Hello! I am writing this blog from the Great Bear Rainforest in British Columbia. I am accompanied by my husband Stephen and our two dogs, Leeloo (12-year-old Miniature Dachshund) and MC2 (8- year-old Belgian Malinois).
We have traveled 2250 miles north, not including the 10-hour car ferry from Port Hardy Vancouver Island to Bella Coola. All along our dogs have been incredible companions, peaceful in their car crates, happy romping through forests, resting at our tables at outdoor restaurants.
This is all possible because they understand obedience and good manners are a way of life, no matter the time or place. This does not mean they are angels. Leeloo will always obsess over a dropped french-fry. MC2 will always want to mark territory unless he is given clear boundaries. But, whether you are going for an overnight stay or a month long adventure with your pup, obedience training gives them wings to enjoy life with you!
How to Travel with Your Dog
- Why Begin Training Now
- Obedience Command Lists
- Useful Supplies and Training Equipment
- Basic Supplies and Training Tools
- Medical Records
- Ad-ons
- Dog Crates
- Emergency Supplies and Documents
- Training Social Manners
- Lodging Manners
- Helpful commands and behaviors
- What to do about Barking
- Restaurant and Public Manners
- Is this for me or for my dog?
- How to train a dog for restaurant and public manners
- Trail Etiquette
- Helpful commands and behaviors
- National Forests and Parks
- Lodging Manners
- Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My: Hazards
How to Travel with Your Dog: Prep Beforehand
It’s always good practice to prepare for the future; we never know what may come our way. Whether your dog weighs eight pounds, or is a large breed dog, training gives them rules to follow on a trip. It sets them up for success around your house and on an adventure.
Leeloo on a break from the crate during the 10 hour car ferry ride from Port Hardy to Bella Coola
1. Why Begin Training Now
Dog Dynamics is frequently asked to help dogs prepare for holiday weekend get-aways, road trips across the country, and for overseas travel when their pups may spend hours in a crate. You may have an unexpected trip come up with no choice but to have your pup join you. There may be a natural disaster, and you may need to exit your home quickly. If your dog has practiced obedience games in a wide variety of environments beforehand, it makes it easier for them to join you when unexpected travel arises. Let’s start preparing now.
2. Obedience Command Lists
Essential Obedience Commands
Group Dog Training classes, Private Instruction and/or Board and Train camps should include training the essential commands below to prepare your pup for travel. For the most part, it doesn’t matter the words you choose, as long as your definition of the command is consistent. Below are some key commands and their definitions, from your dog’s perspective, that we find helpful for travel.
- NAME: Pay Attention
- Your dog’s name is the number one important sound they can learn. It lets them know you are speaking directly to them and prepares them for the next command.
- FREE: The command is finished
- Provides an end to a command so your dog knows when they are on command and when the command has finished.
- WAIT: Don’t pass the threshold until released from the command
- Teaches your dog to not bolt out of the crate, car, or hotel room, and to stop forward motion on a trail.
- PLACE: Rest in this location until released from the command
- Teaches your dog to relax in an area, without constant supervision. Super handy for a wide variety of places both inside and outside.
- COME: Return to me
- A basic command for safety
- CLOSE: Walk near me
- Essential for walking through a city, managing on a trail and navigating through hotel hallways.
MC2 and Leeloo waiting while we load the truck in Bella Coola. Their crates are in the backseat.
Other Helpful Commands
We find that the commands below help manage your dog’s day and provides clarity, added stability and control.
- LOAD UP: Jump into the vehicle
- KENNEL: Go into your crate
- GET BUSY: Go eliminate
- On a long trip you may have to manage your dog’s chances to eliminate. Teaching them a command that means to go do their business helps make a long car ride more comfortable. It also makes a handy command for a quick road stop.
- Teach your dog to do their business while on leash. Not all dogs are comfortable being close to their person when they must eliminate and need to be taught it’s okay.
- A longer leash can be helpful for those dogs that need a little more privacy.
- SIT: Place your haunches on the ground
- Helps your dog hold still while a collar and leash are put on.
- Controls the dismount from a car to prevent your dog from going into traffic.
- Can also be used for an emergency stop.
- A good control command if your dog is a jumper when greeting folks.
- DOWN: Place your haunches and elbows on the ground
- Helps with stability for PLACE command. Also, very handy for an emergency stop
- THIS WAY: Move in the direction I am going
- Good for trail walking, and helping a dog stay out of dangerous areas
3. Useful Supplies and Training Equipment
We travel a lot with our dogs, throughout the Americas and overseas. I have a list of training equipment and supplies that I tailor to the trip, depending upon the season, and the type of adventures we will encounter. The below list suggests supplies and equipment to consider. It might get your brain going as to what your particular dog may need for the journey, depending upon where you are going, and the weather.
Basic Supplies and Training Tools
| Collar with ID Tags | Training collar | Indoor leash |
| Outdoor leash (15-20 feet) | Trainer’s Treat Bag/training treats | Whistle |
| Food/medication/supplements: 2x the amount needed | Water: 3 days’ worth at a time | Bowls |
| Car crate | Lodging crate | PLACE blanket/mat |
| Waste bags | Towels/hand wipes/soap | Enzyme cleaners |
| Toys/appropriate chews | Coats/Booties | Nail clippers/brush |
Add-ons
You could add a vehicle/lodging temperature gauge, cameras or apps such as Barkio to watch your pup while you are away. Some dogs feel secure when wearing thunder shirts, and white noise apps can drown out sounds in new environments. Fans to circulate air with a frozen water bottle laid in front can cool down temperatures.
A word about dog travel crates
We recommend dogs ride in crash tested crates in vehicles. Unfortunately, we have been involved in car accidents. Fortunately, all the dogs were safe and secure in their crates. There are many styles to choose from. An internet search using your vehicle’s specs will provide you with crate options. Just make sure it has been tested for crash safety.
For traveling in your car, the crate needs to be large enough for your dog to stand up and turn around. It can be smaller than your house crate. For traveling by plane, contact your airline to verify the size crate and supplies needed for traveling in cargo.
You may choose to bring an additional crate if space allows. A foldable metal crate can easily be set up in a friend’s home or in a vacation rental. It’s best to place the crate in a quiet location, away from doors and stimulating activity. The goal is to make the crate your dog’s safe spot, no matter where you are.
If our dogs will not be trained on a particular day, they eat their two meals a day in their crates. This is for a lifetime, not just while they are puppies. Our dogs view their crates as their happy place and a place to rest. It’s their bedroom that travels with them. If we spend the time to help our dogs learn this before it is needed, it is one less thing we need to do to prepare for our trip. And it’s a safety net in case of an emergency.
4. Emergency Supplies and Travel Documents
Check in advance for necessary health documentation for traveling with your dog. Border crossings may ask for proof of the rabies vaccine. Overseas travel can be more complex with restrictions on age and breed. Some countries require quarantine and/or certification from a USDA approved veterinarian with copies of certified current vaccines and tests. Do your homework months before travel to avoid surprises.
We suggest packing enough food, medication and supplements for twice the amount of time you will be away. An emergency medical kit is insurance for the just in case situation. There are many available online, or you can create your own. We always travel with up-to-date veterinary records for our dogs. These can all be saved on your smart device with easy access. Hard copies can be attached to your dog’s crate with important information about your dog just in case something happens to you.
A Pro Tip About Dog Muzzles
Even the sweetest dog can bite if they are terrified or in pain. Dog Dynamics can help you teach your pup that the muzzle is just another item they occasionally wear; one less thing for your dog to worry about if there is an emergency or if they are in distress. It can also keep your dog safe if they have a propensity toward putting everything in their mouth.
Muzzle condition your dog to a basket muzzle now and bring it with you on your trip. Basket muzzles allow a dog to breath freely through their nose and mouth, eat, and drink water.
5. Training Social Manners
In the words of one of our clients “a well-trained dog is a joy to have.” And it’s true. Our dogs can be ambassadors for how dogs should behave when in public. In our stop in Port Hardy we heard, “Wow, we didn’t even know there were dogs under your table. So well behaved.” (They didn’t know Leeloo was looking longingly at their dropped french-fry while MC2 was scanning the area for a possible bad guy). Why should we train our dogs? A dog with good manners will have a fuller life. Wings, so to speak.
Lodging Manners
It doesn’t matter if you are staying in campgrounds, RV parks, hotels or in the homes of friends and family members, when our dogs are trained that obedience is a way of life it is natural for them. We set them up for success. This does not mean they are perfect. Our dogs may bark when startled, or when they smell something new. We don’t want to take the dog out of the dog, but a dog that understands rules and boundaries is more secure and pleasant to have around. Here are some useful commands
- PLACE
- Super handy for any of the above lodging situations. Just make sure no other dog or person approaches your dog while on place. Make that their safe spot.
- WAIT
- Have your dog wait before opening the car crate door, hotel door, or zipper of your tent. I like to exit first to make sure the coast is clear before releasing my dog to join me.
- CLOSE
- Helps to manage your dog’s behavior until you reach an area for them to eliminate, be free to run, or load up into the car.
- KENNEL
- Helps your dog have a safe place to go while at your new lodging while you unload your car and check out the area.
- Keeps your dog out of mischief, and facilitates a little nap time after a fun outing.
- Minimizes barking because they are in their secure space.
- GET BUSY
- Helps your dog understand where to do their business in a new location. Or, if your dog is MC2, inform your dog the only appropriate place to mark is away from where we sleep, eat and relax. No one wants their camp chair to be peed on.
A Few Words About Barking
Notice we did not include the command QUIET in the above list. It’s a tricky one. How can we stop our dogs from barking? Let’s consider this from your dog’s point of view.
If you have more than one dog, barking can cause a cascade effect. When one dog starts to bark, the other dog becomes alarmed and then both dogs are barking. We can add to the commotion if we tell our dogs QUIET while they are barking. In that aroused state your dog may not be able to translate what you said and may think you are barking along with them!
Therefore, when our dogs bark we first consider why our dogs barked. If my dog barked because he heard a hotel door slam, I give him something to do instead of barking: go to PLACE, DOWN, COME to me, KENNEL into the crate. Giving my dogs an alternative command when they are startled helps them concentrate on performing another behavior. They can rely upon their leader to take control after they have sounded the alarm.
Yes, sometimes my dogs will bark if someone approaches our truck or when they hear or smell something foreign, like when MC2 smelled the sea lion on the beach below our vacation home in Coal Harbour, Vancouver Island. In that instance I got up out of bed, went to the window, validated his emotion by telling him thank you for telling me, I see it, too. (It was amazing to see it there). Then I asked him to go to PLACE. He felt better. I acknowledged why he was alarmed. He still grumbled a little afterward…maybe there was also a bear.
Sometimes barking is inappropriate, such as barking in the crate to be let out, demand barking for a toy, barking at a person or another animal passing by. Each dog is different, and one solution does not fit all. Nuisance and reactive barking is best addressed with a professional trainer through a Group Class, Private Training or Board and Train.
Manners in Restaurants and Public Spaces
We love to have our dogs accompany us while walking through a new village or city. It’s fun to have them come along to hang with us at outdoor cafes, pubs and wineries. However, before we make the decision to bring them with us, we consider whether our dogs will enjoy it, too. We may think it’s fun to bring them to the Art and Wine Festival, but some dogs can be overwhelmed with the activity around them, making it difficult to concentrate on navigating around people or relaxing under a restaurant table. Factors to consider are temperature, the activity of others, and your ability to focus on your dog when needed.
Take the time to train public manners. Practice the essential commands listed above. Watch your dog’s body language for clues on whether they are enjoying the outing. In our Puppy Head Start and Beginning Obedience classes we talk about how to read dog body language; their first form of communication. We also stress the importance of allowing our dogs to explore new areas, to sniff and get a feel for the environment. We like to mix in fun games into outings by playing name game and reinforcing and rewarding behaviors we want to encourage. Our Intermediate and Canine Good Citizen classes are formatted to prepare dogs for the challenge of having good manners while out in public.
Leeloo posing in Victoria, Vancouver Island as the Greatest Little Show on Earth
A Note About On-Leash Greetings
Dogs are mainly social animals. Many are highly gregarious and love to meet new people and dogs. It’s also fun for us, as we get to meet new people and enjoy other dogs as well. However, this does not mean that others are interested in greeting our dogs. It is good policy to ask if your dog can say hello. Your dog may be friendly, but a dog with good manners is taught when to say hello and when not to. If you do decide to let your dog meet and greet, your dog should understand to keep four paws on the ground to prevent knocking someone over. If your dog is going to greet another dog, keep your leash loose so there are no mixed signals from a tight leash.
As a rule, Dog Dynamics does not encourage folks to give their dogs’ permission to meet other dogs while on leash. The greeting can become exciting causing the leashes to get tangled. Someone may think their dog is friendly, but maybe their dog is not friendly with your dog, or maybe your dog didn’t like the way their dog said hello. Both dogs are trapped on leash without options. Too many variables and not worth the risk, especially when on a trip. Overall, our adventures with our dogs are more about enjoying the time together.
Trail Etiquette
Nothing more fun than watching our dogs have the freedom of being off-leash. Seeing Leeloo’s floppy ears as she bounds across a meadow with her four-inch legs makes me giggle. When MC2 runs he looks like he floats through the air.
To prepare our dogs for complying with off leash commands in new environments we start with them on leash, we play obedience games while we hike, and reinforce five main commands: NAME, WAIT, COME, CLOSE, THIS WAY and FREE. Once our dogs are in the groove, we decide whether it is safe for them to be free. Hiking in the thick of the Rainforest in British Columbia comes with the distraction and dangers of wildlife: grizzly bears, mountain lions, moose and caribou. On some of our hikes our dogs were never off-leash. MC2 had to concentrate on staying at my side. Now that was a mental workout for him! He was given permission to explore and relax on a 20-foot long leash, or completely off-leash, when the area felt safe and appropriate.
By focusing on safety and good obedience we teach our dogs how to have good trail manners. In our Collar Clinics, Private Instruction, and Board and Train camps we train the following trail etiquette:
- Dogs are off leash only when they have 100% recall obedience. It’s not worth the .01 percent chance they will not return to us.
- Dogs are taught when they see two or four legged animals to return to us. This includes folks on bikes.
- We do not allow our dogs to chase wildlife or livestock.
- We leash our dogs when we see another dog, wildlife, livestock and people. Then, we have the chance of ascertaining whether it is appropriate to have our dogs walk nicely past or be free off-leash.
- If we allow our dogs to be off leash to greet the other hiker/dog we continue to walk instead of stopping to chat, especially if we think the play may become too exciting.
Of course these are all suggestions. Every dog is different. If we are respectful of others, and what our dogs enjoy and are capable of, we set the table for a photo album full of great times.
Note about National Forest and Parks
Dogs are allowed in National Forests, usually on leash. In some areas they can be off-leash if they have solid recall commands. Dogs have very limited access in National Parks. Primarily parking lots and a few paved trails. Many parks advise you to not bring your dog into the park. They discourage folks from leaving their dogs inside the vehicles when not attended (for obvious safety reasons) which can put a damper on your ability to really see the park. Best to keep your dog at home for these visits.
MC2 swimming in the inlet off of Coal Harbour, Vancouver Island
6. Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My: Hazards
For the most part, adventures with our dogs are all about living in the moment. But, it wouldn’t be a helpful blog about traveling with dogs unless we addressed “street smarts.” Street smarts is really teaching our dogs to not put hazardous things in their mouth, comply with emergency commands, and navigate surfaces that are unusual. And street smarts also means that as their people we will not put them in harm’s way.
During your trip you may encounter hot days and cold nights which necessitates managing your dog’s temperature. On our trip, shade was not always available when we parked our truck for meals, etc. We have car fans with ice, a mesh tarp and we leave the windows open since they are in car crates. It keeps it pretty comfortable, but not enough for us to feel fine leaving them without being in eyesight and easy to check on. We brought coats and blankets for night time and early morning cold.
In city areas there will always be urban debris making it important that we stay vigilant to help our dogs keep their noses up unless they are released from a walking command. Not a good time to be on our cell phones. In one of our very nice lodgings Leeloo found ant traps under the open sink. So, it’s a good idea to do a sweep of the place before you let your dogs be free.
Open staircases can take a bit of a leap of faith, so to speak, if our dogs are not already comfortable navigating environmental agility. Elevators can be creepy with the floor moving under your dog so introduce that experience beforehand. Your dog’s WAIT command should be solid at the elevator doors and always keep your leash and dog at your side. Exit together. And don’t get me started on moving sidewalks and escalators. That’s a no, no, no.
On the Olympic Peninsula and Rainforest we encountered beautiful swift river water, rickety wooden plank bridges, mosquitoes and black flies, and marine wildlife, including pieces of dead salmon left behind by a bear we probably disturbed. We kept the dogs away from swift water and sought out inlets. We carried Leeloo over the rocks and unsteady bridges and worked MC2 on his environmental agility. Our dogs were current on their heartworm medication. We kept them far away from the chance of being interested in live or dead fish. Raw salmon contains a bacteria that is deadly to dogs.
Note about training and emergency stops
In the video below MC2 is allowed to go FREE, and as he is running away I command him to stop. Emergency stops like this are a great built in safety net when hiking off-leash.
We were vigilant around areas with fish, knowing wildlife is attracted to them. Although we never encountered a bear, I am sure they saw us given there are estimated to be 1400 Grizzly Bear and 120,000 Black Bear in The Great Bear Rainforest. We saw droppings, paw prints and claw marks, and of course the salmon that was probably going to be finished off as soon as we left. There are elk, caribou and bighorn sheep (that bolted out in front of us) in areas east of the Rainforest. All this to say, we are guests in this land and our dogs should never harass wildlife, for the safety of all. Our dogs were on leash 100% of the time unless we knew it was safe for them, and for the creatures around us.
Grizzly tracks
Do your homework and find out about potential hazards in the area you will be visiting. On our stops we saw algae in lakes, old downed power lines, and rusted cans. Prepare your dog by training safety behaviors beforehand. It will make it so much more fun!
Give your dog wings!
There are endless possibilities for adventures with our dogs. More and more hotels and vacation rentals allow dogs. Restaurants with outdoor seating usually welcome dogs with good manners. People love to see well trained dogs walking with their people. Leeloo and MC2 were quite a pair as we walked through the streets of Victoria.
It was exciting to explore surroundings we have never seen, and delightful to be a part of the journey with our dogs; to watch them smell a world they have never smelled before.
From regional parks to open public land, this great world holds a new universe for you and your dog. Give your dog wings to join you on these adventures. Share it with us. We would love to hear all about it!
Odegaard Falls, Bella Coola, British Columbia. Not a human in sight.
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About Bonnie Brown Cali
With over 30 years of experience, Bonnie has a rich background in dog training, including work with service and protection dogs, wildlife conservation, and search and rescue. An AKC evaluator and an active participant in global workshops, she also competes in French Ring sport. Bonnie’s diverse expertise and dedication to ongoing learning make her a distinguished figure in the dog training community.
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