Take Me Away! Vacationing With Your Crew

If you are like me, you have separation anxiety with regards to leaving your crew to go somewhere, even for pleasure. While I enjoy some non-dog related activities as much as others, my thoughts are that almost all activities are better when shared with a dog or two, three, four, etc. When possible and practical, that is! Of course forcing an activity onto your dogs is never a good idea. But vacationing with your crew can be one of the best shared bonds ever. My crew loves a good road trip just as much as I do.

Before I go much further, let me clarify that I am solely referring here to car trips. And furthermore, I am referring primarily to dogs that enjoy car rides. If you have a dog with a phobia about the car, then you need to address that well before you consider a long road trip. That isn’t going to be the subject of this post.

Dog Friendly Vacation in Upstate New York.

Now for safety considerations for your road trip, there are several areas that you should take care of to ensure a positive outcome for all. Long road trips require that you secure your crew in some way, inside of your vehicle. This not only prevents them from becoming a dangerous projectile should you get into an accident, this prevents them from getting loose in the same scenario. Some people swear by crates in the car. That simply isn’t a practical solution for everyone though, due to both size of the vehicle in question and size of the dogs in some families. Kenzo’s crate would be car sized so obviously, that won’t work for me. I choose to use harnesses with the leash attached both to the harness and the inside safety straps, secured with a carabineer. This solution also prevents excess moment by a restless dog during actual travel time.

One of the most important safety considerations when traveling away from home base is a clear tag on your dogs with your name and cell phone number on it. Having just a home landline number on a tag will cause a serious delay in the return of a dog should the unthinkable happen and your dog get lost when you are away from home. Additionally, make sure that if your crew is chipped, that the chip registration company has your cell phone number in their records.

The next consideration should be adequate control on leash. Outside of securely fenced in areas and inside your accommodation of choice at your destination, your crew should always be on leash when far away from home. All it takes is one mistake and one of your crew can be lost for good. This is a nightmare of every loving dog parent. Don’t let it happen to you. Make sure that your crew has solidly fitting harnesses and/or collars and their leashes are sturdy and in great condition. Always carry extra collars and leashes in case of emergency need.

Having a few long lines with extra carabineers can be very helpful for outdoor relaxation purposes such as camping and on unfenced decks. Always supervise as inappropriate attention to nearby wildlife can be problematic and can cause a multitude of undesired issues.

Where you choose to spend your vacation with your crew is important. Obviously, you have to choose a dog friendly accommodation. It goes beyond that however. The activities that you have in mind to participate in should be investigated as well if you plan to share them with your crew. Many restaurants have dog friendly patios in season and outdoor festivals can be dog friendly as well. Hiking is a wonderful shared pastime but sadly, some state parks don’t permit access to dogs at all and many others don’t permit overnight access. Knowing the regulations of where you plan to be is crucial to sharing a vacation with your crew. Research in advance can save frustration later on.

Another important consideration is understanding the physical limitations of your crew members. Perhaps Fluffy can’t do long distance hikes but Spot can. Then you must make sure that Fluffy is safe and secure both emotionally and physically wherever he is at while you and Spot are hiking. It is equally important to be aware of what each crew member actually enjoys doing. Not all activities are suited for all dogs. This article by yours truly can help with that decision.

https://positively.com/contributors/does-your-dog-really-love-that-activity/

Knowing where an emergency vet is at any locale you will be in is a time saver that you will hope not to need. Panicked situations progress far more smoothly if you know where you are going in advance.

Last, but not least, consider the season that you are traveling in. Stopping for a human potty break is a lot easier when the weather permits leaving your canine family members safely in the car without the threat of overheating. Having more than one human family member on the road trip makes it easier to leave the air conditioning on in the car while the humans take turns using the restroom on the road. If that isn’t an option, then take care to experiment ahead of time with extra keys and emergency brakes or even leaving one door unlocked with a window cracked so that window can be easily broken if needed. Parking out of the active area discourages passbyes from bothering your crew. Knowing your crew when doing this type of set up is crucial. If doing this would panic your crew, then don’t. Simply plan your road trip accordingly and make stops matter.

If you haven’t spent a vacation with your crew, I strongly encourage it. Adventure awaits and out of the ordinary but relaxing and fun stimulation for your crew gives them the same happy exhaustion as it does for humans. Have fun! Feel free to share your own shared vacation stories below.