After getting skinned up (again) and almost dropping our 70 pound Golden while hoisting him into the float plane, I have decided it is time to come up with a better loading solution. I am thinking about building some sort of light weight ramp that he can walk up from the dock into the plane. Do any of you use something like this for your dogs, or seen any such thing? I would be interested in hearing what others have done. Thank you for any thoughts.

Steve

Would he walk up a 2x8? Probably as easy and light as anything...

Thinking about maybe a fold-up truck ramp?

https://www.harborfreight.com/6-ft-x-9- ... 96513.html

Hi Steve,
I have one similar to this for my dogs for getting in the truck

https://www.amazon.ca/Pet-Gear-Tri-Fold ... az66q93f_e

This one like mine is 70” so I think it would be perfect for loading from dock to plane. My dogs had no issue with it, plus it is lightweight and folds up pretty small.

If you are ever flying near Kenora, stop in and you can borrow it to try....

Ian

I started to make one, but found I could buy a better one for less than the material costs online. There are lots of manufacturers that build dog ramps for SUVs and trucks. I bought a collapsible one that easily fit in the plane. Shorter ones create too steep a ramp for an old dog to get up. Our coon hound weighed 80 pounds so the ramp saved my back as well as being easy for the dog. She is no longer with us but I have great memories of flying with her. You can search lots of ramp options on Amazon.

Now that I know there are ramp products out there, my next step will be to take a 2X4 stud down to the dock to use for a measure to determine what is needed to span the distance between the dock and the cabin door and yet clear the steps, I suspect the length will be considerable. Light weight aluminum that is collapsible/foldable makes the most sense, width will be a consideration. All good thoughts (thanks for the offer Steelroamer), I'll let you know what length I come up with and will ask more questions about individual units when I know more. Thank you.

Steve

The distance from the dock to the door opening of the plane is around 80" , leaving little fudge factor. I did some research and found one company https://store.petsafe.net/deluxe-telescoping-pet-ramp that has an 87" extra long ramp available (it may be the same company you guys got your ramps from), anyway the company got good reviews so I went ahead and ordered one through Amazon. I will report back after receiving it and let you know how it works.

Steve

I wish I'd seen this earlier (before you ordered). I went through a bunch of research and found the best items and the best prices at a place called DiscountRamps.com, a company I'd previously dealt with when I was looking for a scooter carrier. For the past couple of years, I've been using this one: https://www.discountramps.com/pet/dog-ramps/p/DR615/ They have a number of sizes, both widths and lengths, on this page: https://search.discountramps.com/search ... =dog+ramps. But the one I chose is great, because it fits in my car and in the airplane, in front of the back seat. It's very light, very sturdy. The only modification I made to it was to install a better latch to keep it closed, as the web strap affair that it came with is awkward at best, especially with gloves on.

It took awhile to train my dog to go up it, as it frightened her at first. She had gotten to the point that she couldn't jump into the car, so it was necessary to save my back. And she still occasionally slips on it, usually because she tries too hard. Most of the time, it's a winner. It not only helps her going up, but getting out of the airplane, also (she still insists on jumping out of the car). So expect a little training time--not all dogs will require it, but I suspect many will.

Cary