HHe ello All, I know this subject has been brought up many times....and here is another time! Cooper is turning 16 months on a few days. I have had in the car since he was eight weeks old.....he is happy to get into the car....he knows there will be a kibble stuffed Kong waiting for him and he is OK while he chews on the frozen Kong. Once that is finished (10 minites maximum) he starts to pant, then starts to whine and then to bark loudly. He is not restrained in the car. I have both back windows open so he gets fresh air even if I have the air conditioning going. What am I doing wrong? I want him to come with me in the car everywhere I go but now I find that he gets so upset.....I don't want to put him through that.....so I leave him home when I have to go out. Can any of you help me please?
That must be distressing - for him and you. I think you have to try to understand what is causing this in order to try to tackle it. But in any event, keeping car travel to distances below 10 minutes and very, very gradually increasing it sounds sensible. It could be: motion sickness, he feels unwell - so consult your vet; fear of the noise of other vehicles (in which case having the window open will make it worse); something else has scared him and he fears the car; and so on. I would also think about whether he would be better in a crate, something similar to what he has at home (if he uses a crate at home). I doubt he is panting because he is hot if you have the aircon on - it is most likely stress or him feeling unwell. I like the ASPCA articles generally, and there is a good one on dogs that are unhappy about travelling in cars, here: https://www.aspca.org/pet-care/virtual-pet-behaviorist/dog-behavior/fear-riding-cars
Thank you, Julie. The article is great. We went out today for about 10 minutes with windows closed and A/C on and he was OK. Will try the 10 minute one for a few days and then increase to 15 and so on. So strange because he has been quite fine in the car up to now. I also thought of motion sickness....he doesnt drool or throw up though. I cant think of something that has scared him but he could be scared of the traffic on highways or truck noise or movement. I will work on it, though, because I DO want him with me when I am out and about. Even just go give him a change of scenery. Thanks again....you always respond and I appreciate it very much. Have a great day.
