Travel with Dog(s) July 30, 2019, 06:26:55 pm (Started a new topic so as not to tack on to "Fourth RV")While I don't disagree with the sentiment that "dogs and LDs make for fun camping", if someone new to the lifestyle is considering traveling with a dog, I offer a few observations based on quite a few years of tenting and RV travel with three different, large and medium-sized, not "portable", dogs. I choose to camp and travel with my dog because, overall, it works for both of us, but the experience is hardly without some downsides for me and for her; depending on the type and length of the trip, the onroad times from point to point, the locations and types of camping/sightseeing/stay accommodations, and a few other factors, "fun camping" may not always be the case. Obviously, every dog has a unique personality and different care requirements, including exercise; some dogs adapt well to RV travel and quickly set into their particular on-the-road routines, but some don't, and a situation can go south pretty quickly if the owner has not planned well and/or has not anticipated how to deal with possible "travel with dog" issues. Despite the fact that some people may feel otherwise, dogs can't go everywhere the owner can; some attractions, venues, restaurants, RV park and campground buildings, trails, stores, beaches, parks, etc., are dog-friendly, but many are not, so the dog has to be left with a human travel companion (if there is one), in some sort of a facility, e.g., a kennel, or in the rig (or toad) while the owner is off doing whatever. Is the rig/toad too cold? Too hot? Will the dog be left alone for an unreasonable length of time and not be able to relieve itself? Will the dog get into the trash/ruck up the owner's bedding to make a nest/chew up something/puke/or bark incessantly when the owner is gone? (This last is a major source of complaints about dogs from other campers/RVers.) Some dogs need to be "walked" frequently and given opportunities for plenty of activity and exercise; given that there are leash requirements almost everywhere, can the dog's needs be accommodated if it needs to be leashed/restrained more than may be usual? If one doesn't tow, does one have friends who are OK with having a dog ride in their car with the owner to "goseedo"? (Dog and I are lucky to know these! And, we carry several travel beach towels!)If the dog eats special foods or has medical needs, I suggest stocking food/meds, planning ahead to locate sources to replenish supplies, and advance checking for local veterinary services where one is traveling/camping. (A friend's dog drank out of a creek and picked up giardia; a diarrhea-afflicted dog is bad news - for the poor dog and everybody else - under any circumstances, but in an RV....I suggest not allowing creek/pond/lake lapping.)Obviously, there are additional points for owners to consider, e.g., always carrying dog bags for picking up (other people's dog poop, too!), behavior issues (dog or people aggressive, avoiding having too much dog for an owner, particularly a child, to control, not being socialized/trained in basic obedience), and whatever else may apply to one's particular canine(s). As my previous dogs did, my current dog, now 9 years old, travels with me; she can be (admittedly) a moody princess, she sheds, and she can outstare a cat, but she usually behaves herself. She has her "A List" of people, but, with few exceptions, does not care for other dogs (no dog parks for her), possibly because she has no idea she is one. She can still be a pretty high energy dog, and needs off-leash time, so I try to find places where she can run safely and restriction-free; for me, this is the biggest challenge of travel with her. For me, dog travel is still - on balance - a lot more fun than frustrating!As ever, YM (and dog!) MV 10 Likes
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #1 – July 30, 2019, 08:01:03 pm I second all the things Joan said. Especially about providing exercise for them, which for many dogs means off leash running. Those little dogs often someone can walk fast at the pace the dog runs, but many other dogs need some all out running or a long run (e.g. Dalmatians make great marathon running partners and that is the level of exercise they need regularly).Jane 1 Likes
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #2 – July 31, 2019, 09:26:46 am What Joan said.We spent 12 years fulltiming with one dog. We are now snowbirds, traveling 4-5 months during the winter with 2 dogs. Dogs do limit what you can do -- we don't like to be away from home or the rig for more than about 4 hours at a stretch, so there are things that we can't do because it would take much longer. When we're in AZ during the winter, we're out in the desert boondocking and take at least a couple of long walks with the dogs for exercise (both for them and for us). One of our dogs is a Basenji, so we cannot let him loose to run free...he needs to be on a leash at all times unless he's in a secure, fenced area. He also isn't that dog friendly, so we don't go to dog parks.Even though traveling with dogs can be limiting, the joy they give us is certainly worth it.
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #3 – July 31, 2019, 10:34:53 am An "dog travel" addendum to my post above: Depending on the location and circumstances, I do sometimes "tie out" my dog when in a campground or in the occasional RV park, but only when I'm there, e.g., in the rig or outside with her. She is not tied out "unwatched" when I'm away from the rig. (Some owners, particularly of small dogs, carry X-pens or other portable "fencing", but since space is very limited in a TK, I don't.)An unsupervised tied-out pet, dog or cat, has little or no defense against off-leash dogs, coyotes and other wildlife, and/or getting tangled or choked, particularly if the tie-out "rope" lends itself to that. People, particularly kids, will often approach the animal and attempt to pet it; this can be a major liability issue if the dog (or cat) doesn't respond positively to the attention! Additional concerns of a tied-out pet on its own are potential theft of the animal and/or the pet somehow getting loose from the "confinement" and wandering off. Once in a while, only in a safe camping setting with friends, I do relax the rules; if she goes on her visiting rounds, I know which rigs to check to find her! 3 Likes
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #4 – July 31, 2019, 03:40:16 pm I was camping in Death Vally National Park when a Ranger came by. She noticed Dylan on his leash. She told me the coyotes have learned to come out of the hills to snatch up the leased dogs and cats. As mother always said "Nature will always when the battle against the offending member." glen
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #5 – July 31, 2019, 04:29:43 pm Yesterday I went out to pick up the newspaper and found the remains of a neighborhood cat on our lawn. Rear leg, forepaw, and a string of intestines along with lots of fur bunches. This is the fourth time I’ve had to dispose of the coyotes’ leavings. Don’t know why they love my front yard for dining. L.A. has lots of urban areas that abut canyons or mountains, so coyotes are a fact of life all over. — Jon
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #6 – July 31, 2019, 10:07:45 pm Jon & Loni, some people up the hill from me have installed rainbird sprinklers triggered by motion detectors to deter the deer.Might something like that help keep your lawn clear? 1 Likes
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #7 – July 31, 2019, 10:47:38 pm Joel, that is a neat idea. Set them to ward off deer, coyote, fox, and skunk Ok, we would let the deer come up, probably even plant stuff for them to eat - lol.Jane
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #8 – August 01, 2019, 02:05:32 pm Quote from: Jane and Scott - July 31, 2019, 10:47:38 pmJoel, that is a neat idea. Set them to ward off deer, coyote, fox, and skunk Ok, we would let the deer come up, probably even plant stuff for them to eat - lol.JaneAm the only one who refers to deer as 'giant hoofed rats'? 3 Likes
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #9 – August 01, 2019, 02:25:39 pm Speaking as a life-long motorcyclist, I have no use for deer at all. Well, OK. They do taste good. 2 Likes
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #10 – August 01, 2019, 02:50:28 pm Another good deterrent is solar motion lights. You are able to set up and move easily and they seem to work here in the middle of nowhere. City living may need the added water surprise. Not only for deer but skunks, racoons, rats, and mice. Deer are good eating and beautiful in a wild setting. They are NOT meant to be fed and feeding usually leads to poor health and disease. Here in SE Oregon with restricted cougar and bear hunting the pressure is driving deer down lower and indeed into our towns, Not only are they a menace to plants they carry ticks and disease from an unnatural lifestyle. Please do your research before feeding/salting wild animals, you usually are not doing them any favors. 2 Likes
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #11 – August 01, 2019, 03:36:56 pm Quote from: Blueox25 - August 01, 2019, 02:25:39 pmSpeaking as a life-long motorcyclist, I have no use for deer at all. Well, OK. They do taste good.As do elk. 1 Likes
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #12 – August 01, 2019, 10:26:38 pm HalfMile20 - I agree, while tempting it is not a good to feed the wildlife (DH just saw a video of a child who lost fingers feeding some animal in the wild, a lesson the hard way).I was talking planting the temptation to plant a garden in the yard house of their natural food, like flowers to attract certain bugs/birds but nope we have not done that, usually we have dogs so need a fence between them and the wildlife.Jane 1 Likes
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #13 – August 02, 2019, 11:07:04 am During all of the years we have traveled with an RV, we have always included our doggy family members. Dogs sleep in the RV with us at night, are on a leash when we walk, and when we are sitting around in camp, the dog(s) are always on a lead or a cable. We keep a large supply of poop bags and clean up their messes and put the bags in a trash can (not on the side of the trail!). The only time our dogs are off leash when camping is when we are boondocking in the desert with no neighbors.Just because we love our dogs, doesn't mean that other campers do. Some people are truly afraid of dogs and others are just uncomfortable. Some dogs have bad manners with people and other dogs and it can be difficult to know how an unleashed dog will react when it approaches you. Last fall, I was walking in a campground and a man was walking his chihuahua off. leash. He said "Don't worry, he is friendly." The chihuahua then proceeded to run over and bite my ankle. In campgrounds and parks, it is a courtesy to your neighbors to keep your dogs under physical control.As for coyotes, last year year my clueless neighbor left her small dog and her cat out in the back yard with several bowls of food when she went out of town overnight. After she returned the following day, she lamented to anyone who would listen that she found a piece of her dog's leg in the back yard, the food bowls were empty, and the terrified cat was up in a tree and refused to come down. Some people should not have pets.Harold 4 Likes
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #14 – August 02, 2019, 11:36:10 am Last year we lost Toby. He spent a good deal of time on the boat, camper, and Lazy Daze. He never learned to ride on the motorcycle.We are starting over again, so for the next week we will be teaching our 18 week puppy to live on the boat. That means poop and pee on a green poopy pad in the cockpit, don't chew the interior wood trim, don't bark when in the crate, don't jump or fall overboard, don't drink the seawater (causes explosive diarhea; no need to ask how we know this), learning to board and get off a moving dinghy when landing and launching in the surf (I've gone unintentionally swimming during this activity because of dogs more often than I can count), learning to ride on the kayak and get back on after falling off, don't try to jump onto friend's boats when we stop by to talk, and not barking when neighbors drive their dinghies by the boat. No mention of seasickness: some dogs are susceptible, others are not. (Toby got seasick, Zeke, Anika, and Bekky did not.)What could go wrong?Harold 2 Likes
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #15 – August 02, 2019, 03:07:34 pm Harold, I remember meeting Toby during your visit here. He and I have a lot in common since we were both old sea dogs. 1 Likes
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #16 – August 02, 2019, 07:02:37 pm We started RVing so that we could travel with the dogs. We'd tried the hotel route, but it just didn't work for us. We are completely on the same page as Blueox25. When we're walking the dog in camp, she's leashed. We carry extra poop bags whenever we're out. She's only tied out when one of us is out there with her. We try to be polite because we realize that having the dog with us is a privilege, not a right. 5 Likes
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #18 – August 03, 2019, 11:24:01 am Our newest family member facing a lifetime of trips and exploring. Tug is an 18 week old black lab, and certain that everyone who comes by wants to love him up and then be bitten with little puppy teeth. Keeping him on the boat and kayak, and out of streams and lakes will be a challenge. Everything that fits into his mouth goes into his mouth. Furniture, shoes, socks, carpet, dock lines, etc. are all edible dog toys. Cyndy and I now sport little bloody holes and scabs all over our fingers, hands and arms from his enthusiastic playfulness. Here is to the next decade of doggy companionship.Harold 7 Likes
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #19 – August 03, 2019, 12:54:25 pm Quote from: Blueox25 - August 03, 2019, 11:24:01 amOur newest family member facing a lifetime of trips and exploring. Tug is an 18 week old black lab, and certain that everyone who comes by wants to love him up and then be bitten with little puppy teeth. Lab Pup Creed: If it's there, bite it. If it moves, chase it, if it doesn't - chew it.He will call your water craft 'Tug Boat'They grow quickJoel 2 Likes
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #20 – August 03, 2019, 02:22:06 pm We have stayed at a few RV parks that have had specific dog areas. They have been mostly RV parks, as opposed to state or national parks. One of them even had agility equipment! This was such a treat for us, as our dog has gone through agility training. I can tell you that he slept really well the night we stayed at that park. While those places are few and far between, they are a great treat when you come across them. In addition, we have found that sometimes local parks offer off-leash dog areas. (I know that often people take their LD way out into nature, but because we live way out in nature, we often take our LD into cities and towns to stay. That's why we often get the benefit of local parks etc.)I love my dog, but it will be a lot easier to travel when I don't have to bring him with me.
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #21 – August 03, 2019, 02:26:28 pm "I can tell you that he slept really well the night we stayed at that park."----A tired dog is a good dog. 1 Likes
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #22 – August 03, 2019, 03:26:37 pm "A tired dog is a good dog."Let me relate a story from years gone by...My family once owned a Beagle (you Beagle owners will understand where I'm going with this).We were visiting Niagara Falls in a 1966 Chevy Station Wagon. While we humans were out taking in the scenery on Goat Island (mid way between the American and Canadian Falls), the Beagle (Toby) was left to his devices in the car, along with the luggage and a Variety pack of Kellogg's breakfast cereal. Upon our return to the car we found just what anyone would expect, total destruction, including a box of Kleenex. Toby knew what my reaction would be and he escaped out the rear hatch the moment it opened sufficiently. I chased him to the brink of the falls, he stopped at the point where he was standing right under the guard rail. My almost overwhelming urge was to boot him right into the maelstrom. But, Heaven interceded and Toby lived to see the next sunrise! 2 Likes
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #23 – August 03, 2019, 05:21:31 pm Harold, we learned (ok, were forced to learn by a very very alpha puppy), how to "parent" the dog in dog culture not ours.Yelping (short high pitched sound) when bitten naturally tells the puppy they are playing too tough with those teeth.In fact we got a foster dog that the previous owner (we think a construction worker) had taught to "go after" hands and bite really hard leaving big dents (owner must have had gloves on). We thought what a dumb thing to teach a dog - what if a child comes up to play (the dog was give to the shelter at age 1, probably because there were children in the family and that was not the only child unfriendly thing it did). Because of how he was taught, it took almost a year to fully train him - then as soon as hit teeth hit skin (even barely, even without us making a noise), he immediately pulled back. However, he still liked to play get the hands/feet, so we let him "get the foot" which was taking socks off our feet. He LOVED this game and even when I had very thin socks on he barely touched me as with ticklish feet I would yelp when he did.Jane 2 Likes
Re: Travel with Dog(s) Reply #24 – August 03, 2019, 05:57:36 pm What do you folks do if you want to hike a trail or see a site and dogs aren't allowed? Leave the dog in the RV? Is this acceptable in campgrounds? Bob
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