Dogs and Car Sickness

Update from last post: Rosie has been improving each time I take her out for a new walk. She is now listening to my commands and is steadily walking rather than walking and stopping excessively. I think this is because she now pairs good behavior with receiving rewards.

One of the main reasons my parents decided on getting me a small dog rather than a big one is because they thought it might be easier for them to manage when traveling, which we do often. Little did they know this would later become a problem because the dog that I chose gets car sick.

The first time we took Rosie with us in the car, we were on our way to the veterinarian to get her a checkup. Let’s just say this visit was a traumatic experience for Rosie which left her very stressed. Before we left, she had eaten a large amount of food because we had just arrived home from both work and school leaving her hungry. Because she ate so much before leaving and she was so stressed, Rosie threw up half way to our house from the vet. We now know that “you may need to put some extra care into mealtime planning. Start early so [she] can eat at least an hour before you head out to the car. This also gives your pup plenty of time to eat and then enjoy a long walk and eliminate” (Swaim 283). Along with this we also realize that we need to set up Rosie’s future appointments much later in the day so that she has enough time to do this.

Although Rosie gets carsick now, the veterinarians have told us that she may outgrow it along with the fact that we need to take her in the car more in order for her to get used to it. Most of the routes we take to get to different locations have routes with lots of turns, potholes, and frequent stops, so we will now try to find alternative routes to get to places (Swaim 283).

Rosie preparing for a car ride

We are now experimenting with different locations where we can place Rosie while driving. This is so that we can see which area best suits Rosie and her car sickness. “Some puppies ride better if they can see out of their crate, while others do best in a quiet, dark corner of the car” (Swaim 283). Along with this, we are also testing different cooling methods for Rosie. “Many puppies do just fine if the car is cool and if they have fresh air. Keep the air conditioning on if possible. Use a crate fan if needed” (Swaim 283). Another cooling technique is leaving the window slightly open. I’m not really sure if this one is the best for Rosie because although she seems to like it and places her head out the window to watch the people outside, it may induce the carsickness due to the motion aspect of it.

My question to you: Have any of your animals ever experienced car sickness? If they have in the past, have they grown out of it since then?