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Driving You Mad? 3 Ways to Keep Your Dog Happy During a Car Ride

17/08/2015 - Blog

Not all pets like car rides and who can blame them. Travelling in a confined space can sometimes stress your pet out, especially if they haven’t travelled much in a vehicle before in the past. To avoid an unpleasant journey and ensure that you and your pet have the best possible time travelling in your vehicle, we’ve put together a few tips on how to ensure a stress-free journey with your dogs. You Don’t Have to Have a Crate Contrary to popular belief, your pooch doesn’t need to have a crate to travel stress free in your car. In fact, sometimes they can exacerbate your dogs anxiety by creating an even smaller confined space which can make them more scared and anxious, even though it is important to keep them secure and safe within your car.

There are alternative options which are available, including leads which click into the seatbelt buckle to keep your dog from jumping out of the car, as well as harnesses which you can attach to the seatbelts to keep them under control while you drive. Practice Makes Perfect If your dog is terrified of car journeys, it will associate your vehicle with feeling scared. If you are planning on going on a journey with your pup, especially a long one, it’s important to help them learn that getting in the car isn’t something to be scared of. Make sure you reassure your dog every time they get in the car. Take him to the park in the car and then let him out and enjoy himself. It’s important that you use the car for rewarding situations as this will get them excited at the number of possibilities of where they could be going, rather than being terrified that they are getting taken to the vet.

Start small by simply sitting your dog in your car without moving the vehicle. Praise and reward him with treats to reduce his stress levels and you will be well on your way to anxiety-free journeys. Tire Them Out The best way to keep your dog calm during your journey is to tire them out beforehand so that they can sleep during the journey. This is especially helpful if you have a short journey to make, as they won’t even know that they are moving!

Here at CK9 Training, we can help you with training your dog to love going for car rides. As a leading dog trainer in Kingston, we specialise in dog behaviour issues as well as puppy training and provide helpful workshops to help you and your dog work as a team. For more information on how our services can help you and your dog, don’t hesitate to contact us today by calling 07739 815 265 and we will be delighted to help you with your enquiries.

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