New Member, please be kind! Travelling with reactive dog, any advice?

[BeeBee]

Our rescue boy is not by nature ‘a barker’, he is attached by his stake out spike to our pitch area to ensure he doesn’t run off. If other dogs encroach , yes he will bark , just as I might when other humans think it’s ’OK’ to stride across someone else’s pitch because it’s a shorter route than the path to wherever they’re heading. To be fair it’s mostly ‘screaming kids’ en route to the designated play area.
We had one recent experience of this where two entrances to the play area weren’t enough, easier to run through our pitch and jump over. Fortunately our dog didn’t react !
I’ld say responsible dog owners on sites are the norm .
The occasional bark doesn’t annoy us , just as the occasional scream doesn’t…. constant barking or screaming, that’s another matter.

 

[morrma]

We have a working cocker spaniel that loves people, other dogs and just generally wants to explore whenever she gets the chance - she's so excitable!
We've found that a windbreak really helps with guiding her to settle into 'our space' and generally seems to stop the previously irresistible distractions from outside.
We're going to get a couple of new windbreaks with upper see through panels, so that we still have a view and don't feel closed in when they're up.
Hope this helps - enjoy.

We had an old English sheep dog like that. Specialised traing in adulthood, which is supposed to be too late, actually helped. Also ,can't remember what brand but a chill pill really helped. I hasten to add it was not a sedative. The thing is dogs use their noses. Not sure a wind break would work unless your dog can accept that that's THEIR patch. You could try talking to the campsite and ask for a pitch away from other dogs. BTW that chill pill worked when our OES shared kennels on the ferry to Santander. She was a lovely dog. Loved people. Also if you are in with the other dog pitches on the site just walk around and explain the situation. I did and it, owners were sympathetic and just relieved their dog wasn't like that. Good luck and enjoy life.

 

[morrma]

We had an old English sheep dog like that. Specialised traing in adulthood, which is supposed to be too late, actually helped. Also ,can't remember what brand but a chill pill really helped. I hasten to add it was not a sedative. The thing is dogs use their noses. Not sure a wind break would work unless your dog can accept that that's THEIR patch. You could try talking to the campsite and ask for a pitch away from other dogs. BTW that chill pill worked when our OES shared kennels on the ferry to Santander. She was a lovely dog. Loved people. Also if you are in with the other dog pitches on the site just walk around and explain the situation. I did and it, owners were sympathetic and just relieved their dog wasn't like that. Good luck and enjoy life.

Thank you for your helpful reply. We have never had a campervan before so the whole thing is new to us! I have had a couple of signs made to put on the van to say that she’s a rescue, could react etc but you are right, it would help to have a quick chat with our neighbours too. We are using a product called nutricalm but as yet I’m not sure how effective it is. I was the same with my children, when a toddler was kicking off I was just relieved it wasn’t mine!

 

[morrma]

We have a working cocker spaniel that loves people, other dogs and just generally wants to explore whenever she gets the chance - she's so excitable!
We've found that a windbreak really helps with guiding her to settle into 'our space' and generally seems to stop the previously irresistible distractions from outside.
We're going to get a couple of new windbreaks with upper see through panels, so that we still have a view and don't feel closed in when they're up.
Hope this helps - enjoy.

That’s given me hope, thank you! I definitely don’t feel ready for see through panels, total black out for us to begin with! I’ve seen some lovely (expensive!) wind breaks but thought I’d just try some cheap ones to begin with to see if they do the trick. Good luck and happy travels with your excitable little fur baby

 

[morrma]

We have a rescue boy who can be iffy with dogs he doesn’t know. We use a dog stake out spike to ensure he can’t leave our pitch area. We don’t use the associated length of lead ( as it’s too long) instead just use his Halti training lead which gives enough to play around.

Thank you, we do have a spike but it’s the coil type and I couldn’t get it into the hard ground on our first (and only) trip. I’ll have to find a true spike and hammer it into the ground. We tied the associated lead to the van wheel and yes, we had to shorten the length too!

 

[morrma]

Following with interest as we have a mixed breed who like to defend ‘our’ territory.

It’s not easy is it? Lots of helpful people here with constructive advice

 

[morrma]

Interested in hearing about any ones experience of the "chill pill "

Our pooch is fine when we get there its the travel he doesn't seem to like constant panting seems like stress but also stresses us out sounds like a runaway train right behind me.

View attachment 127857

Beautiful Cali and….. have you stolen my dog?!! The Cockapoo strikes again with their “specialness”!

Your set up looks very cosy and quite enclosed - could you share the details of the awning please? Do you have “curtains” that attach to the Cali awning? Sorry for wrong terminology, I’m very new to this!

To address your concerns, we are using nutricalm tablets but it’s still early days so not sure if they are working. Our dog, Nellie, travels beautifully for the most part, on long journeys we use her crate with her blanket over the top of it and she seems to settle. I’m sure you’ve tried this but thought I’d share

 

[morrma]

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We ended up buying, so called dog calming food. Using dog calming tablets, Its a long time ago since our OES passed away so the memory is a bit foggy. We would also make sure she had a long walk beforehand to try and tire he out. I was never sure if the fact it made us more relaxed as owners, thinking all this would work, in turn made her more chilled out. It is a bit of a vicious circle when you have a dog like that. You get stressed about her potential behaviour, she senses your anxiety and goes into high alert. It definitely did help in our case. Bless her !

View attachment 127894

What a beautiful dog Yes, a good long walk on arrival before we set up may help, thank you. It’s true, I’m anxious about her potential behaviour which she obviously senses but it’s hard to relax knowing she might kick off! We’ve spent a fortune on behaviourists, training, courses, books etc….I’m trying to come to terms with the fact that this is her personality and I have to adapt to her needs

 

[morrma]

Sorry but if your dog is going to cause a nuisance to other people on site then you should not go.
Nothing worse that dogs barking all day when you go away for a restful few days.

Thank you for your advice. She would never be barking all day, I would never allow that, I’d rather leave the site than upset everyone else’s break. She’s a rescue dog and just panics and barks when another dog comes into her space. I was just asking for advice to try and minimise this.

 

[Tycho]

Hi Morrma
We have a greek rescue and she is also reactive. The first days she is more on high allert and needs to reset/re-learn the boundry of her patch and the rest of the world. We choose spots at the end of campsites to avoid most people walking by with other dogs. Place the Cali strategic as a boundry and do our travels in the off-season. Also we try to meet the dogs and the people next to us so she gets to know them a bit. This does not work all the time, but if it does it makes things easy. We dont use medicine, we do long walks, play intensly just to make her tired.
We find it also helps to start early in the year, before the actual long trip, with days out. When having coffee somewere nice, she learns in short sessions that only the awning is hers and people can actualy walk past. Also we use the inside of the van as the safe place. As she gets to aggitated we place her inside, if necessary close everything, read a book, make coffee till things calm down. Then we start all over again.
As i said before in an other post, everytime we come back from a long trip, we come back as a better team.

 

[morrma]

I think this post is bang on. Its the human/dog interaction that is key. Dogs are very good at 'reading the room'. If the owner is stressed or worried they go on high alert. But as we all know it impossible to tell yourself to 'stop being stressed'!.

I did learn one trick when we had to look after a nervous and reactive dog. It was a key word. Its not the word itself its the fact that it put me in the right frame of mind. I am sure the dog didn't care a jot about what I was saying - it was the mood I managed to create with it. So in my case it was "Enough" said firmly but calmly - and with meaning.

So as @CaliforniaSeb says if feeding calming food (or eating it yourself!) gives you conviction, do it because its as much about how you are feeling as about any inherent characteristic of the dog.

The other issue is of course the human/human interaction that can stress you out (which the dog also reads as threat). So being worried that your dog is going to annoy others is always an issue. I think if you target dog friendly sites (read some reviews and look at how much they offer in terms of facilities -- rather than just dogs tolerated) you can be more relaxed. Most if not all dog owners will have experienced some issues with their own dogs and just accept it as going with the territory.

We have found with our two (not reactive) dogs that they love going away in the camper. With luck you will find the same. So don't think yourself deluded that you can have a relaxed break. You may well be pleasantly surprised. In any case good luck!

Thank you for your reassuring reply. The whole issue of reactivity is a big one, probably not for this forum I will try introducing a word to encourage calmness for me and the dog. And I like your idea about eating the calming food, maybe my “food” could be a bottle of pink gin? It’s funny that you mention dog friendly sites, as a rule, I avoid anything that says dog friendly as I know there will be even more dogs there. I mean beaches, cafes, pubs etc, but on a campsite it might be different. As you say, the more dog owners on a site, the more tolerant they are likely to be. And I’m right in thinking that all dogs have to be on leads at all times? That would be the worst thing, a random off lead dog approaching us!

 

[CaliforniaSeb]

I do miss our OES. Have as much fun as you can with your dog. Your dog needs to experience new things too. We have lots of precious memories. We took her narrow boating she loved being up front outside watching everything that was going on. Another boat passed close by, both of us slowed right down, and the next thing we knew she had jumped onto their boat to say hi!

Another thing we did, not sure this would work for your dog, is that we took her to a behaviourist who ran a doggy day care centre too. She put a muzzle on and introduced her to about 20 other dogs in the big play area. She was so overwhelmed by the number of dogs that she did absolutely nothing. By the end of the day she had a buddy. I would take her once a week after that.

 

[morrma]

Hi Morrma
We have a greek rescue and she is also reactive. The first days she is more on high allert and needs to reset/re-learn the boundry of her patch and the rest of the world. We choose spots at the end of campsites to avoid most people walking by with other dogs. Place the Cali strategic as a boundry and do our travels in the off-season. Also we try to meet the dogs and the people next to us so she gets to know them a bit. This does not work all the time, but if it does it makes things easy. We dont use medicine, we do long walks, play intensly just to make her tired.
We find it also helps to start early in the year, before the actual long trip, with days out. When having coffee somewere nice, she learns in short sessions that only the awning is hers and people can actualy walk past. Also we use the inside of the van as the safe place. As she gets to aggitated we place her inside, if necessary close everything, read a book, make coffee till things calm down. Then we start all over again.
As i said before in an other post, everytime we come back from a long trip, we come back as a better team.

Oh this is all amazing advice, thank you! I was planning to explain to any neighbours about her reactivity but if there are also neighbouring dogs, it might help for them to meet, great idea! I’ll also start to do some day trips and overnighters, might even sleep in the van on our drive to get her used to the concept and reassure her of her safe space. I’m actually looking forward to our travels now whereas before I was dreading taking her. Thank you

 

[morrma]

I do miss our OES. Have as much fun as you can with your dog. Your dog needs to experience new things too. We have lots of precious memories. We took her narrow boating she loved being up front outside watching everything that was going on. Another boat passed close by, both of us slowed right down, and the next thing we knew she had jumped onto their boat to say hi!

Another thing we did, not sure this would work for your dog, is that we took her to a behaviourist who ran a doggy day care centre too. She put a muzzle on and introduced her to about 20 other dogs in the big play area. She was so overwhelmed by the number of dogs that she did absolutely nothing. By the end of the day she had a buddy. I would take her once a week after that.

How sweet that she jumped onto the neighbouring boat! Lovely memories for you.

I’ve tried a behaviourist and doggy day care but not combined if that makes sense? I’ll do some research, thanks for the idea

 

[LastOrders]

Beautiful Cali and….. have you stolen my dog?!! The Cockapoo strikes again with their “specialness”!

Hi morrma

He's an 8yr old Australian labradoodle , its amazing how alike they are to cockapoos

 

[LastOrders]

Your set up looks very cosy and quite enclosed - could you share the details of the awning please? Do you have “curtains” that attach to the Cali awning? Sorry for wrong terminology, I’m very new to this!

To address your concerns, we are using nutricalm tablets but it’s still early days so not sure if they are working. Our dog, Nellie, travels beautifully for the most part, on long journeys we use her crate with her blanket over the top of it and she seems to settle. I’m sure you’ve tried this but thought I’d share

Hers a link to the club shop for the awning set up lots of colours
It was a quick fix for us as I really want a driveaway with fixed groundsheet but so many to choose from. The camping room is really good easy to fit, robust and well made and will do for certain situations
Thanks for the chill pill name

Comfortz VW California Awning Kit / Camping Room with Windows

Comfortz VW California Awning Kit / Camping Room with Windows

vwcaliforniaclub.com

 

[morrma]

Welcome to the forum. Finding a routine that works for you is essential with a small campervan, even more so with a reactive dog. Our cockapoo can be reactive in many ways as @BeagleMum mentioned. Familiarisation, reinforcing training, treats etc. can help get results. My advice would be to start with days out in the Cali with your dog so she gets accustomed to the new environment then try an overnighter somewhere quiet or even on the driveway at home. Good luck, you will have some great times.

Thank you, I’ve only just seen your post (I’m still getting to grips with the forums!) and have literally just said to another member that I would try day trips and overnights including on our drive! Great minds! We don’t pick our Cali up until September but I’ve bought a double seated camping chair; Nellie, a Velcro Cockapoo, sits with me constantly so I thought if I tried to replicate her normal that might help. I’ll be sitting in the chair in the garden until we get our van

 

[morrma]

Hers a link to the club shop for the awning set up lots of colours
It was a quick fix for us as I really want a driveaway with fixed groundsheet but so many to choose from. The camping room is really good easy to fit, robust and well made and will do for certain situations
Thanks for the chill pill name

Comfortz VW California Awning Kit / Camping Room with Windows

Comfortz VW California Awning Kit / Camping Room with Windows

vwcaliforniaclub.com

Wow, so many options, thanks for the link

 

[morrma]

Hi morrma

He's an 8yr old Australian labradoodle , its amazing how alike they are to cockapoos

View attachment 127913

My apologies, yes, very similar to a Cockapoo - gorgeous boy

 

[BeagleMum]

I refer to your previous comment in Post 11.
You expect others to be tolerant of your canine family when on holiday but you are not tolerant of their children playing games and making noise when they are on holiday.
As I said previously pick Adult only campsites then you won't have to tolerate any children.
Those children might have been abused or bullied or just revelling in being on holiday . I presume you were a child once?

True to form you just can’t help yourself

 

[WelshGas]

True to form you just can’t help yourself

Typical. You wish others to be tolerant but not the reverse. Typical of many dog owners.
And before you ask I've had 6 dogs over the years , all rescue dogs and we coped with all their little foibles and they all lived to ripe old ages. If a dog is not socialised for any reason, cope with it and don't impose on others.

 

[BeeBee]

Wow, so many options, thanks for the link

If you ultimately consider an awning ‘drive away’ or the ‘sides and front ‘ like the Comfortz room, there are a couple of things to remember… Drive away awnings, some have sewn in ground sheets, better to curtail your dog from sneaking under and through. Others have no sewn in groundsheet and you just have a footprint or tarp, it’s easy for any dog to get under and out. However some sites say “No sewn in ground sheets allowed or even No groundsheets”… it’s usually when on grass pitches.
A wee separate pop up tent may be an option where you could angle the opening to face your van , or away from passing neighbours humans and dogs.
Whatever, I’m sure you will have lots of adventures and find what works for you.
Couple of pix of our rescue lad who 3 years down the road has settled into van ( and site ) life.

 

[Tycho]

Oh this is all amazing advice, thank you! I was planning to explain to any neighbours about her reactivity but if there are also neighbouring dogs, it might help for them to meet, great idea! I’ll also start to do some day trips and overnighters, might even sleep in the van on our drive to get her used to the concept and reassure her of her safe space. I’m actually looking forward to our travels now whereas before I was dreading taking her. Thank you

Training the basics, just 5 km from home. Quiet road allong the lake. Enough happens to trigger her, but not enough to get her on full scale high allert. No barking at cars, cyclist, hikers, geese, planes, people in boats etc. Just having lots of fun and play, the Cali becomes our family happy place.

 

[secret lemonade drinker]

I find a dog travels better with goggles and window open

 

[Keith Smith]

We have a border collie who came to us aged 2 and whilst I am sure, we met her previous owners, she was never subjected to any mistreatment she does display a number of characteristics that we would prefer her not to have. Barking is one of them and it can be very annoying especially when she may be disturbing others, but generally people are very tolerant.
Have you considered coming to the meet at Slimbridge? We have a large field and you could park a good way from everyone else if you wanted. At the same meet a few years ago Jess, our collie, pulled the lead out of my hand, ran off down the field, managed to pull the club flag out of the ground and run off with it, so is your dog really that bad?