Wandering Wags

Travelling Time With Your Dog

I was going to title this Pet Pilgrimages, but my experiences in life lead mainly to travelling with the family dog so I figured best to write about what you know at least a little about. While I am on that topic -- don't take my word as gospel! Ask your Veterinarian, SPCA, Groomer, or other Pet Professional for advice and take that before you take mine -- Please! I know they should have good advice and information. I imagine that should include "Kennel Clubs" and Breed Associations, though not being an expert I can be missing some... and I think in the US, what we call the SPCA (Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) is called the ASPCA.

Perhaps we have always been lucky in our family, but our dogs always travelled well. We never had a problem taking them on the highway with us on our vacation trips and quite often those trips could be 2000 mile round trips. (That was in the days the Mile was King which is why I used miles... that's over 3200 kilometres.) That was the round trip between Calgary and Southern Manitoba where my paternal Grandparents lived and it crossed the very hot and dry Canadian Prairies in Summer and equally frozen and windy same Canadian Prairies in Winter. As a child I much preferred the Winter crossing -- I didn't do too well in hot temperatures -- although with a parent who smoked in Winter with the car closed in we were all fairly well cured by the time we reached our destination. (I wonder how many packs 20 or so hours of second hand smoke is worth?)

Those were on simpler times, many of them at a time when seat belts were options on North American Cars and no thought was given to dogs or children being lose in the back seat. (or front seat for that matter) Mom would fret about the dog sticking his head too far out into the 80mph windstream... (sometimes faster) in summer worrying that the dog might take a hit from a big bug like a bee and the dog would end up being content with his head on Dad's shoulder while driving getting not quite so much air. I would worry most about the dog getting lost in a strange town. Dad was confident that the Dog would always come when he called him. We never did lose a dog. (A golden lab, a long haired corgi, a Chihuahua-Pekinese, cross, and a miniature poodle, over the years.) We never had problems with car-sick dogs or whining and crying or barking in the car. Maybe we were lucky or maybe we just acclimatized the dogs gradually with short trips that most often did not end up at a groomer or vet.

Today though we are a bit more conscious of things. They even have seat belts for dogs! -- I hear they don't allow children in the front seat any more though. I'm thinking that they'll be having us kennel the children in the near future.*

I totally agree with the concept of having a kennel for the dog. Dogs are den animals and so having a den in the home can be a comforting thing I am told. A nice cozy kennel with favoured blankets and cushion (I almost said pillow! We all know that never happens.) and a place for some toys. We never had a kennel for our dogs, but I think there is provision for food and water in the too. There are appropriate sizes for the different breeds too and if you ponder getting a nearly 50kg dog plus kennel into a car, van, SUV, or truck -- the dog has 4 legs and can jump up and into the kennel after it is in the vehicle. Then not only is there a secure place for the pooch that you can strap down, but the dog has their own home den with them and there is a place for the dog to stay at your destination as well.

Kennels are also well ventilated and while there are some cage sorts there are others that have vents that can be opened or shut. Regardless you don't keep the dog locked into the kennel the full time either, just as you wouldn't keep a child locked in a small room.

For shorter trips, I know there are harnesses which are intended to allow you to link your dog to the car's seatbelt system. I recall ones that allow limited movement allowing the dog to sit or lay down, but not run around and if there should be an accident keep them from being hurtled about the car. I think I might invest in a harness style collar though rather than the simple neck one. I have also seen systems for the backs of trucks which allow larger breeds more freedom while still restricting them and keeping them safely in the box of the truck. I note that professionals tend to use kennels still and if I recall K-9 squads actually have the back of the car set up as a kennel?

Most important is not to leave the dog in a car on even a warm day. The temperature will climb quicker than you would ever expect to levels lethal for a dog -- or for a child or elderly person for that matter. This is even with the window cracked a bit for ventilation. Dogs can not survive the heat that a Human can. Their panting is not as efficient as our sweating. When it gets hot, canines in nature have already sought out cooler spots with good ventilation and a source of water. That is one of the natural instinctive ways that animals survive heat. A dog in a car can not do that. Dogs, children, and the elderly die each year in cars due to heat on days that you wouldn't consider part of any heatwave or even excessively hot. I would imagine that cats and other small animals might even have it worse.

The last horse trailer I saw had air conditioning! Of course it was for the horses of the police department.

It does make me wonder if there is a market for air conditioned kennels...

Still, not all dogs travel well, for some it would be a gift to put them up in a canine kennel for the vacation time. They might fret and whine a bit when you leave them, but from my experience they tend to just settle in for a wait after if they are the sort who really miss you. For the ones you might have to sedate to travel with, maybe better they nap and mope a bit in a kennel rather than having to tranq and sedate them for a journey which might make them sick. For some dogs it might even be an adventure. I think it would be a good idea to know how they treat animals there and if you are comfortable leaving your dog in their care. Then at least there is an option if you absolutely must leave your dog -- even if normally you include them in on vacation trips.

Traditionally some people also have had house sitters who were also pet sitters. Often they were neighbours, nephews, and nieces who were responsible enough -- sometimes under supervision of an adult -- to come into your own house to take care of your dog. I have done it a few times. Traditionally too some people would leave their pets with a friend or relative for the duration of the vacation.

Regardless of what your plan is, do that -- plan! Do more than throw a cottage cheese container and bag of kibble in the back seat before making sure you have the leash that works with the collar. Do your homework, find out about hotels; motels; relatives allergies; shots and paperwork needed if you cross the border or even enter a national, or provincial park; special booking and requirements if you travel by boat, plane or train; and so many other things...

Consider this, even on a day trip -- if you plan on eating in a restaurant, where will the dog be? If it is anywhere between spring and fall and not a rainy day it will be too hot to leave the dog unattended in the car, someone might have to dog-sit while others are in the air conditioned restaurant. Some picnic grounds might even be a problem. How about getting the dog across a lava hot parking lot?

Things to consider. We normally were travelling to Grandma and Grampa's farm and only had to worry about keeping the dog out of the barn and cow pies.

Later!
~ Darrell

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*Yah, yah, I know why children are not allowed in the front seats of cars. I do not agree with it... I think there is something wrong if airbags are too dangerous to allow children to safely ride in the front seat. But that is another article.

If You Go Into the Woods Today...

What Pet Would You Want to Bring Home?

There are many reasons to pick a pet. Now I have had a few - while living with Mom and Dad - and they included a handful of types of critters though the ones I had longest and have fondest memories of were our dogs. True they were family pets, but I considered at least two of them "mine" even while they were also Mom's and Dad's and Sis's*.

I did have 3... or 4 hamsters, 3 gerbils, a small painted turtle, calico gold fish, comet goldfish, three wild salamanders, a rabbit, and 4 dogs. I was pre-adolescent for most of them except the gerbils and two of the dogs. I think I had two of the hamsters when I was a young teen. I loved the early Habitrail sets almost like having a train set expanding my layouts of tube and cages.

Still I was closer to our last two dogs - the relationship I had with them felt a bit more like a family one. I did care for the other pets but it was different with these two.

We did go to a breeder for our last dog, my Sister was looking for a small poodle cross - maltese-poodle or maltepoo - and wanted a puppy and she found one at a nearby breeder who mostly bred pure bred miniature poodles. We ended up bringing home a pure bred miniature poodle that day, though had no interest in a show dog. Previously we had a golden lab that I am not sure where my Dad got from, a corgi that was a stray, and a Pekinese-chihuahua cross that Dad got from a business acquaintance.

I've watched a lot of the pet segments on the Noon News Hour on Global TV seeing all the cats, dogs, rabbits and even a few other critters they bring in from the SPCA. A lot of them are older animals which are well trained and behaved and some have a few health problems and might need special care.

I am not sure about when or if I'll get a dog while I am single and living on my own, but if I were to, I would consider getting one from the SPCA rather than a breeder. I think I would still like a younger dog, but... I likely would want to bring them all home with me. That is one reason I don't want to volunteer at an animal shelter.

I can understand some reasons for wanting pure bred dogs and other animals. One of the biggest has to do with knowing some idea of how large the dog will grow and having some idea of temperament. Some breeds are naturally more energetic and that has to be planned for and others really need to be put to work or some sorts of tasks or they will drive you batty while they try to herd you, the children and the furniture around the house. Some breeds are also better at coping with strangers coming and going or with children while others are one family or one person dogs. Some breeds also do not shed and have nearly no oder at all. Their coat has less oder to it than human hair does. These things are important if you have to worry about allergies or if you want a dog but are worried about "doggy oder". Some of these things can be harder to predict with a mixed breed dog - especially of unknown or very mixed parentage.

But there can be a lot of love in a three legged terrier cross or a shepherd-lab cross from the SPCA, other humane society or Animal Rescue group. There are even some rescue groups that specialize in certain breeds.

There are many dogs for adoption at the SPCA and for that matter many cats, rabbits and other animals. They are a bit careful about who they adopt to. They want to make sure that the animal will be taken care of and not be coming back due to lack of commitment or because the strata-complex or apartment manager does not allow pets. Pets are long term commitments after all which is why the term "adoption" is used. It might seem a bit more work than you expect and they do charge a fee for adopting animals, but they do have to in part support themselves and also figure that if you can not afford the adoption fee, perhaps you can not really afford the actual expenses behind owning a pet.

I think I might for the near future be contenting myself with my 4 dracaena-dragon trees. Perhaps they don't return a lot of love, but they don't require a lot of love and they have survived in my care for over a dozen years and move while living in my living room.

Later!
~ Darrell.

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*Miss Grammar lifts her graceful head and must interject - normally I would figure that to make a word ending with "s" possessive you would place the apostrophe "'" after the "s" so it would be "Sis'" - isn't "Sis" a conctraction of "Sister" and should actually already be written as "Sis'" with an apostrophe? So you would create the possessive as if it ended in "er". Well at least that is my take on 'er from my wee experience in writing.

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