We've hit upon a bit of an issue with Luna being scared of the car. I'd welcome any advice/experience on this because most of what I've read relates to either car sickness or fear of the destination - neither which are our situation. A bit of background: For the last year she's been a brilliant traveller - no issue at all. We drive her to a lot of her off lead walks, so in general it's great stuff that she gets to do when we travel. But we started out a month ago with a few moments of her being unsure about getting in her car crate. We put this down to the hot weather and her not wanting to get into a medium size (but slightly cramped) crate in a hot car after a walk. We never forced her into the car, but gently enticed her back so we could drive back home. She also used to do this when it was time to leave our weekly gun dog training class and we'd have to carry her back to the car across the field - again, this was mainly on hot days, so we assumed it was to do with that. This then escalated to her being very frightened to get in even on cool days, and she would stop half way down the hallway of the house if she could see the car, so we changed the set up, got rid of the crate, got a grill and gave her the whole boot so she could stretch out fully assuming it was a space/heat issue. We gave her her meals in the boot (with the engine off and the boot open) for a few days and sat in there with her with her favourite toy. The first few trips we did, we gave her a licky mat and one of us sat on the back seat and fed her treats. She seemed happy again. So far so good..... Then yesterday, she tried to get out of the boot while it was closing (she panicked and wanted to get out) and got her foot caught. She's restrained by her lead on a tethering point, but she was able to just about creep forward just enough. It's an automatic closer so thankfully it stopped as soon as there was an obstruction so she's totally unhurt, but she yelped and panicked and it really scared her, the poor lamb. I let her out so she could calm down but it took me half an hour to entice her back in the car so we could get home, resorting to putting her on the backseat. She won't go near the boot now (in either car) and retreats if she hears the sound of the boot opening, even at a distance. Any thoughts on how we go about counter conditioning this? I'm clear on the need to take it slow and get her comfortable near the car etc building up to being inside. But it's the closing of the boot bit that's tricky - it's hard to part-close it because it's an automatic one, and it's the sound that's also part of her concern. We could get a tailgate guard to stop her jumping out, but it's not really solving the problem.
Hi @LoopyLuna This is a hard one because she is now rightfully fearful of the automatic boot. One can desensitise and counter condition to the noise and movement by getting her to sit not in the car but towards the back of the car. Use distance to lower her level of arousal/anxiety. Have the boot open before you bring your dog outside of your home. Close the boot. If she is calm then give her a treat. If she is fearful, then back away. Try again at the farther away from the car. See if you can get closer and closer over many repetitions. Don't expect a linear progression. You might need to back away even though you were getting closer. Let us know how you progress. If you can get her in the boot, I would get in there with her closing it and opening it many times. That is if she is calm. If she panics, then I would stop doing it. If she is comfortable, then get a guard so that it cannot happen again. The alternative is to buy a seat cover for the back sear, and a seat belt connector for the harness. Just transport her that way and avoid the fearsome boot.
I've had loads of problems with Loki and car travel. You're already doing the things that worked for me - feeding meals in the car, switching from a crate to a dog guard. For my little car, the breakthrough was buying a guard that fits between the two front seats and not using the seatbelt harness and now he jumps in no problem. I use a 'hammock' style seat protector which also stops him falling off the seats. Unfortunately he's now started refusing to get into the boot of the big car which he's been fine with for ages! I suspect this might actually be brattish behaviour/holding out for bigger treats/not wanting to leave fun places but I am going to go back to feeding his meals in the car (without going anywhere) for a few days before I next have to take him anywhere.
If you're going to stick with dog-in-the-boot (and not on the back seat), then you really need to lose the tether of her lead to something inside the boot - that sounds quite dangerous. She could easily get twisted up in it, and strangle herself whilst you're driving and you may not even be aware of it. And clearly it's not working because she can still get in the way of the closing boot. I don't even like collars left on the dog in the boot, let alone a tether... What you need instead, is a tail gate: You need a barrier with a door in it, to go across the boot so when you open the boot, the dog is contained still on the other side. Anything else just isn't safe because, the way most boot mechanisms work, no one can prevent a dog jumping out whilst also opening/closing the boot. Like this: https://www.lintran.co.uk/products/vehicle-protection/dog-guards.html The other option is as Michael suggests - get an over-the-top thing for the back seat of the car and a car harness. See here for ideas: https://barkpost.com/answers/best-carseat-covers/ Again, for safety reasons, it's best not to leave the harness clipped in when the car is stationery and you're not in it with the dog - and if you have a dog prone to chewing and destruction, this isn't always the best option because they can do more damage on the back seat than in the boot... Whichever you decide, you will need to spend some time 'playing' around the car. Teach her to put her front 2 paws up on other things first - in kinda doggie-parkour style(!) - and to jump up on things with all 4 paws. Work around the car, using other things nearby (bins, walls) for a click and treat each time - so she is enthusiastically offering you 2 paws up on other random things - then just casually ask for two paws up on the open boot or back door, whichever you are using. Reinforce even the most pathetic effort from her, and stop there - repeat every day and go no further until she is treating the car like anything else she is putting two paws up on. Then you can move to 4 paws up - again starting with other objects around the car like jumping onto walls or outdoor furniture - and move to jumping into the car for a click and treat - and allow her to jump out again immediately...
I do agree with Jo about the tether in the boot. It was connecting his harness to the seat belt in the back seat of my car that was the problem for us. Even a small amount of sharp braking or the wrong kind of wriggling around and getting tangled can be very distressing for them. My dog is super intolerant of being tethered though, and not keen on leads and harnesses in general, so it's hardly surprising he hated it so much.
Wow - I hadn't even thought of this. I was so focused on the safety side of her not jumping out that I'd not considered this risk. Consider it noted! I started slow today. I let her watch the boot open and close from the safety of the kitchen today and she was fine. I then let her eat some chicken off the back bumper of the car. She was calm in the vicinity of the car so I'll do this for a few more days and then try doors open. Thanks for your help everyone.
@LoopyLuna it's best not to use food to directly lure the dog to interact with things they are scared of (whether people or objects), since that creates a situation of conflict - the dog wants the food but the dog is scared. OFten dogs will temporarily override their fear to snatch the food and get away - but this kind of thing doesn't help them feel safer, it really just creates more stress due to the conflict. Really, you need to use both operant and classical conditioning - meaning training games involving the car. Working near the car and around the car and then gradually incorporating the car into the 'pattern' of things you are doing, so it becomes just another object... that will give her a framework for interacting with the car and you will also be better able to judge how confident she really is, if she is interacting with it without a food lure (you can still use food as a reinforcement for the behaviour she does on/in the car though...).
Hi - bit of an update on this and any thoughts on where to go next would be much appreciated. Last week we spent a week doing stuff around the car and doing "paws up" on the bumper with the boot shut which has gone well. Happy days This week I got the car prepped with the boot open before taking her outside, and (without any food lures) asked her to "up", expecting just paws up, but she got straight in. Granted, she wanted to get straight out again, but that was fine. I just let her spend a few minutes jumping in (click treat) and jumping out when she needed to and then we called it a day. Today I did the same again and she hopped straight in and was happier to dwell a bit, so I sat on the edge of the boot and tried a "settle" (click, treat), I got a hip roll, and then she was happy to sit with me. She had the opportunity to jump out but didn't need to. I was planning to do this for a few more days and make sure she's consistently happy, but then I'm not sure of the most logical next step. I was thinking this order.....: - Not getting in the boot, but being happy to be near the car when the boot opens and closes - Watching the boot open and getting in and being comfortable settling - Putting the back seats down and letting her sit in the car with me while I open and close the boot. Any thoughts or tweaks you'd recommend?
Hi @LoopyLuna One can't know before hand what will work. Try your suggestions. See how your dog reacts. If any signs of anxiety then use distance to lower the anxiety. For example, if being in back seat is an issue when boot closes, then try front seat first. Don't push the dog, that is, let the dog determine the pace.
This sounds like good progress. I think it might help to have someone else actually open the boot, whilst you stand at a distance with her on leash and click and treat her for watching this. If that works, take a couple steps closer and repeat. And so on. Until you can open the boot with her right next to it. Then you can do getting in and settling. You could give her a Kong at this point and she stays there for as long as it takes to do the Kong, then release her out the boot again and repeat that a few days.
My 5 month pup was fine getting in and out of the car crate until I changed cars, now he refuses and has to be lifted in. Trying to persuade him with treats at the moment, yet he is fine once in!
When my dog was little she was nervous in the car and I gave her lots of treats. Now she loves the car. I don’t use a crate. My dog sticks her head out the window. I know some people frown on that. But my dog absolutely loves car rides.
Hi LoopyLuna I too agree with Jo Laurens on the the in the boot idea. I use a car crate and having a car lose control and crash (non injury) in front of me on the M6 last week feel it's worth it's weight in gold. I also remove his lead n collar so nothing can get hooked. Anyway, going on a bit, I was on the happypuppy site reading Jo's article on crate training and something clicked. I think I know why my pup has gone off his crate. I could be way off the mark but I think it is the smell of Lemons. I already know he doesn't like them as he stole one from the shopping. But, around the day I got my new car I cleaned his crate with Lemon wipes whereas normally I use a damp cloth or cheapo baby wipes (handy for those fox poo moments). With that in mind, I cleaned the crate and sprayed fabreze everywhere in and around the car tried Rocket a few times and now although hesitant he is almost back to going in quite happily. Daft beggar!
That's so interesting - how funny!! Well done for diagnosing it. I'm on a mission now to try and resolve our problem. I was due to be taking Luna to our dog boarder today for a practice run "sleepover" before she stays there for our wedding weekend. But had to cancel it because she was so unhappy in the car. I was tempted to just do it and get her there by hook or by crook, but it seemed counterintuitive to drop her off in a new environment after a stressful experience, however lovely the boarders home and dogs are. I've rescheduled for October so I'm writing a plan of action now.
