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Traveling with Your Dog

For most family dogs, traveling is an exciting and often enjoyable experience. Dogs like to be included in whatever their family is doing and quickly learn that a car journey otten leads to a walk. Unfortunately, a few dogs find traveling very stressful because they feel frightened or travel sick. When taking any pet on longer journeys you must be properly prepared.

What is needed to prepare for a journey?

If you take sensible precautions, the chances of your dog becoming lost en route will be minimal; but be prepared for any eventuality. Make sure that your dog is fitted with a collar and tag with your address and telephone number. A microchip implant is even more useful because it is a permanent form of identification. If the journey will be long, you may have your dog checked by your veterinarian to ensure it is healthy before traveling. Take plenty of fresh water, particularly when traveling in hot weather and make frequent stops to allow your dog to drink and exercise. If your journey is interrupted for any reason, make sure there is no risk of your dog overheating if left inside the car. Try not to leave your dog alone in the car, but if this is unavoidable, leave the car out of direct sunlight and with all windows open. Never leave your dog unattended in the car for any length of time - remember a car on a hot day quickly becomes an oven. Some dogs are a little anxious when first traveling, but eventually the noise and motion ofthe car will calm them and most usually fall asleep. If your dog suffers from motion sickness, do not feed it within about an hour ofthe start of the journey.

Where should my dog travel?

Car Travel

Dogs may travel on the back seat of the car, the floor on the front passenger side, or most commonly, in the rear ora hatchback or estate car. Ideally traveling cages should be fixed in the rear of the car so that the rear door can be left open for ventilation when parked, without risk of your dog escaping. Be very careful when opening the car door in case your dog jumps out in excitement. Small dogs and puppies should be transported in pet carriers. Wire or plastic crates are the best transporting devices as these can be strapped to a seat or put on the floor. If your dog travels on the seat, they should wear a safety harness that fixes to the car seat belts. This is not only for their protection, but in the event of an accident, reduces the risk of passengers being injured by the dog.

Air Travel

Contact the airline well in advance to find out their rules for transporting dogs. Dogs have to travel in the cargo hold in specially designed traveling crates. Make sure you arrive early for the flight as cargo is usually loaded first. The traveling box should be marked as containing a live animal with your contact details clearly displayed. Tape another piece of paper with these details to the inside of the box for extra safety. If your dog is going abroad, contact your veterinarian well before traveling to find out what vaccinations and health certificates will be needed, it may take several weeks to complete necessary vaccinations, tests, and paperwork before your dog is allowed to travel.

It is a good idea to sedate my dog for the journey?

If your dog is a nervous traveler, you may want to ask your veterinarian for a sedative before going on a long car journey. After an examination, your dog may be prescribed a drug, which you can administer yourself (although drugs may have quite unpredictable effects on your dog). If you are given a sedative for your dog, the drug should be administered about half an hour before the journey and will last for up to eight hours. Do not sedate your dog before a flight because if it is drowsy, it will not be able to adjust its posture for sudden movements and can be thrown around the box on a bumpy flight. There is some evidence that sedatives can be dangerous for dogs traveling in the cargo hold.

For additional information, please contact:

Riverside Animal Hospital 3233 Riverside Drive 336-5090

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