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Dogs and Traveling - How To Make Traveling with Dogs a Pleasant Experience

Instead of leaving your dog with your friends or in a pet hotel while traveling, you should perhaps consider taking him along. It is without a doubt more convenient to travel alone, especially if you are planning to visit attractions which do not allow dogs but with a good plan, you can make traveling with your dog a fun and enjoyable experience for the entire family including your four legged friend.

Before you make any reservations, you are highly recommended to make sure that your dog is ready for the ride. If he normally enjoys riding in a car, he probably will not mind a few hours long ride. But if your dog gets upset during a short ride to the vet, you should postpone your travel plans until your dog is comfortable with the whole car riding thing. It is impossible to tell how much time you will need to help your dog get over anxiety from car ride because some dogs need more time than the others. Be patient because every dog can be trained to ride in a car.

When your dog is trained for riding in a car, you can start planning your trip. Use the web to search for a few pet-friendly hotels in the place you are planning to visit but call them all to make sure that they allow dogs to go inside because some hotels that advertise themselves as pet-friendly provide kennels outside the hotel and do not allow dogs inside. If you are planning to visit your friends, be sure to ask them if it is OK to bring your dog along to avoid getting anyone in an awkward situation because everyone are not comfortable with a dog running around their house.

Car safety is another important thing you should take care of before you hit the road. Your dog should be in a kennel or secured with a safety seatbelt or a car harness all the time. Letting your dog freely moving around on the backseat is dangerous for both your dog and other passengers in the car. Also, do not allow your dog riding with his head out of the window and never leave him unattended in the car because the temperature in standing vehicles can rise dramatically in a very short period of time. Be sure to make frequent stops so that your dog as well as other passengers can stretch their legs and relieve themselves which brings us to another thing which is an absolute must when traveling with dogs - doggy pick up bags.

The last but not the least important thing is to pack all your dog’s essentials - plenty of water, enough food and treats for the ride, a harness or collar, first aid kit, a few toys and the most important of all - ID tag with your contact information in case your dog gets lost. Other essentials that should be in your “dog’s bag“ include your dog’s vaccination and medical records, your vet’s phone number and pet passport if you will be traveling abroad.