A Dog’s Life: Sadie’s Top 10 Travel Tips for Traveling with Your Human!

So as I was sitting here staring at my Mom last night, as I usually do, I got to thinking… this is not my “first rodeo” going on the road! Look at me up there! I’m on top of Trail Ridge Road over 11,000 feet above sea level!

A few years ago, when I was a puppy, I took a roadtrip with my Mom to see the solar eclipse in Nebraska. We drove to there so that we could settle ourselves into the “path of totality.” (Whatever that is!). Then, she took me to Kansas (because… why not!) and then we traveled back to Denver! The entire roadtrip is outlined in the map here… and funny enough, it kindof ended up looking like me!

If I remember correctly, this was a very cool event. My mom put dark blankets up in all of the windows so that I could protect my eyes. Then, right as the eclipse became complete, she took me out of the car.

We were in the middle of nowhere by ourselves! We heard frogs croaking and then the world became very, very silent. No crickets chirping or singing or anything. Everything was so still and quiet. Even the horses on the hill seemed to be a bit confused as to why it got so dark so quickly in the middle of the day. We had about 3 minutes of that wonderful peacefulness and then the world became busy again. What a confusing and cool thing to experience!

I bring all of this up, because that was my first REAL roadtrip with my Mom….. and I learned the ropes of taking a major roadtrip with her. The lessons she had learned from traveling with my sister, Kadie have proven to pay off.

I wanted to share some of those tips and tricks that make traveling with your own dog or puppy so much easier!

So here they are! The top 10 tips and tricks for traveling with your dog:

10) Pack Goodies For the Road.. for everybody!

I found that if I had enough treats to keep me going, I was not hungry or begging for my Mom’s food.

I should add here that you should also bring enough if your own dog’s own meal food to get you through your trip. It is really difficult to itry to find your own favorite dog food in the road …. and trying new foods is definitely NOT the way to go. Can you say PUKEFEST?!

Remember… we dogs do get car sick….. so plan accordingly for that, too!

9) Everybody Gets Buckled In… Even Me!

My mom and Dad take me on a lot of car rides, so I am very used to it. if you are not used to it, I would suggest taking some trial runs. Not every dog likes to ride in the car like I do, but my Mom and Dad have always made our “adventures” fun, so I LOVE car rides.

For safety purposes, someone always has a hold of my leash or buckles it into their own seatbelt. My Mom tells me this is for security reasons in case something should happen, then we are always together. We are also trying my Sleepy Pod car harness, but it is uncomfortable for me, so I just have to keep trying.

I have a lot of places to lay down and relax in the car, and they are all buckled in, too!

My Mom and Dad tell me that if something does happen, and we have an unexpected accident, if I’m not buckled in somehow, I am a “flying projectile!” Ok… so no one wants to be a flying projectile in their lives… so BUCKLE UP!

8) Stay Hydrated!

I can not stress enough the importance of hydrating! You may need to pee more, but you WILL feel better during the entire trip!

7) Listen to The Music!

If you like music like I do, get ready! My mom has created the ULTIMATE playlist for our trip next week! Personally, I’m excited for a little Jimmy Buffett and John Denver!

6) Find Dog Friendly EVERYTHING on BringFido.com

There are a lot of dog friendly websites around, but none like BringFido.com. They have dog friendly hotels, vacation rentals, restaurants, dog parks. You name it, it’s there! We used them to find our places to stay for our upcoming trip! Check ‘em out!

5) Style Me Up! Bring in the Big Dogs if You Have to!

My mom is not one to dress me up all fancy and everything (thank GOD!), but I will say, it is important to have a few things you may not have thought about. My mom and dad bring my cooling vest (for hotter times) and my warm snow/rain jacket (for cooler times) every time we travel. You just never know what you may need.

I’ve never worn booties in the snow or for hiking, but I hear my Mom talking about them, so I may get a nice new set of puppy stilettos as a early Christmas gift! Fun! I think they are actually really great for my paws. My Mom also has a cool balm she can rub on my own if we go hiking and it makes them feel so nice! You can find it here.

I also think it is important to have an extra collar and leash handy. There was one time that I got out of my harness in Estes Park and had a really fun time staying away from my Mom. (She was not a happy camper). So now, I have double duty collar and harness. There’s no escaping now. She must love me!

4) Take a Million Photographs of Me!

Yes. I know. How cocky is this? Well, it’s not! You are going to want to document this trip from top to bottom…. and some of it you won’t remember because I am going to keep you so busy that everything will go by in a flash! A great photography friend of my Mom’s told her once, “You have to snap a ton of photographs to maybe get a few remarkable shots.”

So, snap away!

3) First Aid Kits for All!

This is self-explanatory, But I thought I’d stick it here. You can buy dog friendly and human first aid kits, but you can also make them. Just look at the contents and what you want to have with you and pack away!

2) Don’t Bark in the Hotel Room!

Ok. I am working on this still. I admit that. I just like to keep everyone in check, and I pride myself on being a great guard dog of my Mom and Dad.

However, I have this HUGE fear that one day we will be kicked out of a hotel because I just can’t keep it together. I will tell you, our wonderful Veterinarian told my Mom about giving me 1/2 a Benedryl at night just to calm me down. That seems to work….. oh…. and playing a little Jimmy Buffett in the background is also nice!

1) The Best Places for Potty Breaks!

… and the number one tip is…

when on the road, going to a hotel with some grass sure beats a roadside gas station on a dirt road along the highway.

There you have it!
The top 10 travel tips!!

Don’t forget to also pack numerous beach towels and blankets. You just never know!

Until next time!

With love,

Sadie 💜🐾💜🐾