Does anyone else have a dog that gets travel sick?

blue_monkey_2

My dog get very travel sick, depsite having short journeys every day of a mile there and back, ther eis no let up in it, if we go to the vets (about 3 miles) she is sick every time, even if she has not eaten. I have the air con on but it does not make any difference.

I spoke to the vets about this and there is a tablet that she can have but it is very expensive, it has to be given 2 hours before travelling and she has to have 2 every day. And they cost £17 for the 2. So over £100 a week if we want to go further afield for walking. :eek::eek::eek:

The vet said some people give, and have success with, Nytol so I could try that, however, for her Silver KC award she has to get in and out of the car on her own and be comfortable in the car - there is no way we will pass as she hates getting in the car, depsite going up the road each day and into town with her to get her used to it.

I wondered if anyone else had a travel sick pet and if so, what they did about it. We keep her in a travel cage in the back (people carrier) because she will not sit still.

Caroline_a

My pup was travel sick when I first got him, but his first few journeys were to the vet for his jabs! So I took him on tiny journeys, starting off with putting him in car, starting engine, turning it off, give treat, then go in house... from there I build up to walks after a minute or two. Now he happily goes in, no probs!

I think most of them are sick because they are nervous and will pick up on your apprehension too.

RedwoodBrook

For the first 6 months of my pup's life she used to be sick even getting into the car. Annoying as I'd just bought my lovely new audi >.<

For the last 3 months though, she's been fine. I don't know if she grew out of it or just got used to the sensation but travel sickness is very common in dogs.

Fire_Fox

An empty stomach does not prevent the physical process of travel sickness, it just means less mess. I wonder if there is a bit of a Pavlov's dog response going on, whereby the dog vomits because he is getting stressed at just getting into the car? Nausea and digestive disturbance are common symptoms of stress, and the pacing around the car would also fit in with that as would vomiting on an empty stomach because stress can lead to increased acid production. Have you considered getting the expensive drug on prescription from your vet and then filled elsewhere? Or practicing just getting in and out of the car for treats, then spending time in the car but stopping all journeys whilst the training takes place? Or getting a proper harness that works with a seatbelt stops the dog pacing rather than the cage?

blue_monkey_2

Well, we bought a different (2nd hand) car because she was being sick in the new car and I thought it might be too enclosed and dark for her, so we got a big people carrier with windows that snap open at the back so the air can get to her, I also put her up on top of a folded chair so the crate was window level (it's a fabric, not metal one so no room to pace, i thought enclosed would be better) because I thought it might be because she could not see out and the movement was making her sick. It did not work. The people carrier is more airy and she could jump in and out on her own accord - the new car has a high back and I have to lift her and I wanted her to jump in and out when she was ready rather than me forcing her in.

I started using treats but we have a dog trainer and he said not to do this because even if she was still in there and she was nervous, we was rewarding her fear and it would not do what I was trying to achieve. Also turning the engine on and leaving her in there while I sat with her and read the paper. She seems fine with this but once the car starts moving she vomits. Where I can, I try and walk her before meal times so there is not so much to bring up so her tummy is empty but when we go dog training it is lunchtime so I cannot do that. Even the 2 mile journey is too much.

My friends dog was also really travel sick as a pup and she grew out of it, I assumed ours would do the same but she still gets very sick and I thought I would try and nip it in the bud.

I have a harness but it used to make her struggle more to try and get to me - I think I'll give that another go, as we have the people carrier now I am going to get hubby to drive while I sit with her in the back, it is much higher and airier and she can have her own seat and look out of the window so if I drive her somewhere busy (she loves people) maybe she might get excited about the car taking her places where she can meet people (maybe physcological will work) - and I can sit in the back with her so she can see me. It is normally just me, her and the other dog in the car. I did not want to put her with the kids as I was worried, if she got too stressed - she might snap at them and with them being in the back and me in the front driving, could not intervene.

Thanks for the suggestions. I am going to give the harness option a try.

I think if I had a prescription for 2 of the meds, I would only be able to buy 2 and they are still expensive. I have just found that Johnsons sell an 'on the shelf' herbal one. The one the vet mentioned was Cerenia (another name after was too long). Let me try the back seat method again and see if that is better in the new car and if not I'll try herbal and see if that works.

jhe

my dog suffers with motion sickness and when she is sick she is really sick!!!, over the last year she has improved a little so we can cover short journeys now, she happily jumps into the car but if we hit the country roads she still gets sick even though we stop regular for her to get a little excercise and fresh air. vet receptionist told me to try human travel sickness tablets but havnt tried them yet.

manda1205

My lab used to be sick in the car quite regularly and used to drool really bad. In the end we found she was best in the boot and we put her bed in too, from home so she has that security and familiarness with home. Im not certain if she did actuallly grow out of it or if it was that we put her bed in, but she definitly stopped, she does still have odd days when she doesnt want to get in the car and we have to use treats, but that is rare.
How old is she? I think its good if you can try and sit with her too, anythings worth trying isnt it. Id be interested to know exactly whats in the travel sickness tablets and if theyre the same as human ones, I know they dont cost me £17 for 2 when I buy them.

peachyprice

My dog gets travel sick if he can see out of the window.

We have a Freelander and he's fine in the boot with the blind bit rolled open, it's too high for him to be able to see out and he'll settle there fine.

You cannot have him in the main cabin of the car, as soon as he can see out he's shaking and puking.

I still don't take him on long journeys though, he may be alright now, but I'd hate to get halfway there and for him to start being sick. It took along time for him to 'trust' the car again, I don't want to go back to square one.

lizzie157

we tried ours in the back in cage and had to stop frequently to clean up! we now use a harness and shes not sick anymore. shes never in the back alone though as she still gets anxious and whines till she settles.

ermintrudey

I bought a dog booster seat. It has a place to clip the harness to so that the dog doesn't get out. Anyway, it seems to work for us but I don't know the reason why.
Type dog booster seat into a search engine to give you an idea as I can't post links.

chris_n_tj

TJ used to get very bad travel sickness, some one recommended Rescue Remedy, It worked a treat. TJ is now fine in the car but it did take ages, as long as he can see out of the window he is ok now.

We use a harness and a cushion pad from our sofa (got a new one lol ) It lifts him up enough to see through the windscreen. The cushion is in the back seat in the middle, if that makes sense. We were told they need to see straight ahead side views can make it worse. x

We use one of these to click his harness to, cheap and does the job. The harness is a RAC one x

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Lead-Restraint-Harness-Dog-Seat-Belt-Clip-Use-Car-/170573410972?pt=UK_Pet_Supplies_Dogs&hash=item27b6f7b29c