10 hour car ride with dogs - advice?

[LisaR]

We are taking a 10 hour car trip with 2 dogs. One is 4.5 months old and the other is 7 years old. Both are Schnauzers. Neither has been on long rode trips so I don't have a clue how they will handle this. We will make frequent stops. I will feed them their breakfast and we will leave about two hours later. I am thinking about not feeding them their dinner until we get there that evening. I do have some dog friendly hotels picked out along the way in case things aren't going as planned and we need to break the trip up into two days. Any advice on how to make the trip successful would be appreciated. For all I know, they will curl up in a ball and sleep. However, the endless energy of the puppy makes me concerned.

 

[npmommie]

when ever we bring our dogs on long car trips, they usually just curl up and sleep.
we make more stops than we normally would, to walk them and water them.......we usually feed dinner when we arrive to our destination too.

what kind of car do you have? if you have an suv maybe you could put the puppy in her crate in the car? ( if you have a crate for her)
that might help her to stay still and relax more than being loose in the car.

 

[LisaR]

when ever we bring our dogs on long car trips, they usually just curl up and sleep.
we make more stops than we normally would, to walk them and water them.......we usually feed dinner when we arrive to our destination too.

what kind of car do you have? if you have an suv maybe you could put the puppy in her crate in the car? ( if you have a crate for her)
that might help her to stay still and relax more than being loose in the car.

Thanks! We are bringing her crate to use at our destination but I don't think she will like it in the van. She is a lap dog so I am sure she would rather curl up on one of us instead of her crate. If we need to put her in there, we could.
The dogs are just so used to wrestling around that I hate the idea of them doing nothing for 10 hours. I am sure they will survive, though. It is funny that I am worried about the dogs and not the kids.

 

[Luvchefmic]

1st I'll state the obvious after many years of driving from NY to WDW with ONE dog, don't feed prior to getting in the car for the 1st leg of the trip, take vet records with you (God forbid you have a dog emergency) purchase a dog first aid kit (or google it, save the $ and make one yourself) bring fave toy, blankie, dishes, etc, bring bottled water from home (different water can effect the dog just like us) make sure you bring their regular brand of food with you.frequent potty breaks...NEVER allow anyone to open the car door unless a leash is on the dog and someone has it in their hand ...you willl survive and so will your family, I added pictures so you can see if we got through this a 10 hr drive with 2 is a piece of cake ...if alll else fails & the dog starts acting up ..let him drive

Pics from NY to FL move Fall 2008 me & 4 furbabies (DH had already left with the other 4 !)

 

[LisaR]

Luvchefmic,
Those pictures are great!

I didn't even think of taking their vet records along. Thanks for the reminder.

 

[Luvchefmic]

Luvchefmic,
Those pictures are great!

I didn't even think of taking their vet records along. Thanks for the reminder.

Glad you enjoyed the pics and glad I could help...another tip, just for the fun of it all, take pics of the dogs along the way, its their trip too! This was taken on the trip when we stopped at "South of the Border" a total tourist trap but makes me laugh and think you'll like it to......

 

[golfgal]

We can't even say RIDE in our house or the dog goes nuts. She LOVES the car. We have a travel sized crate that she likes to lay in but she also likes the lap thing. We bring her soft bed and stick it between the seats in the front seat sometimes too and she will sit or lay on that for a lot of the trip. She usually doesn't eat when we travel but we do bring her bowl of water out on stops.

 

[Pooh's Pixie]

We have given my dog Bonine (the human over-the counter med) for travel sickness. Don't know if that's an issue for you, but my dog sometimes gets car sick. When we were going on a long trip (that included a ferry!) we asked the vet and he recommended Bonine. I guess it worked because he didn't get sick. My dog also seems thirsty on car trips, so stop for water more frequently than you would think. GOOD LUCK!

 

[LisaR]

We have given my dog Bonine (the human over-the counter med) for travel sickness. Don't know if that's an issue for you, but my dog sometimes gets car sick. When we were going on a long trip (that included a ferry!) we asked the vet and he recommended Bonine. I guess it worked because he didn't get sick. My dog also seems thirsty on car trips, so stop for water more frequently than you would think. GOOD LUCK!

Our son will be taking Bonine so we will have it with us if needed. Not sure if either one will have that issue. The longest trip either has been on has been under an hour. Our older one has flown twice and we gave him something to keep him calm. I can't remember what it was but it was OTC and the vet suggested it.

 

[Took]

We travel with our two schnauzers pretty frequently to visit family (about a 7 hr. trip). They're fine in the car. We walk them a few times along the way, also offering some water and a chance to do their business. They mostly sleep.

 

[I loveStitchnippyjon]

I used to allow my little 12-lb dog to be a lap dog in the car. Then, several years ago, a friend was in a car accident with her dogs and her two dogs wound up running onto the highway and were killed. That was a real wakeup call for me and quite a few mutual friends! Our dogs NEVER travel in the car any more without their crates!
About a year later one of the friends had a rollover in her van on an interstate going 70 mph. All three of her dogs were crated. The crates bounced around and when the doors of the vehicle popped open they skidded along the pavement, but aside from some bumps and bruises, the dogs all survived (as did the family).
I would never take a chance like that with my furbaby!

 

[hellokitty86]

For me, traveling with my pets is always rough. We moved from Virginia to South Florida with 2 cats and my dog in the car. It was a rough trip but we survived! I would recommend that you give your animals some "Rescue Remedy". You can get it at Whole Foods. http://www.rescueremedy.com/pets/ It's a natural product for animals & humans (liquid that comes with a dropper and you put a couple small drops in their mouth). It helps to calm them down.