Author: wynona@doggiezen.com

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Helping your Dog ride in the Car

Help your dog ride in the car.

Everyone is happy when our doggie co-pilots are comfortable.

Is your pup anxious in the car? Is it becoming increasingly more difficult to get them into the car and when you do, they can’t settle or relax, continue to pant and/or salivate, tremble and shake and whine or bark? This is common for dogs of all ages, and especially prevalent for those under the age of one.

Why is my dog so upset about being in the car?

A few factors can contribute to a dog’s anxiety in the car: motion sickness, negative associations, fear of small and confined spaces, or in some cases underlying medical causes. Dogs under a year old are more prone to motion sickness due to the fact that their inner ears are not fully developed. Part of the inner ear, the vestibular system, controls a dog’s sense of balance and spatial orientation. Nausea can occur when the inner ear detects motion but the visual senses do not align. This ‘misalignment’ can also occur if the dog has a middle or inner ear infection. Nausea can also occur with dogs who do not have prior experience in a car. Their systems have not had opportunities to adjust to the spatial disorientation which can then cause disequilibrium. These uncomfortable physical sensations lead a dog to form the association that the car is a place that makes them feel sick.

Dogs can be very good at remembering negative experiences– often when we prefer they wouldn’t.

A negative association can form even if there was only one instance where the consequence from the ride was negative. This is called single-event learning. For many dogs, their first car rides may be to the veterinarian or to a new home where it is disorienting and can cause feelings of fear, nervousness, or feeling unsafe. This feeling can stick with them for a long time, even if the future places they are taken to are fun or pleasant.

Some dogs – due to underlying genetic reasons or prior experience – are also more averse to being confined in small spaces and have a more difficult time being separated from their people. This is exacerbated by the steps we often need to take to ensure their safety during the ride. Keeping a dog safe if a collision or a fast stop occurs often involves crating a dog, placing a barrier to decrease the space available to the dog, or attaching a seat belt connector to them. If the dog has not undergone desensitization to these changes, they can panic and develop anxiety.

How do we help new pups adjust to riding in a car? If my dog is already anxious in the car, what can I do to help?

Build your pup’s confidence with being separated from you.

Start the crate and/or barrier training in your home. The most important aspect with crate and barrier training is to not rush it. Begin by feeding, praising and treating your dog for being in the crate without closing the door or when they are behind a barrier. All positive things should happen for your dog when in the crate or behind the barrier. With the crate or barrier, start closing the door for one or two seconds. If you have a crate that has holes (like one that is made of wire) or a barrier like a baby gate, treat your dog while the door is closed, then open the door with a release word like ‘Free’. When they come out, don’t treat. You want your dog to have the association that the crate is the location where all yummy things happen.

Initially, start with staying next to the crate or barrier and only once your pup is not showing signs of distress with the door being closed, start to add small increments of duration. For some, this may be a few more seconds, for others, it could be a couple minutes. Depending on how they do, you incrementally increase the duration of them behind the barrier. If they are doing well, begin adding distance away from your pup. If at any point in the process, your dog or dog begins to whine or bark, wait until they have stopped for just a few seconds, and then quietly open the door to the crate or barrier.

Make the car into a fun and rewarding place!

Without going anywhere, treat, feed and play with your pup in the car. Once your dog is comfortable being in a stationary car for a few minutes, you’re ready to practice car trips. To begin helping your dog become comfortable with the motion of the car, take short and frequent trips. This can even just be driving around the block.

You will want the dog facing forward and it often helps to have the windows cracked for air flow. Make sure that most of the trips you take are to happy places and if the dog is eating, praise and treat your dog while on the trip.

If you find that even with the short trips, your dog is experiencing motion sickness, you may want to talk with your vet about possible help with alleviating the nausea.

How long will it take to get my dog comfortable in the car?

There are a few different factors that can contribute to the speed you can progress with your dog:

  • Age. The younger a dog is, the more difficult it can be as they typically don’t develop self- soothing abilities until around 4-months of age.
  • Secure attachment. Many dogs may have experienced some kind of trauma or fear in the past and may have less ability to emotionally regulate. When there is a history of prior neglect or abuse, dogs are more prone to become distressed when separated from their people.
  • Individual personality. Even within the same litter, some puppies will be more innately confident and independent while others may be less so.

Every dog will be different in how quickly they can adjust to car rides. Taking the time to build good experiences and progressing at the individual’s pace will help for a lifetime of good adventures together.

We want your dog to be happy and safe in the car. If you need further help, reach out with questions or book a private session to get personalized recommendations.

About the Author:

Amber Hardin is a IAABC-ADT (International Association Animal Behavior Consultants- Accredited Dog Trainer) and a certified Canine Good Citizen evaluator.  She has a master’s degree in conflict resolution and a graduate certificate in Animal Behavior.  As a lead-trainer, Amber teaches many of our Ahimsa classes and has experience working with dogs of all ages and backgrounds. You can learn from Amber directly through our extensive Puppy Class Series, Canine Good Citizen, and through our Growly Dog Evaluations. Amber also offers private training and can work with you to develop a training protocol for car anxiety and many other topics.

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Stop Barking

It can be hard to be the person with the barky dog in training class. With most problem behaviors, a good tactic is to manage the situation so that the behavior doesn’t pop up and then train the dog something else to do instead. So rather than barking at others, he could be staring adoringly at you, for example… We can’t expect that behavior while he’s surrounded by several new dogs, so one thing you can do is put up a visual barrier and then over time, make life more realistic by removing the barrier, bit by bit.

Here is a list of some of the things that we’ve found to help with barking. You don’t have to do all of them, but the more, the better.

  1. Teach your dog a Focus Trick, like Spin or Touch. When you see your dog getting antsy – staring at other dogs, ignoring you, etc., you can cue the Focus Trick. Reward with praise some times, other times with treats.
  2. Lots of exercise before class can help your barky dog calm down. A nice long walk is better than a ton of fetch.
  3. No food before class. (For the dog, that is. You might want to eat if it helps you feel calm!)
  4. We have the barriers that were mentioned above at the training center. The back section by the windows is somewhat easier on the dogs who like to bark at the other dogs in the class. Arriving first will help you get set up in the best spot.
  5. Busy dogs are quiet! Dogs will often stare at each other, and then bark, when the instructor is speaking to the class, because they’re not getting as much attention from their humans. Kongs with peanut butter, bully sticks, Bouncy Bones, and other food-based toys can make a big difference. Bring a variety of chew toys to distract your dog in class. Try to give her the toy before she starts barking. If she barks, get her attention back using her name or a tap on the behind, ask for a sit, then give the toy. Tug toys may also work for some active tuggers, but that can get too loud, too, so use tug in moderation during class.
  6. If the dog is little, you might scoop him up to sit on your lap during the explanations. There’s no point in getting him all worked up if we can help it. Calm, relaxed massage can help small and big dogs alike. As with the toys, try this approach before the barking starts.
  7. There’s a Dog Appeasing Pheromone collar that can keep them calm around town and in class. Many vets sell them.
  8. “Doggie Calm” is aromatherapy that can help with barking. We sell that at the training center and online.
  9. In class (and elsewhere), click/treat for calm behavior, mostly attention to you, but catch all of those good decisions where he was thinking about barking, but doesn’t. When you see him thinking of barking, which happens often when a new dog walks in the room, say his name or “shhhh” and click/treat for the one second of silence that produces.
  10. Teach a cue to signal quiet time. This takes time, so you’ll need to do the other things on this list in the meantime. Say “shhh” with your finger to your lips. When your dog is silent for one second, click and treat. Over time, start to require two, three, ten, or more seconds before clicking. At home, if the dog returns to barking, say “Too Bad!” and give her a time out in another room or a crate (if she’s fine with her crate). After one minute of silence, bring her back out. We have a big crate at the training center that you are welcome to use for time outs.
  11. Bringing a rug for them to sit on can make dogs feel more at ease. Of course, that’s what human laps are for if your dog fits. ????
  12. Bring two people, so one can work on keeping your dog quiet and the other can listen to the instructor.*
  13. If you’re alone, learn to multi-task in class. Ask your dog for behaviors he already knows well, like lying down, targeting your hand, or tricks. Please use hand signals instead of words, though, or your voice will distract others, instead of your dog’s barking!
  14. Recommended Reading: Dogwise books on barking
  15. If all else fails, you can put your dog in the car and come back to class to get the instruction. Work on “shhh” and attention to you for another week and your dog should be able to come back the next time!

*This may not be possible due to pandemic restrictions, if applicable.

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How to Teach Your Dog Loose Leash Walking

If your dog pulls on the leash, then the walk is neither healthy for the dog nor relaxing for you.  It’s also a sign that you and your dog are not paying attention to each other — it takes two to pull.

Pulling on leash is very rewarding to a dog.  What do we mean by this? The action of pulling doesn’t feel so bad at the time and it gets them where they need to go.  Any behavior as rewarding as pulling on the leash takes a lot of commitment to fix. Keep in mind that a dog that’s beside you on a tight leash is still pulling!

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Dog Relaxation: Training a Puppy or High-Energy Dog

With our young or high energy dogs we are often faced with the challenges of hyperactive behaviors such as excessive biting, chewing, jumping, destruction, and vocalization.  Most of these behaviors can be attributed to lack of physical and mental exercise, unintentionally reinforcing undesirable behaviors, and missed opportunities to reinforce calm behaviors.  Training calm behaviors is another important component to helping dogs learn to relax. When dogs are unable to properly relax, they find things to do in order to exert their energy and to occupy their minds…many of which can drive dog parents crazy.

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Marley to Lassie in 7 days – How to Be the Center of Your Dog’s Universe

Does your dog pull on leash or not come when called? Do you wish your dog would listen more? Follow our daily plan below to jump-start your dog training. Your dog won’t actually be Lassie yet, but you will have a lot more focus than you do right now. Focus is the essential foundation before you can train anything else.

For this exercise, we use either a clicker or a word, like “yes,” to mark instant that your dog earns a reward. Every time you mark (click or say, “yes,”) you owe a your dog a tangible reward, like a food treat or toy. (Read more about clicker training). When you mark a behavior, give your dog the reward within a few seconds.

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