How to make a dog like traveling in a car?

xboxdad

Hi everyone,

We have 1+ year old dog (11kg) and she starts drooling and chewing the strap/harness as soon as I tie her in. (front seat, next to me)

She keeps wriggling / chewing / drooling / switching drive modes & heated seats for the entire journey. It's pretty dangerous, I have to keep one of my arms on/below her to constantly fight the chewing/wriggling. She isn't interested in her chew toys during this period either.

Did you try anything for a similarly behaved dog that actually worked?

Thank you.

Faith

I'd be thinking put her in the back seat on a tighter/shorter harness in the first instance. You could also try one of those 'hammock' style seat protectors to keep her hemmed in. Alternatively, practice going places with her in the back seat and a companion sitting back there with her giving her lots of treats - constantly to begin with, then spacing them out as time goes on, until she learns to relax.

xboxdad

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119902582#Comment_119902582

Thank you. I'll look into alternative seating options as you suggested. Treats won't really work though as she got sick in the car once or twice so we always make sure not to feed her a few hours before she travels.

Boardnashea

Is a crate in the boot an option? Get them familiarised with using it in the house before putting it in the car.

anewme

Do you think she does not like the travel, or is just car sick. My friends dog cant travel in the car without being very ill, where my little fella curls up and sleeps. I got him used to the car from 10 weeks old and it meant he grew up considering it as a part of his life.

xboxdad

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119902878#Comment_119902878

Thank you. It might be an option I think. I'm not sure how easy it'd be to train her go into the crate and stay there, but if nothing else works, we'll have to try it I suppose.

xboxdad

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119904474#Comment_119904474

Thank you. I think she just can't stand being tied down and not being able to move/run around. The car doesn't have to move at all. She'll start to get restless as soon as I want to restrain her in any way. For example when we go for a walk (which she loves and is very excited about) it's hard to put the harness on her. She'd try to escape it. Once I got her and I start putting it on her, she won't fight it, but starts yawning immediately and she'll focus on the 1st chance she can run away form the situation. Once she's free to move/run she won't mind the harness anymore. So I guess if we allocated the entire back seat row to her and didn't strap her in, it'd work better. ...but that's not realistic as we hope to travel with her as a family - so a 11kg dog can't have half of the car to herself :)

adelcrowsmel

I'd start very slowly with just getting the dog used to and happy to get into the car and to stay there for a while...this is while your car is in your driveway at home. You can easily use treats for this as the car won't be moving so they won't be car sick etc. Give them a lick mat or something really tasty that takes them a little while to eat so that they will be in the car for a few minutes at a time and they hopefully get to associate the car as an enjoyable place to be. Then move onto bringing them just for very short trips...short 5/10 minutes journeys to the local shop etc and gradually build up the time they would be in the car for if you can. I would definitely agree with the previous poster and saying to put them in the back of the car with a shorted harness/strap so they can't be moving around too much and hopefully lie down and settle.

walterking

I have my buckled into the seat belt clips and put two deep set dog beds from the house onto the back seats and they tend to be happy.

If I put one into the front seat, she can get agitated and I think it is from being able to see out the front window and the "scene" being strange to her. The other one is too small to see out the front.

A toy / chew can also distract them

Faith

Our ~30kg (!) pup isn't the biggest fan of restraints either, but she got used to the car strap really quickly. She still moves around a bit because she's excited (car = going somewhere good) but she's not disruptive like she was. I'd definitely do what @adelcrowsmel suggests and try with the car stationary to begin with, and using lickimats or chews to settle the dog.

Equally, you might need to take a step back entirely and focus on getting her used to putting on a harness without being stressed by it. Do you use the harness for car travel? If not, it could be a case of two birds with one stone because car harnesses are great, something like this https://www.petstop.ie/products/car-harness?variant=42491005239516. Get her used to the main harness, then when she is, get het used to the seatbelt attachment. The key is treats again, and giving her lots of time and choice. There are lots of guides online, so here's just an example: https://www.battersea.org.uk/pet-advice/dog-advice/training-your-dog-wear-collar-lead-and-harness

anewme

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119905292#Comment_119905292

This is how I trained my fella from 10 weeks. Day 1 sit in car, day 2 sit in car, day 3 start car, next week, drive around the block. Repeat and build

Easier from when puppy but not impossible.

Easier when dog not car sick.

He has a clip in seatbelt that clips into the back of his harness. It was Trixie brand and less than a tenner in one of the pet shops.