Any advice for a new motorhomer with canine passengers Forums

bouncer

Most of what needs to be said has been, so I will keep this short.

As everyone knows I have an extremely large and VERY heavy Gt Dane, he travels in an RAC harness which is anchored to the seatbelt on bench seat behind drivers seats, we use a very strong rubber/bonded lead to anchor between the seatbelt and harness, so in event of accident he would not fly forward.

You must anchor your dogs firmly, as a 4, 5 or in our case 12 stone dog hitting you at back of neck would be catastrophic, and their subsequent departure through the windscreen undoubtedly fatal.

Also, no one has mentioned on here the restrictions imposed by some sites with regard to type of dogs accepted. Some investigation is necessary before booking!

I can confirm that our dog used to shake like a jelly when we purchased our current motorhome, something he never did in the previous one, we decided it was due to unfamiliar noises, so we persevered by just driving round the block to start with then extending it a little....he is now as happy as larry, parks his behind on bench seat and 'leans' on back of my seat, quite content as being so big he can look out of front window....
Your dogs will adapt, just give them time to get used to it.

By the way, on no account should a dog be left alone in m/h in hot weather, its no different to leaving them in a car, the heat build up is very quick.

I wish you many good journeys with your canine friends, mine goes everywhere with me.!! He gets all excited at the thought of going away for a few days with lots of new places to sniff.....

One thing I have noted recently is the number of dogs that are allowed to bark on campsites, especially if left outside.....we make it a rule not to allow barking....unless someone elses dog approaches in a threatening way.....I was on a campsite last week and the dog in caravan next to us, was outside without a lead on barking at 5am !! when I told the warden he said 'well what can I do, they diden't tell me it would do that' Fair comment but unfair behaviour from the owners......

Spacerunner

Most importantly get used to the idea that your dog(s) owns the motorhome.
You are just the staff! Confused

bouncer

Never a truer word spoken Spacerunner....says she who ended up sat on the floor watching TV last weekend whilst no 1 dane stretched out on sofa snoring!!lol

littlenell

Thanks for the advice- she is well seasoned traveller in the car- she has had to be, we are all over the place!

My main concern is her safety - she is our pride and joy! I am hoping to restrict the amount of free space she has to be thrown around in if the unspeakable does happen.

Interesting about types of dogs restricted at camp sites. We are aware of the vibe that some people get when the word dobermann is mentioned. She is however, the softest dog going and very, very friendly.

Cool paw cleaning thing- sounds much better than our version which is a flannel, small bucket and microfibre towel Laughing

weaver

Saw those at the county show. Didn't buy one because they seemed a bit pricey. do they work?

Happy travelling

Louise

bouncer

littlenell, It is a shame I know, because most dobi's are kind and gentle, but a lot of caravan parks have a blanket ban on certain types of dog, rotties are definately on it.
This is what Searles Holiday Parks say are not allowed:
NO Rottweilers, Pitt Bull or Staffordshire Terriers, Alsatian/German Shepherds, Dobermans or any half-breeds of such dogs .

Which is a shame because Searles at Hunstanton has great motorhome park!! And yet the irony is we can take our Gt Dane who although well behaved is no less unpredictable than any other dog !!and twice the size of most.....

The best thing to do is check in advance, and always be aware that you may meet people on a caravan park that are petrified of dogs, and therefore yours should always be on a lead, under good control and not allowed to go upto people without invitation. That way no one can point a finger at you.
I'm sure you don't need my advice, as its pretty obvious from your post that you are a concientious dog owner....its the others you have to be constantly aware of like kids that think its okay to fling their arms around your dogs neck without a thought!!!

dcmo

Bill_Posters

Our Westie just loves traveling in the van. She gets all excited and licks her bed for at least the first 20 minutes of the journey. We don't leave her in the van alone very often, and then never for very long.
We have never had any problems with campsites. In a years touring we only found one site that wouldn't take her. So we just moved on somewhere more pooch friendly.
I have generally found that European sites are a lot more dog friendly than UK ones. Many of them have dedicated facilities for washing your dog.
A friend of ours has a Doberman which she keeps tied up all day outside the van. I thought this seemed a bit hard on the dog until she explained her thinking. She said IF it got off the lead and got into a fight with another dog, the reputation that Dobies have might mean she'd have to have it put down.