We hike with two dogs, a friend of mine has a border in addition to mine. One takes the lead the other the rear of the group. Quite literally they walk proudly with their heard of humans.
It reminds me of a video I saw of US troops preparing for D-Day. They were in smart lines awaiting their turn to climb on board the transport. There were two border collies running up and down the line, probably so very proud that their flock of humans was in perfect order!
Ours (Wick and Molly) keep with the group and do not stray when we rest. They make wonderful guards, though, because they hear other hikers before we can see them. Better yet, they are well-behaved and do not harass others on the trail. Tell them to sit and stay, and they stay that way while others pass us. What tops it all, though, is if the night goes below the rated temperature on your sleeping bag, just pull a dog into the bag with you and, voila, cozy warm. I've done that twice, once, on the Frozen Chosen (a take off of another famously cold event), I put my water bottle at the bottom of my sleeping bag because the water had turned to slush in the packs while hiking. It went beyond my feet and was isolated while my dog and I curled up higher in the bag. I woke up in the morning and the water had turned once more to slush. In any case, the dog and I were mosty-toasty through the night (a one dog night, I suppose you can say).
Again, I believe in ccw and open carry. I sometimes carry while on the job. But on the trail it isn't so easy to carry so that the firearm can be deployed quickly. Leaving it in the pack makes it pretty useless for half the trip and the majority of the waking hours. Of course, were I to be hiking in grizzly country, I would do things differently.
Ash