How to enjoy driving to and from the cottage and help your dog enjoy it too (Photo: the back of a German Shepherd mix sitting in a canoe)
Is your dog calm when you drive to your cottage?
Pacing, panting, drooling, whining, and barking in the car is not the behaviour of a balanced, happy dog (Photo: a senior yellow Labrador Retriever wearing a worried expression in the backseat of a car,)
Does she pant, pace, whine, bark, walk back and forth over the kid’s legs?
They’re not happy. You’re not happy. Your dog isn’t happy.
Let’s change that with these tips.
Most couples agree that their dog is stressed out in the car on the way up to the cottage. They have trouble pinning down the moment in time where the pacing, panting, and whining begins. They disagree about whether it begins as soon as the car starts, as soon as the car turns onto the highway, as soon as the car turns onto the gravel road near the cottage, or somewhere in between.
The first tip is simply to observe your dog’s behaviour.
Is she panting, pacing, or whining when you pack up the car? Where is she while you pack up the car? What is her state of mind? What is your state of mind? Are you in a rush? Hangry? These things matter. Dogs are our mirrors.
It’s important to notice when your dog becomes stressed. Chances are it’s long before you hit the road (Photo: man packing camping items into the trunk of a vehicle)
If you notice that your dog is actually stressed out before you even get in the car, here are a few options to help her feel calm while you’re packing up:
Have someone in the family take her on a long hike while the car is being packed up. Dogs who have been exercised are far more likely to be able to go into a resting state (which is preferred by everyone in the car during a four hour trip.)
Teach her the place command. The place command is an implied down-stay on an elevated surface. It is also a place of relaxation and calmness, so your dog’s job while you pack the car will be to relax in place.
Pack up early. If you’re in a rush and the family is running around yelling, your dog will pick up on that energy and mirror it back to you. You need to be in a calm and confident state of mind if you want your dog to be in a calm state of mind.
If your dog is pretty calm about most of the car ride, but gets amped up on the gravel road when you’re almost there, be mindful that you’re not amping her up. I recently helped a family who didn’t realize that they were getting their German Shepherd mix all excited on that road by letting her know they were almost there. “Almost there, girl. You can’t wait, can ya? You’re gonna chase the squirrels, aren’tcha? And swim, and play fetch, and catch sticks.”
You’ve gotta be calm to teach calm.
Try keeping the energy level joyful, but not bounce-off-the-walls excited. Your dog will be able to behave better upon arrival.
Your energy and the energy of the other passengers has a ripple effect on your dog (Photo: A woman with her legs dangling out the car window. There is a road map on her lap.)
Imagine your dog arriving at the cottage and not having to worry about her:
-jumping on the kids
-mouthing your hands
-biting people in the bum
-knocking over your grandkids
-racing to the neighbouring cottages and jumping up on them, their kids, their dogs
-running into the road and not coming when called
-barking and chasing people and dogs who walk past your property
Your dog’s behaviour at the cottage begins in your home. What you allow in your home and in your car, is what you agree with.
Let us know in the comments how your dog behaves during your trips up to the cottage.
Happy trails, Dog Leaders!
Alyssa
Photos by: Lesly Juarez @jblesly (the back of a German Shepherd mix sitting in a canoe,) Karthik Sridasyam
@karthik1324 (a senior yellow Labrador Retriever wearing a worried expression in the backseat of a car,) Eddy Billard @eddybllrd (man packing camping items into the trunk of a vehicle,) Leio McLaren
@leio (A woman with her legs dangling out the car window. There is a road map on her lap.)