Search...
Home Subscribe
Pie
Home Subscribe
Recent topics Flagged topics Hot topics Best topics
Search...
Search Search within woodworking
Advance search Google search
Register / Login
Better Wood Heat DIY Rocket Mass Heater DVD benefits of pie power your home with your car SKIP College, skills to inherit property permaculture design Course
  • Post Reply Bookmark Topic Watch Topic
  • New Topic
permaculture forums growies critters building homesteading energy monies kitchen purity ungarbage community wilderness fiber arts art permaculture artisans regional education skip experiences global resources cider press projects digital market permies.com private forums all forums
benefits of pie Full online Permaculture Design course video Home battery bank for solar and emergency power 19 skiddable structures microdocumentary Building a Better World book with mini paul
this forum made possible by our volunteer staff, including ...
master stewards:
  • Anne Miller
  • Pearl Sutton
  • r ranson
  • Nicole Alderman
  • Mike Haasl
stewards:
  • paul wheaton
  • Joseph Lofthouse
  • James Freyr
master gardeners:
  • Carla Burke
  • John F Dean
  • jordan barton
gardeners:
  • Jay Angler
  • Greg Martin
  • Leigh Tate

Help me design a collapsible wheeled travois for emergency use

 
Juniper Zen
Posts: 94
Location: Winters, California
10
I like...
dog tiny house greening the desert
posted 1 year ago
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
    Send
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
I like to go hiking with my giant breed dog, who weighs nearly as much as I do. We stick to well-groomed trails, not really roughing it, but we're in rattlesnake territory. If she were to be bitten or otherwise injured, it would be impossible for me to carry her out. I may be able to pull her in a wagon or similar, but it's not realistic for me to drag that with us every time we hike.

I recently learned about the travois, and saw that a few people have made wheeled versions like this: http://mediad.publicbroadcasting.net/p/wunc/files/styles/x_large/public/201405/Orig_Chase_Raleigh.jpg

What is the feasibility of designing one that can be carried in pieces on one's back, and assembled if an emergency occurs?

You would need to have the main poles in smaller pieces, then attack (tie?) them together to assemble. (Or they could be hinged, but it would need to be a very strong hinge to not break in use.) The wheels would be separate and somehow attach to the bottom pole/axle. The cloth middle that carries the dog (or injured person?) would be the easiest part - get some heavy duty canvas and sew in sleeves for the poles to slide into.

I am not a skilled maker when it comes to wood and wheels. What kind of wood would be strong enough but also lightweight? What's the best way to attach the pieces together? How could the wheels attach? Explain it to me like I'm a child.

Zone 9b

 
Scott Foster
pollinator
Posts: 888
Location: 6a
269
I like...
hugelkultur dog forest garden trees cooking woodworking
posted 1 year ago
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
    Send
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
http://www.native-languages.org/travois.htm
 
Devin Lavign
pollinator
Posts: 1047
Location: Pac Northwest, east of the Cascades
284
I like...
hugelkultur forest garden trees chicken wofati earthworks building solar rocket stoves woodworking homestead
posted 1 year ago
  • Likes 1
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
    Send
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
Unless you are completely fixed on building the travios idea, you might want to look at collapsible game carts. there is a lot of different brands so can't recommend one specific.





Opposite of travios is folding wheel barrow, this is rated up to 150 lbs, but if your dog is large not so sure how well it would fit inside.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Allsop-Home-And-Garden-WheelEasy-LE-Folding-Yard-Cart-Ground-Ad-Wheelbarrow/173723527904?hash=item2872baaae0:g:5YgAAOSw0TBcL6VW



You likely could find some of those game carts pretty cheap at garage/yard sales. Or use the idea to make your own version. Same with the folding wheel barrow idea. You could likely design and build your own version of one of those.

"Where will you drive your own picket stake? Where will you choose to make your stand? Give me a threshold, a specific point at which you will finally stop running, at which you will finally fight back." (Derrick Jensen)

 
Juniper Zen
Posts: 94
Location: Winters, California
10
I like...
dog tiny house greening the desert
posted 1 year ago
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
    Send
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
Thanks for the suggestions, Devin. The single wheel on the folding wheelbarrow wouldn't provide enough stability, especially if the dog shifts around while in it. The collapsible game cart is a good lead. I'd have to see one in person and think about how to add fabric to support the dog and not have her on top of the wheels...

Zone 9b

 
James Whitelaw
pollinator
Posts: 331
76
posted 1 year ago
  • Likes 1
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
    Send
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
They make very inexpensive, foldable, lightweight emergency stretchers. One of those could have wheel adapted easily or just dragged, though either way it would be a bumpy ride. In a traditional drag travois I guess the long lodge poles had a certain amount of spring to them when dragged. With a sharp knife and enough cordage assuming enough saplings nearby a travois

If it was a human who was bit who needed carrying my preferred method would be the dead man carry, arm and leg slung over the shoulders. Doesn’t sound comfortable for a dog. They make very sturdy pet carry harnesses, and I suppose it would be easy to adapt one to a pack back type frame so the weight of the dog was carried high, perhaps with the help of a strap across the forehead, or a tumpline. I used to carry a very heavy wannigan on canoe trip portages over rough trails that would have been impossible without the tumpline across the forehead to help carry the weight.
 
Devin Lavign
pollinator
Posts: 1047
Location: Pac Northwest, east of the Cascades
284
I like...
hugelkultur forest garden trees chicken wofati earthworks building solar rocket stoves woodworking homestead
posted 1 year ago
  • Likes 2
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
    Send
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
A lot of people do this with with the game carts.



And then some sort of light weight plastic to make fenders? So the wheels wouldn't be a problem?

"Where will you drive your own picket stake? Where will you choose to make your stand? Give me a threshold, a specific point at which you will finally stop running, at which you will finally fight back." (Derrick Jensen)

 
Devin Lavign
pollinator
Posts: 1047
Location: Pac Northwest, east of the Cascades
284
I like...
hugelkultur forest garden trees chicken wofati earthworks building solar rocket stoves woodworking homestead
posted 1 year ago
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
    Send
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
You can likely find a lot of used game carts for sale on craigs list or at yard sales. Which could make it a lot cheaper. Just make sure to research the general prices new first before looking at used ones.

"Where will you drive your own picket stake? Where will you choose to make your stand? Give me a threshold, a specific point at which you will finally stop running, at which you will finally fight back." (Derrick Jensen)

 
Mike Haasl
master steward
Posts: 9334
Location: Northern WI (zone 4)
2701
I like...
hunting trees books food preservation solar woodworking
posted 1 year ago
  • Likes 2
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
    Send
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
Bonus points if you can rig it so that the dog carries the travois while you're hiking

"Hundreds of years from now it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in or the type of car I drove... But the world may be different because I did something so bafflingly crazy that it becomes a tourist destination"

 
Phil Gardener
pollinator
Posts: 335
Location: Near Philadelphia, PA
71
posted 1 year ago
  • Likes 3
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
    Send
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
Have you thought of carrying veterinary antivenin for dogs for post bite use, if that occurs?  The window of treatment is pretty narrow, and trying to carry the dog out takes time.

There also are some pre-bite vaccines available (specific to the species of rattlesnake you might encounter).

Here is a site in CA that offers more information, but be sure to research carefully and get professional advice before making medical decisions.

https://animalmedcenter.com/treatment-rattlesnake-bite/
 
Juniper Zen
Posts: 94
Location: Winters, California
10
I like...
dog tiny house greening the desert
posted 1 year ago
  • Likes 3
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
    Send
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
Ah, a foldable emergency stretcher is a great idea! Hadn't occurred to me. I would use straps to immobilize the dog on it. I would still need wheels on the bottom to make it a truly viable option.




Between the high cost and shelf life, I don't think carrying antivenin is practical. For me personally, I'm not hiking so far from civilization that I couldn't get my dog to the emergency vet quickly once we were back at the car. The issue is getting the dog from the field to the car. For someone who goes on week-long camping trips in the bush, that may be a different calculation.

Zone 9b

 
Devin Lavign
pollinator
Posts: 1047
Location: Pac Northwest, east of the Cascades
284
I like...
hugelkultur forest garden trees chicken wofati earthworks building solar rocket stoves woodworking homestead
posted 1 year ago
  • Likes 1
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
    Send
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
Awesome, hope you can figure out a workable set up. I like the stretcher idea as well if you can figure out a way to add some wheels to it.

Shouldn't be too hard. You could put a bit of PVC pipe in the feet, then feed an axle through that, then you can attach wheels to the axle.

"Where will you drive your own picket stake? Where will you choose to make your stand? Give me a threshold, a specific point at which you will finally stop running, at which you will finally fight back." (Derrick Jensen)

 
Mike Haasl
master steward
Posts: 9334
Location: Northern WI (zone 4)
2701
I like...
hunting trees books food preservation solar woodworking
posted 1 year ago
  • Likes 1
  • Mark post as helpful
  • send pies
    Number of slices to send:
    Optional 'thank-you' note:
    Send
  • Quote
  • Report post to moderator
The bigger the wheels the better.  I'd say a kid's mountain bike sized tire at the minimum if you need to go over rocks/branches.  If it's a really flat maintained trail you could probably go smaller...

"Hundreds of years from now it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in or the type of car I drove... But the world may be different because I did something so bafflingly crazy that it becomes a tourist destination"

gift
 
Willie Smits: Village Based Permaculture Approaches in Indonesia (video)
will be released to subscribers in: soon!
click here for details
reply
reply
    Bookmark Topic Watch Topic
  • New Topic
Boost this thread!
Similar Threads
More...