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Advice for road trips with pets

1,020 Views | 10 Replies | Last: 7 days ago by Pinche Guero
Ryan the Temp
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We just did our first road trip with our beagles and cat. It was a little more than 2-1/2 hours on the road and we stopped every hour to let the beagles out to walk and do their business.

Beagle #1 and the cat were totally fine, but Beagle #2 was pretty anxious for most of the trip. I think it might have been because she was restrained with a seat belt tether, since she has a history of extreme distress when being kenneled. She never laid down or seemed to relax in any way.

We're thinking about giving her some calming chews before the next trip, but I wanted to see if anyone here had some better suggestions.
SGrem
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First time.... make it more frequent. Short easy trips.... take pup to lunch and sit outside and pup friendly establishments. Take pup short car ride to a park or walk along a creek or something fun. Ours ride on the floor in the back of the SUV.
zooguy96
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We gave our cats anxiety meds when we moved from TX to TN. Worked great.
SteveBott
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My dog does not like fireworks so my wife gives him some kind of gummy's. It helps. Gets it at petco.
EMY92
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My dog did not like going in a vehicle when I got him. I started taking him on a "ride 'to the park that was about a mile away from home. He loved going to the park. Since he got something out of the trip he enjoyed, he started to like going for rides. Now, that's all he wants to do.

I took him to Colorado right around his first birthday. He did great.
birddog7000
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Don't treat them like it is something they might get anxious about and they will be fine. Throw them into a box and drive. Like the poster above said, when the destination is fun for them they will enjoy road trips, and you can make it fun no matter where they go by being excited about it yourself. You are their pack leader, act like it for their betterment.

We place our own comfort thresholds on dogs and they are so much tougher and more resilient than we are.
cupofjoe04
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We had a lab that hated to ride in the car. I think it stemmed from a situation as a puppy where my wife had to slam on the brakes, and the puppy went flying into the center console. In any case, she would not relax in the car, ever. Would pant the whole time. We tired the thunder shirts, gummies, Benadryl, everything. She would get in the car, but didn't like it. Would typically not potty at rest stops, and would not drink hardly at all on trips. And I'm talking long road trips- 14-18 hours.

All that said, we just kept on trucking. We did our 15+ hour drives 4-6 times per year, plus who knows how many 2-5 hour trips, and always brought her. We worried the first few times, then just learned it isn't that big of a deal. Sure, she didn't like it- but there were no negatives otjer than her not relaxing. She would eventually get tired and lay down to sleep, but only after a few hours. Dogs are WAY tougher than most people realize, and do not need constant comfort like we think they do. Some dogs just always get nervous and don't like cars. Sometimes there is t anything you can do, other than stop worrying about it. They will pick up on your stress and it makes them worse.

I would also work on crate training her. Many people also give up on crates, when it's actually the separation that stress the dog. Get a crate in the living room, and start training the dog to see it as a positive when you are in there just watching tv and hanging out. Normal day, normal environment, nothing new or stressful. Door open, don't even close it. Lots of treats. Just work with the dog until they will go lay in the crate voluntarily. Then work on door closed. Then work on door closed and you leave the room for 30 seconds, then a minute, and build up. Eventually, you can work on the crate in different places. Once the crate is a safe space in their mind, it will dramatically help with anxiety when you bring their safe space along into stressful environments. It takes dedicated work though, but is worth it.

Another thought- you may be stopping too often. If the dog is stressed, every time you stop, get out, and get back in you start the cycle all over again. You may not be giving it enough time to settle down and learn it is all OK. Dogs can hold their bladder at home longer than an hour, they can do it on the road too.

We were determined that our current dog would be a better rider, and she is. We did loads of work making the car exciting for her, taking lots of small trips, taking her with us to go get gas or run quick errands, etc. She is sad when she DOESN'T get to go in the car, and is a great rider.

Marauder Blue 6
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You have to make it fun for them. Mine knows what "wanna go for a ride" means and goes crazy when I say it. We go to the park, to Starbucks for a "pup cup", or sometimes to just ride around so she can lean out the window and bark at people walking their dogs. Every once in a while, she gets hoodwinked and has to go to the vet or groomer but she gets over it.
fullback44
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Marauder Blue 6 said:

You have to make it fun for them. Mine knows what "wanna go for a ride" means and goes crazy when I say it. We go to the park, to Starbucks for a "pup cup", or sometimes to just ride around so she can lean out the window and bark at people walking their dogs. Every once in a while, she gets hoodwinked and has to go to the vet or groomer but she gets over it.
Same here, my dogs know getting in the car or truck for a road trip means getting out of the house and something new, they love it. Make them go potty (just like a little kid) before you put them in the car and then take off, they get used to it. Dogs are like humans, they like getting out of the house as much as we do. They sleep at night without potty for 8 hours so a 2-3 hour road trip they don't need to stop, once in a while they will let you know if they have to potty, you pull over in a safe spot (Buccees) or gas station w lots of grass and let them do their business… dogs love getting out of the house and just seeing new things just like us
Ryan the Temp
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To clarify, the dogs do ride in the car, just typically not for more than 30-45 minutes at a time and it's not usually an issue. They know what "car ride" means. Beagle #2 often lays down and acts pretty normal during those trips.

As for crate training, we successfully crate trained beagle #1 with no issues. Did all the same stuff with Beagle #2. She just absolutely cannot handle being locked in a crate. She becomes destructive and a danger to herself.
Pinche Guero
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