Soon-to-be doodle parent

[Melissa Bissell]

Hi-

I am new to this site, and very excited to be a doodle parent very soon!  We will find out which puppy is ours in a few days, and meet him or her on Saturday.  Our doodle puppy will come home on March 15 - we can't wait!  I have been looking around this site for a few days and found a lot of the forums and discussions very helpful so I thought I would join.  I do have a question.  What do you all recommend for transporting our puppy by car?  We have a 90 minute drive from the breeders, and then we will need to take our puppy for short drives around town.  

Thanks! 

[Michele & Kallie]

We had a three hour drive and kept our pup in my lap in a soft blanket.She slept most of the trip since she was worn out with just a little visiting. Make sure if you stop for a potty break its in an area where no other dog has been, due to parvo virus.

[Michele & Kallie]

We had a family member hold her when we went to the vet in the early days.

[Deb's Yarrow and Schatzi]

We had a nine hour drive home with our puppy, including many potty breaks, and we did the same.  We had brought a kennel with us but it seemed right to hold her those first few hours away from her mamma.  She slept.  When she fussed, we pulled over and she peed. 

Congratulations!  You are in for a wonderful experience.  (ups and downs but all wonderful)

[Tina McNerthney]

We will be getting our doodle in April, so I am also interested in feedback on car transport. Our drive will be about 60 minutes.

[John Wang]

What kind of car do you have? This will be the main decider.

I have an Audi Q5, we used a Midwest Life Stages crate secured with bungie cords. We bought it for the size our puppy will grow into, and it includes a divider to make the crate smaller.

Ask to make sure your breeder is getting them used to car rides. I recommend taking a towel with your scent with you to pick up the puppy, then rub it on its mom a lot. Swaddle the pup and carry it with you in the car for the first part of the ride home, and after the break put it in the crate and see how it does then. Boomer started barking within two minutes when we left for our 7 hour ride home, so we took him to the front and my SO cuddled him for about half an hour. Afterwards we crated him with no issues, stopping every 45 minutes to see if he had to pee.

I got two crates used/like new for $33/ea from Amazon, and they work great. We are looking to get a fabric crate that can collapse to make it easier (and faster) to get him loaded up in the car, but they're expensive.

[Rae]

We tried the crate at first and within five miles she was being held. After second rest stop she fell asleep and we put her back in the crate and she slept for two hours. Crate worked well after that. The breeder had taken the litter on several car rides both in and out of crate so it wasn't her first ride or crate experience.

[John Wang]

Also, a quick tip- to support the site, whenever you see someone suggest a product, scroll up to the top of the page and click on "Preferred Vendors" - use that link to get to Amazon. The site will receive a commission that'll help pay for server costs.

As for my suggestion, once you're on Amazon, search for "Midwest Life Stages Crate". The #1 bestseller is the one we have. I like it because it has two doorways, is collapsible, has a removable plastic tray for easy clean-ups and a divider to allow your pup to grow up into it.

Another HUGE life saver would be the Iris Dog Playpen (4 panel plastic pen with gate). Setting it up is easy, and we've configured all sorts of play-pen areas for our dog to adapt to his needs. ($40 new, we got a used/like-new for $33.)

To go with this, hop over to Lowes or Home Depot and buy a 6x8ft faux tile sheet ($40) and cut it to fit your play area. This will help with cleaning up accidents.

Enzyme cleaners will help with lingering odors that might make your puppy want to go to the bathroom at the same place it's had an accident. My friends swear by Nature's Miracle, I use the Advanced Formula. This I got for $10 from Petsmart.

Call around your local vet areas and ask if they have a puppy package for shots and basic grooming. Ours was $350 for all his shots and vaccinations, deworming and flea pills, rabies etc, with free nail trimming and ear cleaning for a year, just for reference.

[Kristin and Sophie]

We had a 6 hour drive when we picked up Sophie.  I brought a laundry basket, but she crawled out of that as soon as she could.  So, I ended up holding her on my lap the entire drive home.  She slept most of the way home.  We did keep towels, paper towels and a garbage bag in the back in case she got sick or had to go to the bathroom.   Good luck with your new puppy.  It's such a fun time!!!!

[Melissa Bissell]

Thanks everyone - all great ideas!  And I am glad to see it is ok to hold the puppy on the way home from the breeder.  The breeder actually suggested that when I asked her, but my husband is very nervous about having the puppy loose in the car.  However I know I (and my kids) will have a difficult time just putting the puppy straight into the crate - after waiting soooo long to get him/her.  We will have to discuss it more as a family.  As far as trips around town I have been told to get either a soft crate or a plastic travel crate.  I drive a minivan, but I don't want the puppy to ride in the far back.  Which type of crate is preferable?  I like the look of the soft crate but they are rather pricey.  I won't have anyone with me to hold the puppy on our first vet visit, which is just a few days after we bring him/her home, so I will need to have him/her in some kind of crate.  I don't want to bring the metal crate we bought for the house - just seems to cumbersome for short drives.

[Rae]

Since you have a van you could use a plastic airline type crate, use the seat belt in the seat right behind the passenger front seat. As long as the crate is secured well with the seat belts you could turn the crate so the puppy can see you and hear your voice. This worked real well for us when we first got Rozee and again when would take baby Bella to the vet.

[Melissa Bissell]

Rae - What size do you recommend?  Our puppy will be 8 weeks when we get him.  He will be 40-50 pounds full grown.

[Rae]

We went to a pet store...maybe Petco or PetSmart, but most pet stores have the carriers and they can tell you what you need. We got a medium size since we wanted one that would fit on the seat. That was the most important thing in the beginning. After the puppy got a little bigger, say 6-9 months we went with the harness that attaches to the seat belt (there are a lot of those out there but you have time to research that) and that worked great. For the immediate time you really want something you can get in the van and then be able to get the puppy in and out of. Just a quick reminder for your visits to the vet. DO NOT let your puppy walk around at the vet. Always carry the puppy. Many of the animals that are going to the vet are doing so because they are sick. We pretty much guard the puppy as much as possible until at least after the second round of shots...waiting for exposure until after the first full series is being real safe. Hope this helps! Our new baby won't be born for another 16 days (not that we're counting) and we can hardly wait. Our Rozee will be 8 yrs. the same week her little sister will be born! Let the fun begin!