How Do Dogs Sit in an ABUBA Backpack?

A customer once asked us: "Can a dog get a disc problem from sitting in the bag?"

Dogs walk on four legs, so it's natural to worry when you see one sitting upright in a bag.

But it helps to look more closely at how a dog actually sits inside an ABUBA.

The dog isn't standing on its own

Inside an ABUBA, the dog isn't standing on its hind legs.

ABUBA is designed so that the dog sits with its hips and lower body on the base of the bag and leans back against the back of the bag.

We often describe it as similar to a person leaning back in a chair with a backrest. That doesn't mean a dog's body works the way a person's does. It is why we put so much thought into the base and the back structure. Why the bottom of an ABUBA isn't flat is a story of its own.

ABUBA4 and MAX have a Dog Back Support Cover. It wraps around the dog's back to add support and help the dog keep a more stable, leaning-back sitting posture. LITE2 is a simpler design and doesn't have this cover.

What about discs?

We can't say a dog will develop a disc condition just because it sits upright in a bag.

We have been developing and using ABUBA ourselves for about ten years, and our own dogs have used it for a long time.

Still, every dog's body is different. If your dog already has a disc or joint condition, we recommend asking your vet whether a bag where the dog sits upright is right for your dog.

Why we made it this way

ABUBA isn't meant to simply put a dog in a bag and move it from place to place. We wanted a bag where the dog can lean back and sit, and the person can carry the dog and keep moving together.

How I came to think this way is in Why I Created ABUBA: A Memory of My Mother's Back.