Hi all doodle lovers....I am the owner of my 2nd doodle who just turned 2 years old in August, Lila. She is not very "car-excited-friendly" when it is time to go for a ride in the car!!! Does anyone else's doodle have this problem, if so what did you do to get them use to the car? My first doodle loved car rides, use to hang her nose out the window!!!
Here is a discussion I wrote last spring. Starlit still does not like my small 5 speed car but she LOVES riding high up in a truck or van now. If I say " Ride" she starts to Wiggle :)
Some dogs get car sick others are nervous. Ours was just nervous about the ride. For car sickness there are some other alternatives written in some other blogs. Maybe this will help.
We were not sure if Daisy liked the ride or not but she would get in the car no problem. At first she rode strapped in the front seat next to me but she got too big (heavy enough to turn the air bag on) she just seemed unhappy during the ride, never got sick but never excited like what we had imagined (head out the window with pink doggles)....well I decided to try the back of the SUV - she loves it back there, her own little space, solid, not cushy bounce, she just watches behind and now and again she will look forward to see what we are up to. If you have that type of vehicle try that. I think they prefer sure footing rather than what we perceive as comfort.
Hunter could ride in the car all day, front seat, back seat, back of the suv. One thing you might try is if you take her to the bank or some other drive thru - they normally give treats. Hunter LOVES the bank - they give her like 3 cookies everytime. If I am going to a drive thru somewhere and I am unsure if they give treats I have some in a baggie in my car so I can still give her one myself - she hasn't caught on yet. My friend started doing this with her bichon and now he LOVES to ride in the car and used to hate it. Good Luck!
My second doodle is not excited about car rides. She would get car sick as a puppy. She has outgrown the car sickness, but she is never excited to get into the car. We are just so happy that she no longer is car sick, that we deal with the non-excitement. I don't see it as a problem. She is not stressed out in the car and travels well. She'll stay awake on short rides and go to sleep on longer rides. My second doodle is calm and quiet in the car. Since an overly excited doodle can be a distraction for the driver, I consider my second doodle to be a very good car rider.
Have you tried a harness? Holly gets anxious on car rides too, but it helps when we strap her in with her harness. I think it makes her feel more stable. Also she does like to ride in my husbands SUV way more than in my car...not sure why but maybe it's more stable like Lisa suggested. Hope this helps!