first timer Posted August 19, 2009 Share Posted August 19, 2009 So Bella is 13 weeks now and I take her most morning to do the school run etc but she still cries most of the time she is in the car??? Will she ver get used to driving?? is there anything else I can do to make it easier for her? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sky_Mel Posted August 19, 2009 Share Posted August 19, 2009 Hi, My girl was the same when she was little and our trainer back then told us to feed her in the car so she was getting a good experience with the car. Once she was comfortable with this I was then told to turn the car on and she was to eat in the car whilst it was on so she was getting used to the noise and the vibrations of the car. I know you have to be careful though because if your pup is incredibly fearful you don't want to reward this behaviour but definitely get in contact with a trainer as they can go through what is best for your pup as I'm not a trainer this is just my experience This seemed to work really well and quickly for us and then we had no issues with this car and now she will actually leap into the car now Hope your little pup enjoys the car soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie1 Posted August 19, 2009 Share Posted August 19, 2009 (edited) So Bella is 13 weeks now and I take her most morning to do the school run etc but she still cries most of the time she is in the car???Will she ver get used to driving?? is there anything else I can do to make it easier for her? Mason did the same for a long time, I just ignored it and kept taking him for a short drive like every second day to get used to it. After awhile he associated the car with going out and now he loves it! Edited August 19, 2009 by candivw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_PL_ Posted August 19, 2009 Share Posted August 19, 2009 Try making it a happy experience as above.. but sometimes what sounds like distress is actually excitement. Don't fuss on her, that reinforces the unwanted behaviour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diva Posted August 19, 2009 Share Posted August 19, 2009 Are you sure it's distress and not excitement? If she is drooling too it would be a sign she is stressed, and Sky_Mel's advice is pretty good - break the car experience down into baby steps and reward calmness at each stage. If it is actual car sickness there are herbal things which can help, including ginger, but you'd need more info than I have about them. But one of mine 'sings' the whole time we are going somewhere in the car. Sound like a humpback whale doing kareoke and drives me nuts, but it's her being happy. Anyone else listening would think she was in pain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jetty Posted August 19, 2009 Share Posted August 19, 2009 Hi I have a puppy who is now 7 months I hardly had him in the car except for vet trips to start of with and this stressed him out and he started to get car sick. Take him to places that he enjoys in the car. I advise you not to feed him as this may make him car sick. have the window down if possible for the fresh air. Also try to avoid curvy roads. Hope this helps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chiara Posted August 19, 2009 Share Posted August 19, 2009 Hi congrats on the new addition to the family! I have a one year old rottie boy, when he was a pup I used to take him to work with me or drop him off to my mum's for her to look after him while I was at work, either way it was a good 40 min drive each way. I used to have him in a crate at first... he would cry his little heart out the whole way there and back! then I got him a dog travel seat cover, the ones you put in the back seat and it goes from one side to the other like a hammock, he liked that better, he didn't cry but he would throw up every time!! nice way to start the day! Anyway my point is he is now one and he loves the car, he can seat in the back in the from or in the boot of our 4wd, he loves the window down and he barks at the motorcycles. Try to open a window for her so she can see and smell the outside world that might entertain her and she might stop crying, if she's scared crying put her in the car with some toys without going anywhere a few times to get her used to the environment. Either way I'm confident she will get over it as she grows up, my pup did he stopped crying and throwing up in the car when he got big enough to see out the window! Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sky_Mel Posted August 19, 2009 Share Posted August 19, 2009 (edited) Hi I have a puppy who is now 7 months I hardly had him in the car except for vet trips to start of with and this stressed him out and he started to get car sick. Take him to places that he enjoys in the car. I advise you not to feed him as this may make him car sick. have the window down if possible for the fresh air. Also try to avoid curvy roads.Hope this helps Just incase you mistook what I said about feeding, I was not advised to feed her and drive around with her, just work on getting her used to the car and sounds etc Edited August 19, 2009 by Sky_Mel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jetty Posted August 19, 2009 Share Posted August 19, 2009 Hi I have a puppy who is now 7 months I hardly had him in the car except for vet trips to start of with and this stressed him out and he started to get car sick. Take him to places that he enjoys in the car. I advise you not to feed him as this may make him car sick. have the window down if possible for the fresh air. Also try to avoid curvy roads.Hope this helps Just incase you mistook what I said about feeding, I was not advised to feed her and drive around with her, just work on getting her used to the car and sounds etc Oh no I understood what you meant Just if it is that he is getting nervous he may get car sick so feeding can actually make him sick. First Timer - You need to figure out if he is getting stressed or liek other have said excited. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_PL_ Posted August 19, 2009 Share Posted August 19, 2009 Are you sure it's distress and not excitement? If she is drooling too it would be a sign she is stressed, and Sky_Mel's advice is pretty good - break the car experience down into baby steps and reward calmness at each stage. If it is actual car sickness there are herbal things which can help, including ginger, but you'd need more info than I have about them.But one of mine 'sings' the whole time we are going somewhere in the car. Sound like a humpback whale doing kareoke and drives me nuts, but it's her being happy. Anyone else listening would think she was in pain. Same, I have a singer and a spewer. Cars trips are great fun LOL. Window open works well for the spewer. Only ear plugs work with the singer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sky_Mel Posted August 19, 2009 Share Posted August 19, 2009 (edited) No problem Yea I agree with the not feeding before driving definitely. My last girl got car sick and it was associated with the vet but once we started driving to the beach that dissapeard quickly because she was going somewhere fun Edited August 19, 2009 by Sky_Mel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jetty Posted August 19, 2009 Share Posted August 19, 2009 I feed Jet the other day on the way to my parents (A 30 minute drive) and I didnt decide til after I feed him to bring him So he was laying on my lap and then all of a sudden he threw up all over me and my new car. Lucky I had some clothes at my parents place! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sky_Mel Posted August 19, 2009 Share Posted August 19, 2009 (edited) Are you sure it's distress and not excitement? If she is drooling too it would be a sign she is stressed, and Sky_Mel's advice is pretty good - break the car experience down into baby steps and reward calmness at each stage. If it is actual car sickness there are herbal things which can help, including ginger, but you'd need more info than I have about them.But one of mine 'sings' the whole time we are going somewhere in the car. Sound like a humpback whale doing kareoke and drives me nuts, but it's her being happy. Anyone else listening would think she was in pain. Same, I have a singer and a spewer. Cars trips are great fun LOL. Window open works well for the spewer. Only ear plugs work with the singer. LOL ;) If you do have the window down though First Timer make sure your pup has a doggy seatbelt or just the window down slightly, Unfortunately I have seen dogs leap from the car open windows I trust my girl now but she always has her doggy seatbelt on when we are driving - call me paranoid Edited August 19, 2009 by Sky_Mel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jetty Posted August 19, 2009 Share Posted August 19, 2009 Are you sure it's distress and not excitement? If she is drooling too it would be a sign she is stressed, and Sky_Mel's advice is pretty good - break the car experience down into baby steps and reward calmness at each stage. If it is actual car sickness there are herbal things which can help, including ginger, but you'd need more info than I have about them.But one of mine 'sings' the whole time we are going somewhere in the car. Sound like a humpback whale doing kareoke and drives me nuts, but it's her being happy. Anyone else listening would think she was in pain. Same, I have a singer and a spewer. Cars trips are great fun LOL. Window open works well for the spewer. Only ear plugs work with the singer. LOL ;) If you do have the window down though First Timer make sure your pup has a doggy seatbelt or just the window down slightly, Unfortunately I have seen dogs leap from the car open windows I trust my girl now but she always has her doggy seatbelt on when we are driving - call me paranoid Oh dear we have had a dog do that before. Its horrible Luckly she didnt have any serious injurys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrs tornsocks Posted August 19, 2009 Share Posted August 19, 2009 So Bella is 13 weeks now and I take her most morning to do the school run etc but she still cries most of the time she is in the car???Will she ver get used to driving?? is there anything else I can do to make it easier for her? FT do you take her for a walk or some other 'fun' outing at the same time as the school run, or is this feasible ? If she is going to school, watching the kids get out, going back home and getting out of the car again, she's associating the car with just that .. the car. I guess once you've tried to decipher whether it's stress excitement or car sickness you could take her on a few more fun trips. Archie cried a bit the first few trips to puppy school (and was zonked the whole way home !) -- we had him in his crate. When he got too big for the crate, we bought a harness and now he just sits there happily. I am sure she'll get better ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sky_Mel Posted August 19, 2009 Share Posted August 19, 2009 Are you sure it's distress and not excitement? If she is drooling too it would be a sign she is stressed, and Sky_Mel's advice is pretty good - break the car experience down into baby steps and reward calmness at each stage. If it is actual car sickness there are herbal things which can help, including ginger, but you'd need more info than I have about them.But one of mine 'sings' the whole time we are going somewhere in the car. Sound like a humpback whale doing kareoke and drives me nuts, but it's her being happy. Anyone else listening would think she was in pain. Same, I have a singer and a spewer. Cars trips are great fun LOL. Window open works well for the spewer. Only ear plugs work with the singer. LOL ;) If you do have the window down though First Timer make sure your pup has a doggy seatbelt or just the window down slightly, Unfortunately I have seen dogs leap from the car open windows I trust my girl now but she always has her doggy seatbelt on when we are driving - call me paranoid Oh dear we have had a dog do that before. Its horrible Luckly she didnt have any serious injurys. Oh no Very lucky! I guess you don't think of these sort of things until you see it happen or they happen to you or someone you know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
puggy_puggy Posted August 19, 2009 Share Posted August 19, 2009 Are you sure it's distress and not excitement? But one of mine 'sings' the whole time we are going somewhere in the car. Sound like a humpback whale doing kareoke and drives me nuts, but it's her being happy. Anyone else listening would think she was in pain. Same, I have a singer and a spewer. Cars trips are great fun LOL. Window open works well for the spewer. Only ear plugs work with the singer. ;) Yes one of my ex foster puggies is a singer. It does her mums head in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seita Posted August 19, 2009 Share Posted August 19, 2009 My girl was a terrible traveller at first, for the first couple of car trips she cried and cried and cried. I had her in the crate that she slept and was fed in and that seemed to help. I also did a couple of short round the block trips and some sessions of having her in the car and the car running but not moving and that seemed to help. After only a few weeks of doing this (only did it once or twice a week) she got used to the car and is now the best traveller I've ever had. She simply curls up and goes to sleep. Her son on the other hand loved the car from day dot, aside from the trip to the vets will all his siblings for their vaccinations he has never cried. Instead he chases cars through the window (window is closed) and tries to catch them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tdierikx Posted August 19, 2009 Share Posted August 19, 2009 Can your baby see you from her crate? Can she see forward through to where you are? I've found that when they can see you, they can settle better... If she is carsick, a couple of drops of peppermint oil on her collar can settle that down... T. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jr_inoz Posted August 21, 2009 Share Posted August 21, 2009 my girl hates car travel. she gets car sick. she used to throw up when a puppy. she doesnt throw up anymore, but doesn't enjoy the trip either. She is much better. A breeder told me puppies often get car sick, but grow out of it, or improve as they get older. Definitely the case here. If your puppy is car sick and thats why she hates travel - dont feed her before hand - trust me.... (it's a lot of mess to clean up!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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