Relaxed driving with a dog

Table of Contents

• Tips and Training for a Stress-Free Car Ride with Your Dog
• Car Training: From Car-Hater to Road-Tripper
• Step-by-Step Guide for Car Training
• Basic Training Tips
• Tailgate Reintegration Program
• Exiting the Car - with Structure, Please!
• The Right Start to Car Travel
• Motion Sickness
• When the Dog Barks Continuously
• The Legal Perspective on Car Travel
• How to Ensure Your Dog is Relaxed While Driving

Tips and Training for a Stress-Free Car Ride with Your Dog

Many dog owners know the problem: The big summer vacation is coming up, but it's unclear whether the dog can travel by car without problems. Some dogs genuinely hate car travel. Their aversion often shows itself from the very first ride home from the breeder. In the first 30 minutes, the dog may vomit several times due to excitement. Subsequently, the dog may clearly show that it dislikes car travel. While the dog can sometimes be coaxed into the car, it usually does so reluctantly.

Complete Refusal

Eventually, the dog may decide not to get into the car at all. This poses a problem for dog owners, especially if they want to visit relatives and the dog cannot be left with a sitter. In such cases, a solution is needed. A test drive can show how strong the dog's resistance actually is. Often, it turns out that the dog shies away from the car like a high-strung horse at the sight of it and breaks free. It can be nerve-wracking to catch the dog again.

Car travel with a dog can be a challenging experience. While some dogs love car rides, others find it a personal hell. This article offers comprehensive tips and training methods to accustom even the most anxious dog to car travel and make the journey stress-free for both sides.

Car Training: From Car-Hater to Road-Tripper

For some dogs, car travel is a breeze. For others, it's personal hell. There are dogs who would truly rather do anything than get into a car. But with the right training, even the biggest car-hater can become an enthusiastic passenger.

Step-by-Step Guide for Car Training

After a negative experience, it often becomes impossible to calmly lead the dog past the car. So, it's not just about getting the dog into the car, but about getting it accustomed to the car at all.

1. Desensitization: During the first week, you should walk past the car on every walk without paying attention to it. The dog thus learns that the car poses no threat.
2. Positive Association: Make short stops at the car, let the dog sniff, and reward it. Then, begin to briefly touch the car without coatther stressing the dog.
3. Practice getting in: Gradually open different doors of the car without letting the dog in. Let the dog explore the car and reward it for its calm behavior.

Why do some dogs hate car travel? Dogs can be afraid of car travel for various reasons:

• Bad experiences: A traumatic experience in the car can cause a lifelong aversion.
• Movement and nausea: Some dogs suffer from motion sickness, which can lead to nausea and vomiting.
• Unfamiliar sounds and movements: The rumble of the engine, vibrations, and sudden movements can be frightening for dogs.
• Isolation: In the car, the dog receives less attention, which can lead to insecurity and stress.

Basic Training Tips

• Patience is a virtue. If you rush too much at this stage, it can erase the training successes achieved so far, and you'll have to start from scratch. However, if you take it slow at the beginning, you avoid overwhelming your dog and ultimately reach your goal faster.
• Very small training steps. Once avoidance behavior has become entrenched, this behavior can only be erased from the brain with patience and sensitivity to what's possible.
• Human ambition is out of place. Every single step forward in your dog's behavior must be trained out. This means it's not enough for your dog to do something as long as it's still under tension and stressed. Only when it can get into the car and ride in it without showing excessive signs of stress has it sustainably learned that car travel is not dangerous for it.
• Flexible training steps. You can flexibly change the breakdown of individual training steps. Adapt them to your dog's learning ability. Example: Does your dog get nervous when you put bags and jackets in the car? Do this a few times in a row without driving off. Only when your dog can observe this stress-free, let it get in.

Tailgate Reintegration Program

At the beginning of the training, open the tailgate only briefly and close it again immediately, then walk away. Then, take your dog with you when you need something from the trunk or want to put something in it. The message to your dog is: "When I open the tailgate, it doesn't necessarily have anything to do with you. I just want you to be with me."

Then open the tailgate. Sit on the loading area. Secure your dog on a long leash. Wait patiently and don't speak to your dog. Eventually, it will come to you out of curiosity. Pet it as a reward or give it tasty treats. This way, it learns that the closer it gets to the open trunk, the greater its chance of being pampered.

Place treats on the loading area, just far enough so your dog can stand outside. Then, place them so it has to at least put its front paws on the loading area. We want to avoid unnecessary excitement, so the exercise sessions should be short. If your dog no longer has a problem with this, throw the treats into the back of the trunk. If it wants them now, it has no choice but to jump into the car.

• First steps: Open the tailgate only briefly and close it again.
• Next step: Secure the dog on a long leash and slowly accustom it to the open trunk without forcing it.
• Positive reinforcement: Place treats on the loading area to motivate the dog to get in.
• Repetitions: Repeat these steps until your dog stays in the trunk without stress.

A small tip, the first real drive should not end directly at the vet. It's better to choose attractive destinations.

Exiting the Car - with Structure, Please!

Your dog must learn that an open tailgate does not mean it can simply jump out of the car. This protects your dog's life and that of all other road users. Stand in front of the tailgate, open it, but keep it down. Say "Stay" to your dog (let's assume here that the dog already knows this). Lift the tailgate slightly. If your dog now stands up and wants to come out, you say "No" and close the tailgate again. Repeat this until your dog stays seated.

Your dog is now sitting with the tailgate open. You secure it with a leash and say "NOW". You then step aside and let it out. Any disruptive behavior from your dog will cause you to stop the exercise and start over. Choose exclusive treats for this training that are only used for this purpose. If your dog jumps out of the car as soon as it has eaten the cookie, that's okay for now. Then next time, try this: Before it can jump out of the car, throw another one after it, and another one... Every time you throw a cookie, you say "Stay". If your dog doesn't try to jump out of the car, you praise and reward it. If that works smoothly, start feeding your dog in the car.

• Open tailgate and "Stay": Your dog should learn that an open tailgate is not automatically the signal to get out.
• Repetitions: Train your dog until it stays calm with the tailgate open and only gets out on the "Now" command.

The Right Start to Car Travel

I sat on the loading area and had breakfast there with my dog. After eating, he received a small massage. Sometimes I took a book with me into the car, and while I read, my dog fell asleep. This way, your four-legged friend can also associate the trunk with pleasant experiences.

From my perspective, it is particularly important at this stage of training that your dog acts voluntarily. He dictates the pace and progress of the training. Especially when he has long since understood what you want from him, and his reluctance results from a pure aversion to car travel. Therefore, it is advisable to start training early if you have a travel date to meet. Because time pressure can be a new source of stress.

Then, the first few times, close the tailgate only very briefly, and open it again immediately. Once your dog gets used to it, you can extend the closing times. If that works, you can sit behind the wheel during the closing times, but don't start the engine yet. Only when your dog has gotten used to you sitting in the front of the car can you start the car.

All of this takes a lot of time. Some dogs need four months of training before they can drive for the first time. At first, it should only be short trips down your street. A small tip: the first real trip should not end directly at the vet. It is better to choose attractive destinations. A nearby lake or a visit to Grandma, who always spoils your dog mercilessly, are suitable. Or pack a dummy and drive with him to a place where you can do some exercises later. This way, your dog will also associate car travel with fun. Always include meaningless trips that don't end with an attraction. This prevents your dog from developing an expectation of car travel that hinders it from remaining calm and relaxed.

Motion Sickness

During longer trips, dogs can get sick and vomit. A 16-hour journey can ruin the mood. Thorough training can help your dog travel without vomiting. The cause of its discomfort is often the enormous excitement it feels when traveling by car. During the transition period, veterinarian-recommended medications can help.

If your dog also suffers from this, and training does not help, do not simply give it a pill, but have a veterinarian clarify beforehand whether there are medical reasons for the vomiting that need to be treated.

When the Dog Barks Continuously

What often stresses dog owners the most is when their dog constantly whines, howls, or barks while driving. They often wonder if they are asking too much of their dog or harming its health by taking it in the car. If you ensure that your dog has a comfortable, size-appropriate place in the car, and this place is safe for the animal as well as for human passengers, the answer is no, you are not harming it. Make sure your dog stays as cool as possible, can drink regularly, and take frequent potty breaks on longer trips.

Are you now asking yourself why your dog barks continuously? Well, your dog receives less attention in the car than anywhere else. All your attention is on the road, and that's a good thing. Your dog is used to you taking care of it. Suddenly, it has to cope with not being noticed – an OUTRAGE! By whining and barking, it tries to regain your attention.

You should ignore this behavior. If you constantly address it in this situation and try to calm it down, you reinforce its disruptive behavior. It has succeeded in getting your attention. It doesn't matter whether you remain calm or scold it; ultimately, both are forms of attention.

The Legal Perspective on Car Travel

No matter whether you want to transport your dog in the trunk, in a transport box, on the back seat, or in the footwell, a look at the legal classification of dog transport is worthwhile.

According to Section 23 of the Road Traffic Regulations (StVO), dogs are considered cargo that must be secured against slipping, rolling back and forth, and tipping over. If the dog is not properly secured in a car accident, the consequences can be devastating, both physically and financially. A dog that is allowed to move freely inside a car is too much of a distraction for the driver.

If you do not comply with the legal requirements for securing your dog, it would constitute a breach of obligation, and you could completely lose your insurance coverage. Neither your car insurance nor your dog owner's liability insurance will then be willing to settle the damage.

Violations of Section 23 StVO can result in fines:

• If the dog is not properly secured during the journey: 35 Euros.
• If other road users are endangered: 60 Euros and 1 penalty point in Flensburg.
• If an accident with property damage occurs: 75 Euros and 1 penalty point in Flensburg.

But that doesn't let you, the driver, off the hook. Depending on the circumstances, the provisions of the Civil Code for liability and compensation for damages may also apply. This can get very expensive. In a car accident with property damage and personal injury, five-figure sums can quickly accumulate.

Then you'd rather take the time for proper training.

How to Ensure Your Dog is Relaxed While Driving 

If your dog experiences stress during car travel, our MagixRelax line is the right choice. This line includes various products such as Dry dog food and snacks that contain special ingredients to calm your dog. The ingredients include:

• Spinach powder (3%): Rich in magnesium, which has a calming effect.
• Hemp seeds (2.5%): Contain Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids, which help reduce stress.
• Dried blackberry leaves (0.1%): Have a calming effect.
• Fennel (0.1%): Promotes digestion and has a calming effect.
• Yarrow (0.1%): Has a calming and relaxing effect.
• Chamomile blossoms (0.1%): Known for their calming properties.
• Nettle herb (0.1%): Strengthens the immune system and has a calming effect.

For optimal effect, the biscuits should be used daily for at least two weeks beforehand, or the entire product line should be used daily. This way, you can help your dog become more relaxed and calm, which can significantly ease car travel.

Click here for MagicRelax dog food ->