Car Travel with Dog Accessories
Essential tips and accessories for traveling with your dog in the car! From keeping your fur babies safe and comfortable to must-have travel gear for pets of all sizes, this guide will help make your road trip stress-free for the whole family.
If there’s two things to know about me it’s that I love to travel and I love my pets. So what’s better than traveling with your pets? I love making memories in a new place and having my husband or other loved ones there makes it that much more fun! However, I always find myself missing my pets or thinking “wow they would love this”. So therefore, I try to bring them as much as possible! They always so much fun on vacation and they’ve gotten so good at traveling. It’s such a good bonding experience with my furry friends but it’s very important to keep them feeling safe and comfortable in order to have a stress free trip. So today, I’m going to share a round up of tips and accessories that’ll make traveling easier and safer for you and your fur babies.
Car Travel with Dog Accessories
Today we’ll be talking about whether or not you should take your dog on a road trip, what your dog needs in the car, and more. All of my dog travel gear are recommendations but some are absolute must’s! When you read about the dog travel gear recommendations, keep in mind that every dog is different and you should keep your pet’s size in mind when shopping any of the affiliate links! For reference throughout this post, my dogs are doodle mixes, and weigh around 20 lbs each. But I did my best to include tips and travel accessories for larger dogs as well!
Can Dogs Travel Long Distance in Cars
Before taking your dog for a road trip, it’s important to know how they’ll behave in a shorter car ride. This will help you understand whether or not your dog will be able to handle a long car ride. Because a stressed out dog on a road trip is not preferred. For the most part, your dogs will be really relieved to be going with you! My pets always know when I’m preparing for a trip. But when I pull out their carriers (for flying) and car seat (for road trips), they’re always so excited. If you have a much bigger dog, then your biggest hurdle will be making sure your dog is comfortable for the trip.
What Are The Essential Accessories For Car Travel With Dogs
1. Car Seat
A dog car seat can be important for many reasons and I’m a huge advocate for them for these main reasons:
- Car seats protect your dog from a potential accident
- Cushion them to relieve their stress
- And also protect your car interior from their claws, slobber, or potential potty and car sickness accidents.
I love my dogs’ car seats because they strap into the car in 3 different places and another strap to attach to their harness. I use their car seats in the middle row of my car directly behind the driver’s seat and passenger’s seat because that’s the safest location for your dogs to be in the car. It’s scary to think of what could happen to your dog in a car collision, but even a little fender bender could really hurt your dog if they’re not strapped in properly. Everyone wear your seat belt!
If your dog is too large for a seat like this, you can try a seat cover option with a seat belt leash!
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2. Harness & Leash
Your dog will need a harness to strap into their car seat and for pit stops along the way, if you need to make any. A leash is necessary too for pit stops, to ensure your dog doesn’t run into the street or interact with aggressive dogs.
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3. Portable Fan & Shade
If your dog gets really warm and needs a lot of cool air, a portable fan can really come in handy! Especially if your car doesn’t have strong air vents in the area that your dog is in. This can be really important if your dog has a flatter face and breathing problems.
You can also buy these inexpensive shades for your car windows to prevent the hot sun from over heating your pups! If your dog has black fur or thick fur, this could prove to be very useful in keeping their temperature regulated.
4. Poop Bags
Be sure to pack extra poop bags for pit stops and the trip itself! I always have extras in my car trunk organizer, but I always keep a roll of bags in a little carrier roll attached to Gigi’s leash. When we go on a trip, I make sure that the roll is fairly new and full still.
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5. Travel Water
I bring a water bottle that allows them to drive water in the car – mostly mess free – versus having to pull over every time! But any travel water bowl will do the trick. Be sure to bring extra water for your dog on the road trip to fill their bottle throughout the trip.
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6. Travel Food Bowl
There are a few options for this, but the ones I use come in really handy on the trip because one bowl becomes two when it opens up! So each dog has their own water and food bowl station throughout the trip.
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7. Dog Food & Treats
When you pack the dog food for the trip, be sure to pack extra just in case. You can’t ever predict a weather delay or any type of emergency that may push back your return date, so having extra dog food won’t hurt.
Treats are a great idea to bring on road trips as well, especially if it’s their first one. Rewarding good and calm behavior throughout the car ride will encourage them to be good boys and girls every time! If your dogs are antsy, it can give them something to do if it’s more of a long-lasting type of treat. I always start the car ride this way to let them know it’s a positive time. I usually pack a little travel reusable zip snack bag and fill it with a variety.
Calming treats are a great idea as well if your dog is particularly scared.
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8. Cooler
If your dog eats fresh food like mine do, then you’ll want to pack a small cooler to keep it fresh. You can often buy it at the destination you’re going to, but in case you can’t, don’t want to, or use a subscription service, then you might find a cooler quite useful! Not to mention, you can use it to keep snacks and drinks cold for the humans too!
If your dog eats dry food, a bigger container is still a good idea to bring!
Again, when you pack the dog food for the trip, be sure to pack extra just in case.
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9. Toys
I always bring bones, balls, and plushy toys for my dogs on road trips. The toys can keep them content and entertained on the car ride itself, but also make them feel happy and relaxed on the trip! Freddie always feels so at home when he has his toys and daily treats.
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10. Dog Wipes & Grooming Tools
Waterless dog cleaning wipes are always in my car in case they get dirty on a walk or trip. The last thing you want is mud all over your car or rental house/hotel, so these wipes are a must. They make it so easy to quickly clean their paws before coming into the home or car. Other grooming tools may come in handy as well, depending on your pets fur or the weather on your getaway.
If your pet sheds a lot, it may also be useful to bring tools to clean the hair off of your car interior as well, such as a comb or vacuum. This is important, especially if you plan on doing outdoor activities.
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Road Trip Car Organization
This trunk organizer is so helpful on road trips – and day to day life – because it prevents your trunk from becoming cluttered with little items. On road trips, I use it to store their toys, leashes, bowls, wipes, poo bags, etc.
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More Travel Tips & Pet Finds
How to Fly With Your Dogs:
I fly frequently with my dogs and I always had people ask me questions about it. So I made this video and blog post explaining how we flew across the country with two dogs!
This detailed blog post gives all of the tips and tricks for packing. I included all of my favorite travel gadgets and packing hacks!
