Before you automatically say ‘yes’, think twice about whether your choice of your vacation destination will be as much fun for your dog as it will be for you. If, instead of accompanying you on most of your vacation activities, your dog is confined to a hotel room – complete with strange smells, unusual noises and no one to play with – perhaps this is not the ideal vacation for your dog.
On the other hand, if your dog travels well in the car, and if you can choose a destination where your dog is welcome and en-gaged, a drive-to get-away might be just the thing.
Here are a few tips to enhance the safety and comfort of the trip.
• In advance of the trip, make sure your dog is up to date on all its vaccines and smart flea and tick prevention.
• Ask your veterinarian if there are any special medical consid-erations for the particular destination to which you are going.
• Make sure to bring a copy of your dog’s medical records and vaccine history. This might sound like a lot effort but it is worth it for your dog’s health since in an emergency the new veterinarian will need this information quickly. Your veterinar-ian’s office can provide this.
• Have your vet implant a microchip (painless!), and make sure that all of the information registered to that chip’s number is current and correct. I can’t tell you the number of pets who have scampered away while traveling but were soon reunited with their families because of a simple microchip. A found animal is scanned with a reader (all vets and shelters have them) and the number on the microchip is used to locate the owner.
• Be sure that your dog is wearing an up-to-date ID tag and ra-bies tag.
• Keep your dog properly restrained while driving in the car. Dogs who are not secured can interfere with safe driving and can be severely injured: in the event of an accident, they can be hurt by the explosive opening of airbags, and a swerve of the car or an impact may cause them to fly through the car in ways that endanger them and others in the car. It is best for dogs to travel in a secured crate or buckled into a pet seat-belt. http://sleepypod.com/clickit
• Keep a leash on your dog at all times while in the car. In the event that they get out, it is far easier for emergency person-nel to catch a trailing leash than a loose dog.
• Take a favorite toy, familiar food bowls and bed to make your new destination as similar to home as possible.
• New locations can be stressful, so make sure that you are paying attention, and always clean up any messes so future dogs are welcome.
Look for vacation spots where dogs are not only welcome, but where there are activities in which they might participate, like run-ning in the sand and surf, swimming or accompanying you on hik-ing trails. After all, it’s their vacation too.
Make sure that you don’t push your dogs to do more than they’re capable of doing. And always carry plenty of clean water, a col-lapsible water bowl, and a few healthy treats – like carrot sticks – for your dog, while out and about (and maybe some for you, too).
One more thing. This picture of a happy dachshund with his head out the car window, wind in his hair, on the way to a great holiday, is certainly idyllic, but I cannot stress enough that however much dogs love to ride with their heads out the window, flying rocks and pebbles, stray branches, and burning cigarettes tossed out of cars in your path, not to mention bumpy roads, cause more harm to pets than almost any other type of accident. I have treated dogs who have been injured in their eyes, on their heads, with cuts, burns and far more, simply because their owners permitted them to ride with their heads out the window. They may love it, but now you know better. Please keep them safe, secured within the car, with their window rolled up while driving.
Of course, as with small children, never leave your pet in a hot car with the windows closed, while you “run in” to do some shopping or to eat. This is a recipe for disaster.
Now that the cautions are out of the way, I want to emphasize that with planning and care, taking your dog with you on a drive-to vacation can be a great way for the whole family to come together and enjoy one another’s company. Have a great time!
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