Travel With Your Dog
Tips for a Safe, Happy Dalmation

Travel with your dog does not have to be an unpleasant experience for you, your dalmatian or anyone else on the trip!

If you know your dog will be welcome along the way, welcome at the final destination, and you are prepared for the trip then by all means, "Go Spot, Go!" There are numerous products available for people who travel with a dog. Many hotels and motels are now pet friendly, provided you and your dog are well-behaved.

However, if you are unsure if your dalmation (or "dalmatian") will be welcome along the way, unsure if it will be welcome at the final destination and unsure if you can cope with taking him or her (or all of them) along; by all means, PLEASE make other arrangements or everyone (including Fido) will be miserable. Good boarding kennels or reliable home pet sitters can be found in almost every city. And don't feel guilty about using them!

Git Along Little Doggies!
What to Pack When You Travel With Your Dog

• Enough food to last the entire trip (or enough to last until you can get to a store if you plan on grocery shopping once you get to your destination). If you use canned dog food, don't forget the can opener!
  
  
• A food bowl or something you can use as a food bowl.
  
  
• A water bowl or something you can use to hold water. It's really hard for your dog to get a good drink when trying to slurp bottled water poured into your hand!
  
  
• Your dog's favorite treats. A familiar routine with favorite treats makes for a happy traveling companion.
  
  
• A favorite toy, especially one that involves interaction with YOU!
  
  
• An extra leash. This can break or get lost during travel. A leash provides comfort for you and safety for your dog in unfamiliar surroundings and situations.
  
  
• When traveling with your dog, be sure to bring along any medications they are taking or might need to take during the trip. By the way, some dogs (just like some people) will occaisonally get car sick. Here are some tips when you travel with your dog on how to hande car sickness.
  
  
• Even though your dog's ID tags (you DO have ID tags, right?) will most likely include his or her current rabies tag, it is a good idea to have a copy of any current vaccinations with you, especially when on a long trip. A photo of your dalmatian is also a good idea, just in case you get separated somewhere along the way.

• If you have room and your dog actually uses one, bringing along their pet bed is a good idea. This familiar item will help them settle down at night as well as give you a place to send them if a reprimand is necessary.
  
  
• Plastic bags and a pooper scooper. Yes, we should be responsible pet owners along the way. Now once you get to Grandma's...
  
  
• Paper towels. You should have these anyway. YOU might make a mess.

I LOVE to travel with my humans. Unfortunately, I get so excited that for the first hour of the trip I think I need to pee every fifteen minutes! This makes me whine and whine and whine. I also get a spastic colon about thirty minutes into the trip and my human has to find a place to stop so I can find a place to go. It's all because of nervous excitement. I really can't help it. However, it really bothers my #1 human, especially when there is no place to pull over, which is pretty much the first half hour when leaving the metro area!

However, she has learned that if she walks me around the yard and up and down the sidewalk for several minutes before she lets me into the car, I will pretty much empty my bladder except for a small reserve which I MUST have so I can mark my territory at the very first opportunity. I also get one Benadryl caplet about half an hour before the trip. This calms me a lot which in turn calms everyone else. In fact, it makes me sleepy and in this case, this is one sleeping dog you really DO need to let lie!

Summer Travel With Your Dog

Fifties Graffiti

Most dalmations love to jump in the car and go! However, summer travel with your dog can be deadly if you are not careful.

Here's what you need to remember on any roadtrip:

• Heat kills. When you travel with your dog, keep Spot cool! Per the SPCA and other groups, the best place for Fido is inside the vehicle with you. NEVER leave your dog (or any pet) inside a vehicle during the summer, even if the windows are rolled down a bit. It doesn't take long for the inside temperature of a parked vehicle to reach the 120 mark! A pet funeral is no way to end a vacation with your dog.
  
  
• Even the best "country dogs" can get burned from the hot metal in the back of a pickup truck. If you absolutely have to put your dog back there, make sure he is protected from the hot metal as well as the hot sun!
  
  
• When it's hot, your pet needs WATER, lots of water. Make sure you stop for water as well as pee breaks when you travel with your dog. Sometimes stress from traveling may cause your pet to refuse to drink; however, if it's been several hours since it last drank, try and get water into them. You may need to encourage your pet to lick ice or you can use a straw to drip water onto the dog's tongue.
  
  
• Another important thing to remember when you travel with your dog, don't over exercise him (or her) during stops. Running or over stimulating your dog in the heat of the summer can raise the body temperature to dangerous levels. Heatstroke also kills. A nice gentle walk is all Spot needs. If a vacation with your dog leads to unexpected heatstroke, get the dog to a cool place or into shade without delay! Apply wet cool towels to the belly, groin, or under the throat to get the body temperature down and take them to a vet as soon as possible!

One more thing. Dalmations (ok, dalmatians) and dogs in general absolutely love to stick their heads out of car and truck windows. Nose in the air, ears straight back in the wind, it's a doggie dream come true. The wind feels great and there are so many new scents to smell! What human doesn't love to see them do it?! Well, vet's for one. If you do allow your pet "air" time like this, please limit it, especially at high speeds. This kind of doggie joy riding can cause damage to your dog's eyes.

Be a responsible pet owner and enjoy many years of travel with your dog!