cold water for a while and then kept him quiet for the rest of the night. By morning he was back to running around like nothing had happened.”
The breed is sometimes called Velcro vizsla, for they often follow owners like a caboose. Opp found this to be so when he attempted to go fishing sans Ramzi.
“Deirdre, my wife, and I were camped on Skipper Lake in the BWCA. I took the canoe out on the water to do some solo fishing one morning while Ramzi stayed at camp with Deirdre. She had to hold Ramzi back while I paddled away because he wanted to come with me. After I got a safe distance away, Deirdre released him and Ramzi proceeded to pace back and forth on the shoreline. Once I got about a quarter-mile away he decided he’d had enough of that and he jumped off the rocks and into the water and started swimming after me. When I noticed him swimming out to me I turned back and met him about 1/3 of the way back. He turned around and swam next to me as I paddled back to camp. He looked very relieved to have me back at camp, I’m sure he was also proud for having retrieved me. That was the end of my fishing trip for the day.”
courtesy Aaron Opp Just as Teddy’s Roosevelt’s Rough Riders led the charge up San Juan Hill, Ramzi, the Opps’ Rough Rider, likes to charge up hills. “He’s always entertaining and its fun watching him have so much fun exploring. He’s also an incredibly athletic dog/breed. It’s amazing to watch him put his natural abilities to use while out in the wilderness. Oftentimes we wonder if he’s part mountain goat, considering how well he can climb. Sometimes he’ll run up rock wall and be standing on top in no time, leaving you below wondering how he just did that.”
Ramzi also likes to ride in the bow of the Wenonah Minnesota II that the Opps typically rent for their Boundary Water canoe trips. “He loves to sit or stand in the front of the canoe and act as our hood ornament. He’ll keep his nose high in into the wind as much as possible to catch as many scents as he can. It’s not what he sees, but what he smells. He loves sticking his nose into the air in hopes of catching any stray scents. You’ll see him turn his face into the wind to catch as many smells as possible.” Because Ramzi is enchanted by scents, toys aren’t needed. [More tips on paddling with your pooch HERE] “We don’t really bring many toys. When we are paddling he’s usually up and alert checking for smells, he’d ignore any toy we brought. At camp, he’s busy doing perimeter checks of the campsite, checking out the trails right around camp, stalking the resident chipmunk, etc. He doesn’t have much time for a toy. If he does, a good stick to chew on will do just fine.” Ramzi, however, does require a sleeping bag. Rather, Opp requires Ramzi to have his own sleeping bag. “I’ve also learned to bring him his own small fleece sleeping bag. Before I did that, he had the habit of crawling into my sleeping back with me.” Ramzi does require Opp to rein in his Rough Rider here and there.
“The hardest thing can be to manage his energy level and his alertness,” he says. “He’s incredibly vigilant so he’ll hear/see/smell things that we either can’t or he’ll know they are there long before we do. He also has an almost endless amount of energy, which doesn’t always go well with canoeing. Overall, though we have good verbal and physical control over him, so he’s fairly easy to manage.” If you have a high-energy dog like Ramzi and you’re considering taking him a long-distance paddling trip, Opp has some advice: “I would recommend that you start slowly and if you can, start the dog young. Don’t make the dog’s first trip a weeklong trip in the BWCA. Instead, do a short trip on local water where you can abort the trip if it doesn’t go well. Also, keep your dog in mind when planning your trip. I only bring the dog on trips that the dog is suited for. If I plan to do a lot of fishing on a trip, I won’t bring him as he’ll get bored and restless in the canoe all day and I won’t leave him unattended at camp.” That’s because Opp has learned that he can’t leave Ramzi, the Velcro vizsla, in camp, but not for long.
Essentials for Canoeing and Kayaking with Dogs
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Advice for Wilderness Canoeing with Dogs
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Adventure Pup Gear We’re Using Right Now
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The article was originally published on Canoe & Kayak
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The vizsla was bred for woods and water, which makes Ramzi, a 48-pound, 8-year male, the perfect Boundary Waters paddling companion for Aaron Opp, 35, a Creative Project Manager in St. Paul, Minn. The American Kennel Club describes the vizsla as “a versatile dog of power, drive, and endurance in the field.” Its drive is so valued that should one’s show vizsla have scars from woods and water, no points will be deducted. For some judges, the more battered, the better. Unfortunately, once Ramzi’s battering got the better of him.
“On one Boundary Waters trip, I noticed him limping and refusing to put much weight on one leg,” Opp remembers. “I immediately thought about having to carry him over the portages the next day. I gave him a look-over and noticed a bruise about the size of a quarter on this leg. What I think happened was that while he and I were out looking for firewood, he had been running underneath the pine trees, breaking through a lot of dried branches.”
When one wrong branch hit the right leg muscle, Opp had an issue: What do you do when your rough and ready dog isn’t ready? “We had him stand in the cold water for a while and then kept him quiet for the rest of the night. By morning he was back to running around like nothing had happened.”
The breed is sometimes called Velcro vizsla, for they often follow owners like a caboose. Opp found this to be so when he attempted to go fishing sans Ramzi.
“Deirdre, my wife, and I were camped on Skipper Lake in the BWCA. I took the canoe out on the water to do some solo fishing one morning while Ramzi stayed at camp with Deirdre. She had to hold Ramzi back while I paddled away because he wanted to come with me. After I got a safe distance away, Deirdre released him and Ramzi proceeded to pace back and forth on the shoreline. Once I got about a quarter-mile away he decided he’d had enough of that and he jumped off the rocks and into the water and started swimming after me. When I noticed him swimming out to me I turned back and met him about 1/3 of the way back. He turned around and swam next to me as I paddled back to camp. He looked very relieved to have me back at camp, I’m sure he was also proud for having retrieved me. That was the end of my fishing trip for the day.”
Just as Teddy’s Roosevelt’s Rough Riders led the charge up San Juan Hill, Ramzi, the Opps’ Rough Rider, likes to charge up hills. “He’s always entertaining and its fun watching him have so much fun exploring. He’s also an incredibly athletic dog/breed. It’s amazing to watch him put his natural abilities to use while out in the wilderness. Oftentimes we wonder if he’s part mountain goat, considering how well he can climb. Sometimes he’ll run up rock wall and be standing on top in no time, leaving you below wondering how he just did that.”
Ramzi also likes to ride in the bow of the Wenonah Minnesota II that the Opps typically rent for their Boundary Water canoe trips. “He loves to sit or stand in the front of the canoe and act as our hood ornament. He’ll keep his nose high in into the wind as much as possible to catch as many scents as he can. It’s not what he sees, but what he smells. He loves sticking his nose into the air in hopes of catching any stray scents. You’ll see him turn his face into the wind to catch as many smells as possible.” Because Ramzi is enchanted by scents, toys aren’t needed.
[More tips on paddling with your pooch HERE]
“We don’t really bring many toys. When we are paddling he’s usually up and alert checking for smells, he’d ignore any toy we brought. At camp, he’s busy doing perimeter checks of the campsite, checking out the trails right around camp, stalking the resident chipmunk, etc. He doesn’t have much time for a toy. If he does, a good stick to chew on will do just fine.”
Ramzi, however, does require a sleeping bag. Rather, Opp requires Ramzi to have his own sleeping bag. “I’ve also learned to bring him his own small fleece sleeping bag. Before I did that, he had the habit of crawling into my sleeping back with me.” Ramzi does require Opp to rein in his Rough Rider here and there.
“The hardest thing can be to manage his energy level and his alertness,” he says. “He’s incredibly vigilant so he’ll hear/see/smell things that we either can’t or he’ll know they are there long before we do. He also has an almost endless amount of energy, which doesn’t always go well with canoeing. Overall, though we have good verbal and physical control over him, so he’s fairly easy to manage.”
If you have a high-energy dog like Ramzi and you’re considering taking him a long-distance paddling trip, Opp has some advice: “I would recommend that you start slowly and if you can, start the dog young. Don’t make the dog’s first trip a weeklong trip in the BWCA. Instead, do a short trip on local water where you can abort the trip if it doesn’t go well. Also, keep your dog in mind when planning your trip. I only bring the dog on trips that the dog is suited for. If I plan to do a lot of fishing on a trip, I won’t bring him as he’ll get bored and restless in the canoe all day and I won’t leave him unattended at camp.”
That’s because Opp has learned that he can’t leave Ramzi, the Velcro vizsla, in camp, but not for long.
Essentials for Canoeing and Kayaking with Dogs
Read article
Advice for Wilderness Canoeing with Dogs
Read article
Adventure Pup Gear We’re Using Right Now
Read article
The article was originally published on Canoe & Kayak
Essentials for Canoeing and Kayaking with Dogs
Read article
Essentials for Canoeing and Kayaking with Dogs
Advice for Wilderness Canoeing with Dogs
Read article
Advice for Wilderness Canoeing with Dogs
Adventure Pup Gear We’re Using Right Now
Read article
Adventure Pup Gear We’re Using Right Now
For access to exclusive gear videos, celebrity interviews, and more, subscribe on YouTube!
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