Our dogs are on the move just as much as we are. They accompany us throughout our day and often, in the case of service dogs, into a wide range of transportation situations. This guide will explore how to prepare your dog for traveling to ensure safety, confidence, and an enjoyable experience for both of you.
Dog Travel Safety Event
We routinely prepare puppies for traveling to their forever homes. Two of the transportation options we use frequently are automobiles and airplanes. Preparing the puppies ahead of time involves a socialization routine to address each of their senses in ways to familiarize them with the upcoming travel experience. Traveling to a forever home, or to the veterinarian, are both important events to prepare for ahead of time.
Dog Travel Safety Automobiles
Taking a few short drives to prepare for a longer drive is a good idea. Plan your short drive with all the details needed for the long drive later on. This way you can practice and you may think of something else to keep your dog more comfortable.
This is a Travel Socialization Checklist. It is a summarized overview of the preparations, socialization practices, travel supplies, and equipment you may need for each type of travel event.
Dog Travel Safety Planes
We work with the puppies before they travel. They spend time in the crate each day, we play environmental CD’s that have loud noises and airplane noises on them etc. We also put a crate liner (vs newspaper) and a toy with them. We spray Comfort Zone spray on the crate liner too. We use AA Priority Parcel because we can keep the puppy longer — we check in about 1hr 15 min before the flight. We travel to DFW (a 5 1/2 hr drive for us) so that our puppies are on straight through flights. We try and prepare them for the travel as best we can.
Dog Travel Safety Travel Bag
Your pet’s travel bag should include familiar toy, food and snacks, bottled water, a water dish, a leash/harness, copies of vaccination records, and potty scoop/waste bags.
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