Remote travel with pets

[trinityalyce]

I just thought I'd kick this thread off to see what others do...

We have a little guy who really loves camping with us.



He's very much part of the family, so having to leave him behind on big trips is hard. He's great to take camping on smaller trips and loves it as much as we do.

We've been toying with the idea of doing a "Big Lap" trip, maybe take 6 months off and meander our way around the country. Ideally, we'd like to take him with us.

I know some of you DO take your dogs travelling, so I thought I'd throw some questions out there...


If you have your dog on the road with you, what do you do about National Parks? How do you manage basic things like going to the shops etc. where dogs also aren't welcome? Where do you leave them if you DO need to leave them behind for a few hours?

[Mace]

We couldnt be away from the puppers for 6 months!!  We have an odd couple, an 11 year old Kelpie and a two year old Chillier (chihuahua x KC Cavalier) both female.

With National Parks, the only thing we have done is put the Kelpie into a local kennel for a day or two while checking  out these areas.  There should be a Myswag thread on members able to dog sit for others for a few days, we would do that down here if need be.

Shopping - we tag team, one human in, one human out.  Same with local attractions and for short walks in areas where puppers not allowed.

We leave our 2  puppers in the CT tent for 2 hours or so at a time.  Their beds are in there, along with water & treats.  We usually tell nearby campers if we do this.  Our puppers are left inside during the day when at home, curtains drawn, etc, so they are used to this.  Whenever we have "checked them out" by quietly returning on foot they are fast asleep 9 times out of 10.   Luckily my work is close to home and allows me to come home for lunch, so they are home alone during the week from 9-12 and then 1 - 4 when SHMBO gets home.

Keep them up to date with Advantix or similar.

[trinityalyce]

Thanks Mace! Yeah, we are OK leaving our little guy for a month when we've done more remote/predominantly NP trips like the Simpson trip we did, but for 6 months? I don't know I'd cope!

We've done the tag team thing before, too, for shops.

I had wondered about leaving our little guy in a well-ventilated caravan/similar during the day for a few hours if absolutely necessary. Its not *ideal* but he's SUCH a couch potato that he'd just sleep the whole time anyway...

I have heard of people using boarding kennels, but I'm a bit fussy when it comes to kennels, so down the track I may need to ask around for suggestions for various locations. I had seen a blog post by a couple who travel with their dog who say they board their dog in council-run kennel facilities in some places, but I didn't really like the sound of that (some had no shade, etc.). Dog sitting sounds like a good option, too, where feasible.

One day I'd love if there was an option to have dogs in National Parks on a permit basis or something. I'd happily pay a permit fee if it meant our little guy could come with us! I totally understand and agree with dogs not roaming free in these locations, but a permit-based, regulated system is better than what we currently have.

[xcvator]

A lot of kennels will do day care as well if you call them. We'd only had Riley for 9 weeks when we went to Canberra a couple of years ago. Cost us about $25-00 for the day, dropped him off at 9 am and picked him back up at 4pm , worked well
cheers Keith

[wakychapmans]

we have a three year old Samoyed.

when we talked about getting him, we discussed travel a lot. We knew that it would mean passing by National Parks and so on or finding a kennel nearby for a day trip.

Otherwise... we look for attractions and camps that are outside National Parks. Shopping... we do as others have said, one of us in the car... one of us shopping.

Did you know that it is possible to get *some* dogs trained as a designated "assistance" or "service" dog (for people with a range of physical and mental disabilities) and once registered as such, they are allowed into most places that a guide dog can go.

[trinityalyce]

Did you know that it is possible to get *some* dogs trained as a designated "assistance" or "service" dog (for people with a range of physical and mental disabilities) and once registered as such, they are allowed into most places that a guide dog can go.

From what I've looked into its actually quite tricky to get your OWN dog deemed a service dog. So there's that hurdle.

I have had some shop owners/managers be more than happy for us to take our dog inside. That's ranged from bottle shops to opp shops to others! Usually they'll see one of us lurking out the front with the dog and the other having to run outside to ask questions, so they have just come over to tell tell us we can bring the dog inside. LOL. Its only happened occasionally, but nice when it does.

Boarding for the day at a kennel might be a good option to look into. I hadn't really considered that. I know that bigger towns/cities usually have doggy daycare facilities too.

Thanks for the suggestions guys.

[wakychapmans]

From what I've looked into its actually quite tricky to get your OWN dog deemed a service dog. So there's that hurdle.

geez... and here I would have thought that owning a Nissan was a sure sign of some kind of illness... 

FWIW - we looked at getting Tucker trained as a Delta Dog (as I have epilepsy) and to be honest... his personality is more "let's play and lick faces" and less, "let's sit here nice and calm"...

but I wouldn't be without him for quits. He comes to work with me every day.

[wakychapmans]

Boarding for the day at a kennel might be a good option to look into. I hadn't really considered that. I know that bigger towns/cities usually have doggy daycare facilities too.

I've also been told that some National Park rangers have short visit kennels available for half day visits. (usually at the Ranger station) Though you'd need to talk to individual parks about that.

[xcvator]

National park regulations might vary by state, but in general on through road, (not ending in the park,if it does forget it ) you can take your dog in PROVIDED that you don't physically stop.
We've done that a few times, put the car into 4wd low 1st gear, foot off the accelerator and go along slower than walking pace 

[trinityalyce]

geez... and here I would have thought that owning a Nissan was a sure sign of some kind of illness... 

FWIW - we looked at getting Tucker trained as a Delta Dog (as I have epilepsy) and to be honest... his personality is more "let's play and lick faces" and less, "let's sit here nice and calm"...

Hey! I think I should be offended by that first comment! 

Unfortunately being a Delta Dog doesn't help you - Delta Dogs are only "therapy dogs" not service/assistance dogs so they are not entitled to the same rights as the latter guys are. Dog (our boy, yes I know his name isn't particularly creative! LOL!) is a Delta Dog. Putting smiles on the faces of oldies in the nursing home we visit is awesome.



He was rather proud of himself the day he passed his training assessment! 

Assistance Dogs Australia have some info here about not accrediting your own dog: http://www.assistancedogs.org.au/pages/faqs.html#CanAssistDogAust

Not sure if there are other groups who can help...

(And this entire post is completely off topic! Oh well)

[wakychapmans]

Hey! I think I should be offended by that first comment! 

Unfortunately being a Delta Dog doesn't help you - Delta Dogs are only "therapy dogs" not service/assistance dogs so they are not entitled to the same rights as the latter guys are.

hey... you're the one driving the Patrol...

I know about the Delta Dog aspect, for us it was a step towards further accreditation.

But it's very hard to call him an assistance dog, when he's licking your face then rolling around asking for belly rubs...

[trinityalyce]

hey... you're the one driving the Patrol...

I know about the Delta Dog aspect, for us it was a step towards further accreditation.

But it's very hard to call him an assistance dog, when he's licking your face then rolling around asking for belly rubs...

Well... technically my car is the Jimny. 

Yeah that makes sense - therapy dog first, then go from there.

LOL yeah true! We're lucky Dog is very obedient and loyal by nature. He'd do almost anything you'd ask of him. Except if it involves eating raw vegetables... not so keen on that. Cooked ones? No worries! LOL I have photos somewhere of him with a stack of dog treats on his head Jenga-style. He really does do anything you ask of him...

[KingBilly]

There's a couple of Facebook groups which are based upon pet sitting for others whilst travelling.  We will be travelling with our new Staffy soon so will be following this thread with interest.

KB

[trinityalyce]

There's a couple of Facebook groups which are based upon pet sitting for others whilst travelling.  We will be travelling with our new Staffy soon so will be following this thread with interest.

KB

Would love to hear how you get on. All experience and tips from Swaggers are welcome! Its likely 12 months until we'd be doing any big trips with our little guy.

[weeds]

I have been following a young couple doing the big lap with theredog.......they have been to some amazing places outside national parks.

They did say there are travelers that are missing their dog that is at home and are more than happy to doggy sit for a day while they do a walk in say a national park...and there are other travelers with dogs where they take turns looking after each other ls dogs.




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[weeds]

Found it

http://unknownmilestone.com/your-4-legged-best-friend-and-national-parks/


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[trinityalyce]

Found it

http://unknownmilestone.com/your-4-legged-best-friend-and-national-parks/


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Thanks - funnily enough this is the blog entry I read that got me thinking about actually being able to travel with Dog! We follow these guys on Instagram. I personally wouldn't be able to leave him some of the places they've said about, like the ranger kennels at some parks (no shade, not well protected, etc.), but the other ideas are what got me thinking.

[Beepa]

We have a ute with a lockable cage on the back, this allows us to go camping with the mutt and leave him with shade, water, food etc while we do walks, lookouts and lunch etc. Winter we have his jacket and blankets, summer we vent air in while driving and have a fan for him when stopped as well as ice in his water.

[trinityalyce]

Just thinking out loud... would it be feasible to have a dog-sitting thread pinned somewhere on MySwag - members can put their names & locations down as being happy to dog-sit for other members who are travelling through?

[chester ver2.0]

No guarantees but a few places we went to at the van parks that were just outside national parks e.g Yardie Homestead Caravan park there was a quasie dog sitting arrangement ran by some of the regulars for a 6 pack of beer