Traveling with dogs

[rapid fire]

I will be traveling from Georgia to Michigan in October and this is my first time traveling w/ dogs. I will be in a pickup w/ a camper shell and dog boxes in the back. What advice or tips can you give to make this a pleasant trip for us and the dogs? We will be grouse hunting for a week, so what kind of stuff should we make sure we have with us?

[Sharon]

Don't forget your tie out chain. Essential when travelling.

[topher40]

Well stocked First Aid kit
Stake outs
Contact Info for area vets
Extra Gun
Food, water
Extra E-Collar if you have it
WD-40, Baling wire, Duct Tape ( You should be able to fix anything then )

[daniel77]

One thing that I'd advise is to schedule a bit of time every few hours to stretch legs. It makes the trip a LOT nicer for both you and the dogs. Just making potty breaks stretch to 20-30 minutes helps everyone stay more settled during the ride IMO. If you do it this way a check cord is a handy thing to have along.

[mcbosco]

I will be traveling from Georgia to Michigan in October and this is my first time traveling w/ dogs. I will be in a pickup w/ a camper shell and dog boxes in the back. What advice or tips can you give to make this a pleasant trip for us and the dogs? We will be grouse hunting for a week, so what kind of stuff should we make sure we have with us?

Start the dog on probiotics a few days before you leave and while you are travelling. For a couple bucks, literally, why risk a dog that gets the runs from stress, a water change or some spoiled food.

[phermes1]

There's a good link on this forum somewhere with tips on putting together a good first aid kit. That's my first recommendaiton.

Imodium in your first aid kit will also help with the runs, although you don't want to overdo it. Canned pumpkin is good, too.

When it comes to actually being on the road, I'd bring a flexi-lead for walking the dog. Absolutely the easiest way to walk them at each rest stop.

[AzDoggin]

A week of grouse hunting - I'm jealous - that will be a blast!!

We travel with our mutts all the time. I agree with everything above. The thing that makes it most pleasant for us is to allow enough travel time that you don't mind taking breaks at least every couple hours. The humans and the dogs are happier and less stiff.

Trim the dogs toenails nice and short before you go so you don't have to mess with them. Throw some marrow bones in a bag in the cooler and give a dog one every now and then. Possible changes of bedding in the event of motion sickness.

Have fun!!

[birddog1968]

adult dogs should be fine for 8 hours in the kennels, that said I tend to give mine a break every 5-6 hours with a nice long stop. I'm about due for a stretch about that time as well. I keep a pail of water hanging from the inside of the kennel and have one of their bones in there but they never seem to mess with em. after 10-12 hours which is all I can drive in a day, they get walked and either staked out or they hop up in the camper with me for a nap.

If ya got a nervous type dog traveling I agree with the probiotics and fattening them up in advance of a long trip. Once traveling I feed but not alot, they seem to travel better on less food and plenty of water. Once ya arrive get em settled and feed em good, that's what I do anyway.

[Hotpepper]

Place a foam rubber pad under the kennel, takes the stress of the road away from the dog. Softens the kennel to not feel every bump in the road. It will allow the dog to relax.

Keep the on feed schedule, is also a greatconsidereation, feeding, watering, out of the box, etc

Pepper

[RayGubernat]

I try to stop every four hours or so. Pretty much every time I get fuel or food, I take the dogs out, one at a time on a lead and let them do their bathroom thing.

I know you know this already...but...check the lead before your trip. Make sure it is in perfect working order. You will be letting dogs out in strange places(to them) and often right by major roads with tons of high speed traffic. Make sure they are on the lead and the lead is securely in your hands before you let them out of the kennel.

If I am taking a fairly long ride...10 hours or more, I will withhold food the night before. Less stress on the dog's digestive system and less chance of them puking or pooping in the kennel which is a real mess to clean up. A package of incontinence pads, some water and a roll of paper toweling can clean up a significant mess.

RayG

[to the point]

Be sure to have good air ventilation in the cap. It can get pretty warm back there. I use a indoor/outdoor thermometer just to be safe.It can still be pretty warm here in Mi in Oct.

[hi-tailyn]

Does your camper shell have side vents, or wing windows to open, or front vent to open. Having the front vent really draws in air to circulate through the shell.

Tie out chains: pull up to truck stop or Walmart and use chain link fence to put all dogs out at one time to water and then feed lightly during the long trip. Every 6-8 hrs is good for most dogs.

How many dogs will you have in the camper shell? Ventilation is most important leaving GA for at least most of first day.

Place a foam rubber pad under the kennel, takes the stress of the road away from the dog. Softens the kennel to not feel every bump in the road. It will allow the dog to relax.

This is a great idea and dogs will appreciate it.

[jimbo&rooster]

all of the above are great advice but let me recomend one more...... when ever going out of state with my dogs I always make sure to have an up to date set of shot records. I have never had any trouble with my dogs but when my wife used to travel with her horses to shows they had trouble once with a PIA state trooper luckily they had all their ducks in a row and it went fairly smoothly, so now i keep a copy of my lab and GSPs shot records with my registration......
Jim
this is a more important issue when leaving the country

[bossman]

Once you get to your destination, I would make sure I knew the location and phone number the nearest vet. It may be an extreme, but when going on extended hunts away from home, we always carry a number of large bottles of Ozarka with us rather than trusting the local water. You can accomplish the same thing by taking a supply of your local water.

[Ryman Gun Dog]

RF,
In planning your trip, if you know another hunter who has used the same travel route, interface with him and find out where he has been stopping to let his dogs out, hopfully he will also have some general covert info to share with you.
Usually on long trips men use the same stop over spots repetatively to exercise their dogs, knowing these locations saves a lot of hassle while traveling.
I also take a complete medical bag for my dogs including EMT Gell and a good multi tool to remove porky quills. Like others I know where the good Vets offices are located and their hours of operation. Check your animals while you travel, make sure you know what is going on as you travel.

RGD/Dave

[Ruffshooter]

Well, everyone got all the non important stuff. I think one should always have a cooler, grill and plenty of butter, onions, garlic, sage, and Old Bay Spices. I have a coleman talgate grill. Works great. But I really like a wood fire for cooking, so maybe a fire ring. and metal grate. even just some expanded metal on a ring of rocks works nice.

Before you go practice your shooting at a wooded sporting clays club. Do not premount your gun as you will not do this in the woods.

Enjoy, you will have a great trip.

Rick

[rapid fire]

Rick, thanks for the optimism. Our cabins have grills on site, so hopefully we will get to break them in. If nothing else, she says they have a great local butcher.

[Rich Heaton]

Sounds like all good advice and wisdom,,,,, but it makes me wonder on what generation this advice is coming from?

What has happend to the days where ya throw the dogs in go. heck my dad is 70, we don't leave for 3 weeks but I have to go meet him tonight to start "gettin ready and getn the trailer organized". Funny thing is I'll redo it the day before we leave the "right" way.

[Ruffshooter]

I like eatin out in the field just tastes better.
I alwasy have a day bag ready to go which is just bells, beepers, first aid, batteries, matches, compass, toilet paper (aloe cottenel, good stuff, I am a sensitative sort) 7 1/2 high brass shells for my 20 g. and socks. This is in my truck 360 days a year.
Rich, Going with your dad is the best. You all hunt off horse back is that right?

Rick

[Rich Heaton]

Rich, Going with your dad is the best. You all hunt off horse back is that right?

Yea,,, we are going back to Montana and the Dakota's for a few weeks and going to throw our chips in at the All American SD Championship and the Southwestern AA championship,, then back to Montana for some hunting and I need to judge the NGSPA Sharptail Ch in Eukalaka. Should be a good time,,,, but if we took everything "one" of us thought we needed,,,, we'd have to leave the dogs and horses at home.

[TraditionsGSPs2010]

For each dog I keep a pre-made Lost Dog sign with me when I travel somewhere the gang is not familiar with. If the dogs and I get separated, I can go to the nearest town and make photocopies. Its a heck of a lot easier than trying to make something up on the road. Fortunately I've never had to use them.

Good luck!

[bossman]

New issue of Gun Dog Magazine covers this subject..Good information, some of which has been mentioned on this thread.

[birddogsunlimited]

i do a lot of traveling with my dogs there prety use to it by now but i always bring dog crates leashes food water and a couple of there toys and the first aid kit. and a numbers for vets in the area im going. prety basic stuff. i use to stop alilttle morre often to let them out to poty but ive gotten to the point i just work that in to the stops for gas. oh also poop bags please clean up after your dogs.

[natetnc]

a lot of this has already been posted but this is my routine. aside from having the neccessary WORKING supplies and backups for CRITICAL supplies for any hunting adventure here are the things to help with the dogs.

1. Feed well before you start the trip, give them more than enough time to digest and dispose of the last feeding before riding. Made that mistake the first year, luckily my dog didn't get sick but she farted for the first 8hrs

2. Don't feed them during the trip. We travel 20hrs to KS and the dogs never seem to want for food. I usually make them drink something when we take an extended break for lunch.

3. Breaks. Sometimes i find it is more stressful for the dogs when you give them too many breaks out of the kennel, of course that can be different with every dog. If you have a properly sized kennel with some sort of cushion and temps are comfortable a good riding dog should have no problem for 5hrs. I have let mine ride for as long as 7hrs during the middle of the night.

4. If you don't have an outside dogbox or will be keeping them inside i would recommend LCS cedar ribbon for the cushion, its not quite as messy as chips and it will cut down on the smell of a hard working dog.

5. Always nice to have an updated pic of your dog from both sides. Even if it is electronic you can always find someone to print it for you and may help find your dog if it gets lost in the unfamiliar territory.

6. A can of chicken broth/wet food to help your dog eat. Sometimes they just wont eat in unfamiliar places and it can be sporadic. Some years my dogs don't have a problem then the next year they will. The last thing you want is to spend time and money to go to a great destination and your dog not perform well because they have no energy.

all i can think of at the moment, good luck on your trip. travelling with dogs is only as hard as you make it

[reba]

Your first stop should be early into the trip, about 30 minutes for a good potty stop.

After that first stop the dogs should be ready to go for more hours than you.

I swear my female won't poop for two days on the road; by the afternoon of the second day we are usually in camp she gets a gooooooood relief.