pets

GregChris

We have camped with our dog plenty, but never have we traveled with him. Wondering about you all do if you want to go out to dinner, museum, etc. Are there doggy day cares around, how do you find them? I can't imagine leaving Sulley in the 320s for an extended period of time. There would nothing left of it inside. We really don't have room to bring his kennel cage, and if we did would he bark the whole time? Were going to spend a week at Skidaway St Pk, Georgia in late Feb 2023. Just curious about what we are going to able to do, or not do with Sulley along.

VictoriaP

I think it really depends on the dog. But I’ve personally found choosing to travel with pets is definitely different from simply camping with them. Some dogs can be left alone in the Tab, no problem. I had ones years ago that would just nap if left in an RV with no one around. My last one, though—a 50lb senior male standard schnauzer—could not be left by himself in the trailer He adored the trailer and never barked as long as I was in or around it (actually better behaved than at home, LOL) but he became more neurotic and barked a great deal if I left him in there alone even briefly. And his collapsible crate was also too big for a 320 when set up. I never felt like I could leave to go do touristy things like museums, factory tours, or enclosed markets. He had to be with me, and that meant pretty much sticking to the campground.

Doggy daycares and individual dog walkers are both possibilities on the road, and some RVers do use them, but I’ve dealt with so many unreliable folks in both those industries that I was never comfortable with that option while traveling. You can find either type of vendor via online searches for a given location, but it’s not like finding someone at home, where you probably have a network of friends who can give you referrals to help find the good ones.

As far as dining out goes, I’d look for places with outdoor seating that allow dogs, assuming he’s well behaved. And working with a good trainer might help him learn better behaviors while in the trailer alone. If you keep your Tab on your own property when not camping, it wouldn’t be hard to start acclimating him to being left alone in there a few minutes at a time and then stretching that time out. 

In my case, while my dog was still alive, I chose to make his comfort level my priority, and didn’t try to do activities without him once I realized his unhappiness at being left alone in the trailer. He was already old at that point, and camping was something we could do together; I knew there’d be time once he was gone to do the things I couldn’t do with him along. If I had really wanted to take a trip where I’d be away from the campsite more, I think I would have opted to board him at or close to home with a trusted sitter he was happy with, rather than bring him. If he’d been younger when I bought the Tab, though? I probably would have made a more determined attempt at training better unsupervised behavior & working on his clinginess so he could at least be left for an hour or two without fussing.

Also, be aware, most campgrounds have rules about leaving pets unsupervised. A dog that barks nonstop while you’re gone can get you kicked out.

GregChris

Thanks for the input. We have boarded him in the past, but we plan to be gone 2-3 weeks, and my wife can't live that long without him. We have taken turns entering shops and so forth, while the other waits outside with him. He is only 2 years old, he may calm some as he ages. I can't tell if likes camping or just tolerates it. Kind of a blank expression on his face. The 320 is very small compared to our previous trailer, so it's as big of an adjustment for him as for us. Plenty to do around Skidaway and Savanna with him on a leash.

VictoriaP

GregChris said:

I can't tell if likes camping or just tolerates it. Kind of a blank expression on his face.

Ah, I was lucky that way. As soon as I took Bogie out the front door of the house on leash, he went straight for the trailer rather than the car. EVERY TIME, never mind that we only took a few trips in it. And as long as I was nearby, he was on his best behavior when camping. It was only when left alone in there that his usual terrier-type chaotic personality reemerged and the barking at everything began. LOL

With Sulley only being 2, I’d definitely consider getting a trainer to work on “trailer alone time”. Assuming very mild weather and a way to remotely monitor trailer temps, I think it’s useful to have the dog understand that the camper is a safe space that shouldn’t be destroyed even when the rest of the pack has left for a couple of hours.

Good luck & safe travels!

GregChris

Sulley is half Terrier. That explains a lot.

VictoriaP

@GregChris Well, the good news is, terriers are often incredibly smart and very trainable. 😁

kbeh

Also, the sides of the accordion screens are not attached and an escape artist could easily push through it if the windows were open and unattended. I did see a video of someone reinforcing the screens to prevent this. Something to consider.

dragonsdofly

@GregChris for day boarding you might try a veterinarian office. While traveling with my 20 something niece and her 60 lbs of dog, we wanted to treat her to some extreme jeeping in Moab, UT. Since she had her dog's vaccination records, most vet's we contacted  were able to day board. A veterinarian has trained staff to properly handle your pet, and they exercise the animals they have recouper ating or that they are boarding, so your animal will be taken care of.

GregChris

I like the vet idea. We have folder kept in the car with Sulley's vac records. We needed them to camp in NY.

marleecamps

During my five-week odyssey thru New England last fall with my then 1-year-old corgi pup, I had prearranged for doggie daycare on a couple of days when I wanted to do things where she could not participate (e.g, touring mansions in Newport RI, taking the railway up to top of Mt Washington NH).  It worked out great - she had a blast playing with new friends, and I could enjoy my adventures without worrying about her safety or comfort.  

manyman297

On long trips we board our dog which is expensive but bringing her along for a week or more and leaving her in the camper while we do day trips wouldn’t be fair to her. She’s chill and would probably be fine but for as much as we’re gone she’d be alone most of the time.

GregChris

We do board, and have a kennel we really like. All though it has been almost as hard getting Sulley in as it is finding camp sites. This time we are just escaping Ohio in Feb. So we are bringing Sulley along.

Binghi

Where we go Walter  our mini-Schnauzer goes. Actually, that’s why we bought the trailer. Never have seen an RV park that prohibits pets.

bergger

Same here.  We take Squirt everywhere with us too.

  


If we go to a National Park we generally camp outside the park so we can do more with him since most N.P. are not very dog friendly.  We then plan our days inside the N.P. by getting in around 5:30am.  That way we can leave him in the car if we want to do a short hike or something he can't see before it gets hot outside.   We are able to leave him in the trailer for a long time if we want to get dinner or go somewhere else we can't take him.  Of course that all depends on weather temps or if we have hookups or not to run the AC.  We are lucky that he is a very small dog, 10lbs, and does not have a destructive bone in his body and is the most house trained dog I've every seen.  I can imagine having a larger dog or one not as house trained can make it more difficult to do such things. 

@GregChris I understand your desire to bring furry family member along but if he is going to make it difficult for you guys to experience what you want to experience you may want to consider finding a good doggie daycare that someone runs out of their home.  My daughter lives in WA State and has a wonderful dog.  But when she flies home for the holidays or a visit she leave Buddy in WA.  We could not imagine leaving Buddy at a regular boarding facility so my daughter found a wonderful family that runs a doggy daycare out of their home.  She went out to meet them and see the home first and it was great.  They limit the dogs there to just a few and you provide the food and your dogs bed.  They get to come inside the house and have a giant fenced property to run around on. They even share photos via text while you are gone to show you how your dog is doing.  It's like a vacation for Buddy too and very reasonably priced.  Just something to think about. 

GregChris

The Breeder we got Sulley from offered to do that. Problem is, she charges more for one night than our kennel does for one week. If we know we aren't going be able to keep him with us, like recent trip to Washington DC/Prince William N Forest, we board him, never for more than 10 days. He has camped with us several time, he does ok. In Feb we are going to Georgia/North Carolina for 2 or 3 weeks, and are bringing him along. We plan on doing everything with him, but you never know, we just may want to leave him for a museum, or dinner etc. I guess we will see when the time comes. If we can't, so be it, small sacrifice to make. He is still very young(2 years), he'll get better with age and experience just like us.

ObizzyB

@GregChris, just curious… You mentioned a breeder, what breed is your dog?

dragonsdofly

@ObizzyB welcome and congrats on your first post. Stay in touch.

GregChris

Believe it or not, Sulley was not an accident. His mother is a pure bread Irish Terrier and his father is a Minnie Golden Doodle. Not sure where the black hair came from. All 8 of his siblings are 18lbs and short hair. Sulley is 30lbs and what ever that hair is!