Doghouse Properties - Cody & Havana's Tails: Traveling by car with your dog

With the holidays nearing, it's that time of year when you pack the entire family and head on car trips to see friends and family. For Cody & Havana, friends and family are usually an 8-9 hour car ride from Charleston, SC. They love car trips, but only if we come well prepared. Dogs can usually sense when change is happening, so to keep them from getting stressed on long trips we always do the following:

Pack their beds. If you have a small car, sometimes you may not have the room to leave their bed out, but make sure you use a car seat cover to prevent scratches and pet hair. If you have a large car, like an SUV, leave their bed out so they can lay down in comfort.
Pack plenty of food and water. Whether the car trip is 2 hours or 12 hours, bring plenty of food for the duration of the trip. Bring extra food because you never know if you may run into car trouble or traffic delays. Treats aren’t a bad idea either. Also, stop periodically to give the dogs water. If the dog is on medications don’t forget to pack that too!
Stop Periodically. Well-trained dogs can usually hold their "bathroom" time until you are ready to stop. Keep in mind that puppies and older dogs, may not be able to hold it as long as you would like. Watch out for signs such as suddenly alert or awake dogs, whining, or even barking.
Bring leashes & collars. You will need leashes if you stop along the way & never let a dog out of the car without a collar on.
Leave out a favorite toy. Dogs can get bored or stressed out on car trips. Make sure to have their favorite toy easily accessible…don’t want your seat belts or worse, seats to be their next chew toy!

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Traveling by car with your dog

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