: Fred,
: Your dog may or may not be the slacker that some paddlers tend to be, but it
: might behoove you to put him or her in front of you so that you can soothe
: him/her should she/he get excited by your scenery or the conditions. Also,
: just as in a canoe, the rear paddler is most responsible for steering the
: boat. If you are worried about trim, you might simply add ballast to
: compensate.

: Bill

Bill,

If Lucky (the dog) is in front, he would be about 4 feet away and out of reach. If he is behind, I can have the cockpits very close and he would be close enough to put his head or paw on my shoulder as he sometimes does when we are in a canoe. Either location he refuses to paddle as it is below his station in life. I am not too concerned about his reaction to the scenery or conditions as he has shown in the past to be a good passenger. I am more concerned with my ability to control a 16 foot kayak while sitting over 10 feet from the bow.
Fred