I thought the author was thinking more along the lines of being able to carry a 70 pound dog back to the house, if something happened to it out on a long walk. I have an old golden (14), and we go on long walks out in the back country often. I know I have wondered how I would get her home if something happened out on the trail, so that she couldn’t walk.
I wouldn’t want to leave her, but there is no way I could carry her more than a few feet.
Travois