Kingdom of Pets

Posted by chippiechick
Jul 23, 2008

My 1.5 year old Sheltland Sheepdog is absolutely terrified of the car. He refuses to get into the car either on or off leash, he has to be physically lifted into it. I have to bring him to our vet, who is an hour away by car, for his booster shots. Normally my partner would drive and I will hold Odie in the front with me, calming him down for any trip. Unfortunately, my partner is out of town for the next 3 weeks so I'll have to go it alone. A friend of mine suggested putting him in the boot(trunk) of the car in his basket. The boot is completely closed though and I don't know how much air, if any, gets in. Please help as I can't keep putting off the trip to the vet.
Thanks in advance.

Posted by MaxHollyNoah
Jul 23, 2008

Hi chippiechick,

I understand your concern but you should not put your dog in the trunk. It will make things worse and it is not humane. I don't know the weather in Ireland this time of the year but it can be too hot, not much fresh air coming in.

Someone can recommend some kind of remedy or herbal medicine to calm him down. You might want to call the vet and ask for advice.

One of my dogs hated riding in the car when we first adopted him but he got over it and now he loves to go out for a drive. He used to drool like a waterfall and moved around in the car as he was panting. He probably associated car rides with something bad happened to him in his previous life.

What I did was to put him in the back seat and treat him, and tie him so that he doesn't come to me in the driver's seat (in fact, he once did come while I was driving and tried to hide behind my back, which was very dangerous!). If your dog is crate trained it will be much easier to put him in his crate.

Start from just put him in the car and spend sometime with him, without driving. Make sure your dog thinks it's not bad to be inside the car by giving him treats, or play games, etc. Next day, drive for 5 minutes and come home. Treat him again. Like so you will add more time to the ride and maybe go somewhere fun, like an off-leash park, or just walk in the park, friends' houses, etc. Gradually your dog will get used to the ride as well as associating car rides with something good.

Desensitization will take time and patience but I am sure your dog will be get there someday. Now my dog jumps in the car as soon as I open the hatchback anticipating to go to the dog park or training classes!

Good luck!

Posted by chippiechick
Jul 24, 2008

Maxhollynoah, thank you SO much for your reply. I REALLY appreciate it! After I posted my question, I brought Odie out to the car. I didn't start it and I sat in the back seat with him on the leash beside the car. I didn't try to force him in, I just pretended I was having fun in the car. I patted my thighs and called him and he jumped straight up onto my lap. I was amazed!! I gave him loads of praise and then when he wanted to leave the car, I let him. I did that 3 times today and each time the result was very positive. In ireland, we don't have doggy parks so I don't know where to bring him(short trip) to let him off leash and have some fun. Any suggestions? None of my friends have dogs but I did try to introduce him to other dogs when he was a pup, which proved to be disatrous because they were all older and bigger than him at the time. You might have seen the thread I posted about my neighbours Pug? I'm going to try the car thing again in the morning, and then after a while, start the engine. Please keep in touch as I need some guidance. This is my first ever dog and I am trying to do my best.

Posted by Annie
Jul 24, 2008

Hi there,
Do you have a small river or dam nearby? My dog LOVES jumping in the river ( not swimming) and hunting little fish and i throw stones...you could also keep him on the line if need be...maybe this is a good substitute for a dog park? Dogs also seem to like the car window open, so maybe tie him securely and also open a window a crack. Fresh air is also good for car sickness....
Don´t build up to a trip to the car, just behave like you do when you go for a walk,...and go to the car. Don´t prepare or maybe your dog starts to get nervous early?
hope helps
Annie

Posted by chippiechick
Jul 24, 2008

Thanks Annie, I'll try the beach, it's just down the road maybe 2 minutes away. He hasn't really mastered the "come" command, he seems to only come back if it suits him. I'm guessing it would be better to keep him on the leash for the trips to the beach? I don't know how far he might try to swim!!
Thanks again, I'll let you know how it goes.

Posted by MaxHollyNoah
Jul 25, 2008

Hi chippiechick,

I am glad to hear that you are getting a positive result on desensitizing Odie!
I read your other posting and here is my suggestion:

It is very important to socialize your dog with other dogs and people, you might want to be careful in picking right dogs (for people there is not so much risk picking wrong people). If you pick wrong (aggressive) dogs to have Odie meet with, he might develop some aggression himself (I made the mistake with one of my dogs). First you might want to talk to your neighbor without your dog and ask them how their dog behaves with stranger dogs.

Let us know Odie's progress with car ride. Please don't force him or rush him. It might go backwards if you do.

Good luck

Posted by chippiechick
Jul 27, 2008

Hi,
I understand what you say about other possible aggresive dogs. The wierd thing that day was that Odie was whining, looking for attention from the other dog, as I have seen him do before on our walks, but because the Pug wasn't interested in him, he got cross with me for not letting him off the leash. The Pug wasn't interested or scared or anything, Odie could've been a stone as far a he was concerned!! Odie had never snapped at me before:confused:
[IMG]http://i332.photobucket.com/albums/m351/chippiechick/Image017.jpg[/IMG]

Posted by MaxHollyNoah
Jul 27, 2008

And he looks pretty settled in the car!!

Congrats!![ATTACH]48

Here are my 3 dogs (Holly, Noah and Daisy from the left to right)

Posted by chippiechick
Jul 28, 2008

I brought Odie to the beach today, there was too much activity around to let him off the leash but, from the start off... he jumped straight into the car, into the back seat and sat down!! I was amazed because I wasn't even in the car at the time! We drove for the 5 mins or so that it takes to get to the beach, opened the door of the car, he waited till I told him to come out of the car, he came out(still on the leash), and had a blast on the beach! It was brilliant. Getting back into the car, on the other hand, was a little tougher! It started to rain but I was adamant that I wouldn't lift him into the car, I got soaked in the process! In fairness, it was worth it because, he got back into the car eventually, maybe 5 mins later! Will keep the same up for the next few days, he's booked into the Vet for Tuesday, today being Monday. I'll let you know how we get on. Thanks for the advice.

Posted by chippiechick
Aug 5, 2008

Just an update....I postponed the vet for another week and kept up the short trips to the beach. Yesterday, for the first time ever, I let Odie off leash in public!! We were down at the beach again. We played football in the sand for about an hour, he never strayed at all!! He was brilliant! I was so proud of him We made the trip to the vet today and he got into the car with no hesitation, lay down and didn't move except for the occasional look out the window. Same thing again on the way home, I couldn't believe it. Normally he used to drool constantly and throw up. THe change in him is fantastic. Thanks for all the advice.

Car sickness