Traveling by car with kids and puppy

[Kim Fine]

Our puppy will be here in less than a week! We are sooo excited. Question for those of you who have traveled by car for more than a few hour with a young puppy. We will be home a few weeks with the new pup but then are planning to take a week long trip to my parent's house with the kids and dog. It is about a 5 hour drive and usually we stop 1-2 times for all of us to eat and use the bathroom. Typically my husband and I drive together but this time around we will have separate cars. I will be alone with my kids (9 and 7) and the puppy. How do you handle potty breaks (for humans and dogs) during a trip like this? Most of the drive is on 95 and much of it is the NJ turnpike. Just trying to figure out how to work this as usually we all go into a rest stop together, eat, use the bathroom and then leave. Obviously things will be different now with a puppy in the mix. Can I bring the puppy in? Wait right outside while kids use the bathroom? Leave the kids in the car with the dog while I run in? I'm just not sure what is the safest route. Thanks!

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Could you and your husband follow each other? Could one of you take the dog and one the kids? If so, no problem, if not, I would have him travel in a crate so when you have to go into 'somewhere' with your children, the dog will be safe.  I don't live in your climate, but isn't it very cold right now? Would I leave him outside in the car?  Only for as long as you must to use restrooms - I would bring food from home or use drive-thrus. I don't think you can expect the puppy to go 5 hours without potty breaks.  I think you need to plan on stopping every hour.  I also think you need to be prepared for your pup to demonstrate lots of stress with being separated from his mother and then taken on a long, long trip.

After reading your other responses and realizing the trip is optional, I would postpone it.  We got an adult doodle in June - he was a re-home and not from a shelter.  We had a trip planned about 10 days after we got him.  We have an RV so it isn't like a car trip which is much tougher.  This trip was sooooo stressful for Charlie, he hadn't even settled in with us, he had parasites which is so common in doodles, and we put him in our RV and took off.  It took us over a month to get his digestive system back to normal from the parasites and the stress.  Poor baby.  We won't do that to a dog again.

[Kim Fine]

Poor Charlie :( Yes these are all things to think about it. I definitely plan on stopping a few times in the 5 hours and also using a crate in the car if we do make the trip. I think we are just going to take it day by day, see how we are doing a week or 2 after we have the puppy and make a decision that works for us. It is an "optional" trip...but the kids and grandparents do really look forward to it. The kids have a week off in Feb and its a good opportunity to spend time with family so we usually go to my parent's house. Yes it's cold here although it has been a kind of mild winter so far. We definitely would RUN in and out of wherever we stop if I had to leave the pup in the car...it would hopefully be only a few minutes. 

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

I just traveled 750 miles with my two year old grandson and my daughter's two French Bulldogs. I have also traveled long distances with my two Doodles. I think if the dogs are comfortable, they will sleep. Luckily, I did not travel in hot weather because I would never leave my dogs in a hot car. That said, with the dogs and toddler, when I stopped, I stayed right by the car and let the dogs out to do their business. When they were done, I put them back in the car, took my grandson out, locked the car, and ran in to use the bathroom or get food. If it were me, I would stop, let your puppy out to do his business, put him back in a safe place in your car, lock the doors, and run into the rest stops with your children. 

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

But the dogs weren't brand new puppies, Laurie.  This would be a puppy that she has only had for a very short time.

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

I drove 600 miles home when I got Fudge and 450 when I got Vern. Both puppies slept almost the entire way home and I just stopped periodically and let them out. I did have someone in the car with me, but they were so good. I guess it depends on the dog, but I believe (if the dog doesn't get carsick) he/she will probably just sleep. If this is a trip they will make here and there, it is also my feeling I would start the puppy young with the traveling. Yes, Bonzai and Jazz were older, but they have never traveled with me and they were stressed without Megan or Doc and I was all alone, but they did sleep most of the way. I do think a re-homed dog would be harder because in addition to adjusting to a new home, they would also be adjusting to the newness of traveling. Poor Charlie. Does he like traveling now in your RV?

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Charlie loves traveling - and mostly sleeps, like you all suggest - now.  It was an extremely rough start for him though - and for us!  He would periodically have explosive diarrhea, felt crummy and wouldn't eat. If there had been only one adult and little kids, it would not have been an adventure but a nightmare.

However, we had already planned to attend the Walla Walla romp, so it was bring him or not adopt him and since it was love at first picture, there was no way it was going to be not to adopt him! :-}

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

I am glad he is so much better now. I have been lucky with my dogs. No issues and they love the car. 

[Kat and Winston]

Our older son brought his puppy to stay here for a weekend shortly after he got him. It was a 4 hour drive. It's what inspired me to get a puppy shortly after, which has been such a great thing for our family.

I think we can overthink things, and sometimes worry far too much. After a few weeks of living at home with you and as long as the puppy has no obvious health issues, I think it will be just fine to travel and if your parents are on board with it, it sounds like they will be fine with any accidents of the puppy. The only precaution I would take is NOT letting the dog out at rest stops. I'd stop there for yourself and children if need be and leave puppy in a crate with window cracked and doors locked. If puppy need a stop I'd take the extra time to pull off to an office building or an area less likely to be frequently used by dogs to avoid the risk of parvo until the puppy is fully vaccinated. My niece's puppy died of it even after having its first shots.

We travelled 6 hours with our 4 youngest children and puppy to bring him home. I let him just pee on pad in my lap, but since you'll have already begun training I can see wanting to avoid that, but I'd definitely not let him out at a rest stop.