Tuesday, August 12, 2014

9 Safety Tips for Traveling with your Dog

"Who wants to go for a ride in the car?"

I am sure several sets of ears perked up when they heard that question! 

It's a doggie dog world out there and what dog wouldn't want to go explore it?  I love going on a road trip with Ma and Daddy-dog whether we are just going to the park or a friend's house or we are going on one of our camping adventures.  No dog wants to be left behind and miss all the fun.


With that in mind, and since it is Safety Week here in Blogville, I would like to share some Travel Safety Tips so that your road trip adventures are both fun and safe.

9 Safety Tips for Traveling

Don't end up in the Doghouse.
Wherever you are going (hotel, campsite, park, etc), make sure they allow pets before you set off on your trip. 

Don't be sick as a dog.
Be sure you have had a check up and all necessary vaccinations before you leave.  Some veterinarians will even give you a Health Certificate as proof you are up-to-date on all your vaccinations.

Don't go chasing your own tail.
Always know where to find the closest veterinarian/animal hospital to your destination as accidents can happen.  A great resource is the AVMA’s MyVeterinarian.com, where you can search Vets by zip code or city/state. 

Do have your name all over it.
Be sure to have an accurate ID tag with your name, address and phone number in case you get lost.  If you are microchipped, remember to keep your registration information updated.

Do stay on a short leash.
Remember to be properly restrained while in the car.  I use my safety harness which attaches to the child safety restraints provided in the back seat of the car.  You can read more about my harness HERE


You can also be in a carrier so long as it is appropriately sized so you can lie down, stand up and turn around, but not so big that could get thrown around in case of sudden stops or a collision.  There are several kinds of carriers; I have written about one pet carrier HERE.

Do see a man about a dog...or two.
Frequent stops on road trips are a must!  Everyone needs an opportunity to do their business, stretch and mentally exercise by checking out their surroundings.

Have a dog's breakfast...and lunch and dinner.
Whenever you make a pit stop be sure to drink plenty of water.  Pack plenty of water and food for your trip and try to keep your feeding schedule close to normal.

Get in the picture.
Make sure your humans have a recent picture of you in their wallet or on their phone, so if you get lost, they can easily use the picture to help find you.

Have a memory like an elephant.
Don’t forget to bring your medications with you including any flea and tick preventatives if you will be gone for an extended time.

Can you think of any more Travel Safety Tips?  
Don't forget, Blogville is talking Safety all week.  
Be sure to visit all the other great bloggers in the hop!


41 comments:

  1. Oz what wonderful information. You are a well traveled dog so you are surely in the know. I try to avoid riding in cars except for trips to my vet but I'm always in my PTU and Mom always puts my seat belt around my PTU. Now I cannot say that mom's ears are safe 'cause I sing the song of my people in 1st soprano all the way to the vet and back.
    Hugs Madi your bfff

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  2. Great tips, Oz! Specially to know where you find a vet on your howl-i-day place is very important, I agree. Some howltels are a little sneaky, they write pets are allowed, but at the they only accept dogs up to 10 kg, so we always ask them before we book.

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  3. We love to travel with Mom and Dad (unless we're going to the vet). :) Thank you for a great post today! Lots of good information. Also, thank you for that link. Mom added it to her "favorites".

    :)

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  4. Hey Oz!
    Wow, what a super info post for Travel Safety! Gosh, I never thought of several of those tips...scoping out a vet ahead of time, taking a recent pix of yourself. BWAR HAR HAR to Madi singing the song of her people in the car! MOL funny. We really appreciate the tips today, so thanks for hosting and thanks again for coordinating these super hops!
    Grr and Woof,
    Sarge, Police Commish

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  5. those are brilliant tips oz....Mom is really good at remembering to bring all our stuff but forgets her own things :)

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  6. Thanks for all da safety tips Oz. I learned a lot. Mom needs to take a new pic on her phone. Da one she has now are puppy (baby) pics. I'm much bigger now and baby pics would not help if I got me lost.
    I wonder if dar is an app for find a vet near where ever I am. Dat would be goody.
    Wags,
    Ranger

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  7. Good tips since we love a good car ride
    Lily & Edward

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  8. These are very impawtant tips. I love love loves car rides, even though we don't usually go any farther than Grandma's house. Maybe with these tips, Momma will feel comfortable about a road trip!

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  9. Jedi gets car sick. So we feed him a light meal (half his regular kibble) a couple hours before travelling and give him Bonine a hour before we go. He seems to travel better inside his crate (We use a plastic airline crate). I think he feels more comfortable that way.

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  10. Oh these safety tips are great Oz. About the farthest we go is to Grandmas, which is about an hour away, and of course to the fairgrounds which is five minutes away. Mom is talking about taking us camping....um.....stella rose

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  11. Gering-ding-ding-ding-dingeringeding! Oz The Most Intelligent, why you have the best information. I will have to make sure Lee has all those points taken care of when we travel. I will personally check them off. Now I think the best trip is going through the Drive Thru. Yep they hand me thing out the window.
    Thanks for being my friend
    Sweet William The Scot

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  12. Great tips Oz but sadly after my last attempt at going anywhere peeps has given up. Only short journeys for me from now on. Ho hum. Have a terrific Tuesday.
    Best wishes Molly

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  13. You showed it in the first picture but forgot to mention the most important one of all. To insure that everyone gets there safely, let the dog drive.

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  14. Those are all good tips. Mackey gets carsick so we have to remember to give her a pill before we leave and take lots of paper towels.
    Fudge and the Portie Pack

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  15. Great tips, we are thinking about traveling with the crew next year so we will keep these in mind! Thanks for sharing!

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  16. Those are all such great tips, Oz. I never would have thought of being sure to have a picture of my pet with me , I often download all my photos off my phone so there wouldn't necessarily always be one on there.
    Jan, Wag 'n Woof Pets

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  17. Wonderful tips! Thanks for sharing!
    ღ husky hugz ღ frum our pack at Love is being owned by a husky!

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  18. We are so glad you mentioned it is important to buckle up!! Too many people don't protect the doggies in the car!

    Your Pals,

    Murphy & Stanley
    Mayorz For All Paws

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  19. Those are awesome travel tips, thanks for sharing all the great information. Enjoy your ride.

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  20. Pawsome tips Oz - thanks for a great article! Maybe a first aid kit would be helpful too to be kept in the car :-)

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  21. Those are pawsitively the best safety tips! We have a seatbelt type of harness. We love your harness.

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  22. We have one Oz, we learned it from you! Carry a first aid kit, and any medications, like for car sickness, which I am prone to. Thanks for the great advice, love your carrier! I wear a harness in the back seat. Love Dolly

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  23. Teacher.... TEACHER.... Mr. OZ ....
    We loved your Class of Travel Safety... We took 87 pages of NOTES and we will study them very much carefully beclaws WE travel some and want to make it home Safe and Sound...
    THANK YOU so VERY much fur this.

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  24. I think you pretty much covered it all. Great tips!

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  25. Both my dogs have car harnesses to keep them safe. For Phod, given how car sick he gets, he isn't able to eat before a trip. We take lots of water. The other thing Lady does on a road trip in the summer, is to use the car started to keep the car running when she needs a break for 1 or 2!

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  26. Very good point Oz, travelled before and THEY always forget something. Thanks for being a part of Safety week with you great post!

    Top Cop Bites

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  27. Wow Oz, that was the bestest advice ever!! We are going to make sure Mama writes them all down so she can remember them next time we go on a big trip!!
    Smileys!
    Dory, Jakey, Arty & Bilbo

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  28. Oz we loved your presentation on Travel Safety! All very important points and some we had not thought of before.
    thank you
    Bailey, Hazel & Greta

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  29. Great tips! We'll be headed on a long road trip with the dogs soon so this will be a good reminder.

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  30. OMD!! Oz, you have put SO much info in your most FABulous postie!!! Ma does follow all these safety points, especially the buckle up part!! She doesn't let me ride without my harness and bein' tethered in!
    FABulous postie Oz!!
    Kisses,
    Ruby ♥

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  31. I know my hoomin will remember dat when she adopts another critter.

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  32. You have some excellent tips, Oz! Safe travel is important to us, too!


    Bunny

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  33. OK, I am taking notes...keep plenty of foodables and water, got it. Thanks for all that great info. I don't go on real long trips but it is good to know these things just in case. I am leaving you a nice apple for my teacher.


    Loveys Sasha

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  34. Sugar wants to add ... Frequent stops at Cracker Barrel :-) they a;ways have green grass. PAWsome tips Oz. Golden Woofs

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  35. Neither of my boys really likes to go for car rides. Shiver is an anxious doggy, so he tends to whine. I really should take them both out in the car more often though. Usually the only time they get in the car is when they're headed to the vet's office or the groomers to get their nails clipped.

    These are all excellent tips. I can tell you really put in some thought to this post. You can never be too safe when traveling. I made the chi's read through your tips twice to make sure they got it all.

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  36. Those are excellent tips Oz. Our dogs like to go on trips, but you have to be safe!

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  37. Wonderful tips, Oz! And I love that you're wearing the Sleepypod ClickIt. :)

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  38. Those are excellent tips Oz! And you do look so happy to get to travel in that top picture. Too cute!

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  39. Excellent travel safety tips, Oz! (Love your top pic, too!) They are so important and love your titles as I think that will really help the humans to remember more easily!

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Thank you for stopping by and leaving a pawprint. I enjoy reading each and every one!
Cairn cuddles,
Oz the Terrier