From the beginning my puppy has suffered from car sickness. He is now 8 months old and no significant improvement. I have tried all the advice on this site re positions in car, herbal meds, short pleasant journeys etc. DAP spray worked well for a while and I can now drive him around the village without sickness. I was able to get him 3 times 5 miles down the road and back without any sickness and then the 4th time he was sick! ANy time I go on a longer journey he is sick and salivating a lot. I drive really carefully. The vet gave me some meds which I had to give him 2 hours before driving and was supposed to be for long journeys but he was sick 30 mins into the journey anyway. I have to lay out bin liners over the car to contain the sick - even if I give him time to digest his food before travelling he will still be sick. I have tried not feeding him and this reduces the sick but then its not fair to starve him each time I want to take him somewhere nice for the day. He is usually OK on the return journey, sleeps because he is tired out from the walk and fun. I feel guilty for taking him on trips and making him sick but I want to be able to go out and about with him other than our village. I would love to take him to the beach!

Are there any new idea's or medications out there? I'll try anything.

I don't know if this has been suggested to you, but it was to me & it works!

My bitch suffered from car sickness, short journey,s,long journeys made no odds.. I was recommended giving her a Ginger Biscuit (or half).. I did that & had no problems since. I don't give it all the time, & on a recent journey home we got stuck in traffic, took a different route with windy roads & she was sick & I hadn't given her one as she stopped needing it :(

We have recently driven from W Yorks to Aviemore, gave her a biscuit, no problems, & on the way home did the same again, no problems. We stopped for half an hour to break the journey up (6 hours) but she was fine...  HTH :)

Yeah I've heard that ginger is a good anti-nausea aid.  I'll have to get a packet of biccies and will try giving our little girl one about half an hour before we next go in the car :)

Hi june

I can sympathise with you. my mal drools terribly in vehicles. He's now a year old and still does it The area looks more like a swimming pool even on short 1/2hr journeys. Although it is rare he is actually sick. I too have tried everything from herbal remedys, ginger biscuits, in a crate, out of one, gradually re introducing vehicles to him, about the only thing that helps ease the drooling is to have one of my kids in the back with him, but thats not always practical.
We have a 7hr drive to do in summer, not sure what we are going to. Im hoping the vet will have something which will make him drowsy so he sleeps all the way.
Some say that dogs can grow out of it but no sign of that here yet.
Good luck hope you find a solution :)

Hi

I too sympathise with you, when we first got Molly (lab) she was fine in the car but all of a sudden on one journey kept salivating (tons & tons ) & was sick for no reason, this kept happening for a few months afterwards (very frustrating) & we too tried lots of alternatives including some calming tables which I'm sure made her worse!  So what we decided to do in the end was take her on very very short drives (5 mins) to our local nature reserve, go for a longish walk & then drive back, it worked for us becuase before she had time to worry about being in the car we were at a fun & exciting place.  It's not 100% though cos over Xmas on the drive home she started salivating & I had to pull over to let her out for fear she was going to be sick!  I don't know if this is going to be of any help to you but thought I'd let you know you're not alone!

We also have a 10 hour drive on Spring Bank to Oban in Scotland & I was going to consult with the vets  about some form of medication to help but if anyone speaks to their vets before could you pls let me know what they recommend.  My Aunt & Uncle have 2 springers & when they drive down from Scotland they give them some medication which makes them drowsy but the dogs then won't get back in the car for fear it's going to happen again!!!

Just reading a post about harnesses & apparently they can help too...we use one on Molly more for the safety aspect but maybe that helped with the sickness as well...

My adolescent hates the car with a vengeance.

She has hated it from day 1 and I have tried just about everything suggested to me but it makes no difference. She will now avoid walking near the car and if you lift the tailgate, well.....

My breed are quite renowned for disliking cars, I've lost count of the number of experienced people I have discussed this with, but unfortunately for me, none of them have a solution.

My older boy isn't exactly having a love affair with the car but he accepts it with something akin to resignation. Although he refuses to jump in still. It's a 2 person effort to lift him :rolleyes:

I have tried DAP sprays, little but very often journeys, R Remedy, ginger biscuits, Serene tabs, feeding in the car whilst stationary with and without engine running, in a covered crate, on back seat with harness, covering the bottom of boot with brown paper as was suggested by MM ;) Having OH sit with her for several months on all journeys, all to no avail.

She drools until she's sopping, she's always sick, on an empty stomach and on one with ginger biscs, and when she was a pup, she also used to empty her bowels and bladder as well. That was a new one on me.

She always has nice experiences at the end of the journey, lots of calm praise upon opening the boot followed by a drink.

Never had this problem with any other breed before and am absolutely stumped as to what to do to help her :(

She now weighs in at around 50 kilos and is becoming harder to lift into the car, no way is the little madam going to jump in, although, understandably she jumps out ;)

Am absolutely stumped as to what to do to help her.

It can improve :) Tara hated the car - had to be carried to it, as otherwise she just pulled in the other direction :) She also drooled a lot - never actually sick, thank goodness. When she got to about 2 she decided that she loved the car and now gets terribly excited and drags us towards it :D The drooling has also stopped :) I can't think of anything in particular that caused this change :)

Daisy

All of ours have had a problem with travel 'stress'..and have all come through the other side now perfect travellers so there is hope :)

Chloe used to be sick, despite us trying everything she would still bring something up. Kayla always drooled, excessively, I used to drive a Corsa so Chloe(who had by this point got over her travel sickness..like Daisy I don't remember us doing anything, she kind of grew out of it!) and Kayla would be on the back seats with harnesses on and I had my mam in the passenger seat with a roll of kitchen roll wiping the drool from her chops as it appeared! This went on for months so I looked on the net and found a great site(will try and find it again if anyone likes?) and we went thro lots of very short journeys(ie less than the amount of time before she started drooling) to a nearby park and played with a tennis ball. In less than 2 weeks she was effectively cured and travels perfectly, even if sometimes she is reluctant to get in the car! No more sick or drool though.

Idõ wasn't as bad as the girls, I drove him around alot when he was very little, on the passenger seat with a car harness on then in the boot when he was about 5 months and too big for my seats! He was sick a bit in the beginning but as soon as we started showing we had to drive everywhere and I've not had a problem since. It was like I drove it out of him! Last July we drove from here(North Yorks) to South Lincs then the next day to Exeter for Paignton ch sh and he was perfect the whole way, sleeping sometimes, looking out of the window others. He gets excited when I pick the car keys up as he knows it means a exciting walk, training or a show, even if it means being in the car for 3 hours +.

I believe it stems back to when we pick our puppies up, often it is a long journey which such young puppies aren't used to and is the first time they've have been away from all that is familiar to them. This must stress them, to a certain extent, and in future trips in the car, or even on site of a car, they remember the stress and this leads to sickness, drooling, etc etc. This is obviously more deep rooted in some dogs than others and will take more to get over it, but it can be done.

I personally wouldn't recommend something from the vet like a mild sedative, the dog may well be still aware where it is but cannot react, and may cause more stress next time. I have heard good things about a travel sickness tablet, lots of dog people use it but I can't remember the name, will find out. It may be worth a try if you have tried everything else :)

Hi June,
I remember my Father having some similar problems with one of his gundogs,who had to spend most of his working life travelling around in the back of a Range Rover going to and from shoots,Gamefairs etc poor thing.
   Theres some debate as to wether most dogs are Motion sick (an inner ear problem) or wether its actually anxiety/anticipation ( I understand most people believe its more commonly the latter), so I remember we spent some time ruling out which was which!
    He has (as with small kids) grown out of it now and has no problems,proving as we'd concluded it was anticipation/excitedness in his case.
We found the Flower rescue remedy to be a great help (I think its Bachs?) little yellow bottle with a dropper.
  Also we found raising his crate helped, and ensuring a gentle flow of air. I notice though that some people recommend covering the crate, so I guess you just have to find what suits..and what is the cause.
Highly recommend the rescue remedy though!
HTH
:D

I've had a couple over the years which have been woeful travellers in their early years and, whilst never getting to the point of enjoying a car journey, both went on to tolerate the experience and stop drooling or being sick.

I now use "Serene-Um" tablets 3 x the day before and again on the morning of a long journey (about 1.5 hours before setting off).  I've never used "Sea Legs" but know others report good results with them although I believe they cause drowsiness which I prefer to avoid in a stressed animal.

IME travelling in a car cage with a blanket over it helps a stressed dog settle more readily and either tablets as above or Valerian compound helps prevent motion sickness.  I never fed either of my poor travellers within 8 hours of a journey and although they always had water bowls in their car cages, found they would refuse to take it while travelling.

With luck your youngster will eventually out-grow the misery of car travel but it's important to avoid as many negative associations with cars as possible.

HTH, best wishes Teri :)   

You know I've taken all the advice you've kindly given me Teri *stamps feet & huffs* ;) but my madam is determined that none of it will apply to or pacify her.

Like you, I prefer to avoid giving anything with a sedative like effect. But will have to consider it for the other passengers in the car because I cannot stand the "YUCK, GROSS" comments that come from them when she behaves like that possessed, demonised child from Poltergeist or whatever it was called :rolleyes: :D

>You know I've taken all the advice you've kindly given me Teri

I lied :D

Seriously, She Devil's still young - my lady's turned the corner now (in a car too!) - and just after her 5th birthday :P

:rolleyes:great:rolleyes: I've only got another 4 yrs to go then. Oh you really know how to cheer me up ;) :D :D

awwww poor HairyPooch! :(
shouldnt laugh but love the projectile vomit image :D
hope the head doesnt spin around too..
has your vet been of any help? There are drugs available that dont sedate and have anti emetic properties :)

LOL, you should see mine spin round though :P

Haven't had any conventional remedies from the Vet yet HG, only a whole potion  (quite apt, considering she resembles a little witch at times :rolleyes:)  of homeopathic remedies that I only used when we had to move 500 miles last year....

I always use Sea Legs Tablets can be bought from the chemist, I have a bitch who cannot travel on long journeys and need to give her one about half an hour before we leave.  Ive been using them now for over 5 yrs and find they are excellent.

Thanks for all your replies - only just found time on the PC to retrieve them. I guess I have already tried a lot of the advice you all have given, we are just trying to achieve local journeys of around half an hour at the moment so long preparations wouldnt work - its a case of the weathers good today lets go somewhere!
I'm interested in bachs rescue remedy - is this the same one that humans buy in health shops? How do you give it to a dog?

I'm also interested in sea legs because it only has to be given half an hour before the journey (unlike the vets prescription, 2 hours before, which didnt work anyway) Again what kind of dose and how do you give it?

Sea legs 1 tab 1/2 hr before journey helps.Also massage the ears- acupressure helps as well.You can use behaviour modification over a 6 week period for a permanent cure.

Sorry hunkylad, if it was that easy I would have a well, car travelling, adjusted dog :rolleyes:

I have followed my own experiences over a 20 yr period plus those of experts and my breeders/friends.

Please do share your behaviour modification methods that will cure my girl over a period of six weeks :)

Agree HP - I think some do overcome it with patience but equally others need to grow out of it in their own time.  And hate to tell you but some simply never change despite our best endeavours.

Agree totally about not putting RR down the throat of a dog with an empty tummy - I only ever put it on the nose leather anyway - dogs often don't like the taste even when dripped onto mini toasted squares smothered in pate :rolleyes: but more importantly IMO is the fact that any bottles of it I've ever had have a glass dropper and that IMO is an accident waiting to happen with an unwilling recipient :(

regards, Teri

Yes June Bachs R/R is the same one as available in health food shops :)

My Homeopathic Vet recommended that it was used for several days before you subjected the dog to whatever it was that caused stress, although I have used it in the Morning before an Afternoon excursion ;) although I didn't really see the effect. Do be careful using it on an empty stomach as it is alcohol based and therefore can cause acidity which in turn can cause sickness. (You can also drop it on to the nose) I always prefer to feed something about 4 hrs before so that it takes the edge off any ill feeling effects.

Do bear in mind that Sea Legs causes drowsiness and depending upon what you intend to do with him/ her at the end of the journey it will have an effect :)

Of course, I can't really comment on this subject as I still haven't managed to convince my little madam that the car is a good thing :rolleyes: :D

Ive been using sea leg tablets for about 5/6 yrs now and have not found them to cause drowsiness in my dog. When I showed it never stopped my dog being placed at shows.

I'm not stating that Sea Leg tablets are a bad thing, just that I prefer to use a more natural method Marguerite :) My breeder actually recommended these to me and there is nobody that I respect more,  but they weren't my idea of getting my girl used to the car :)

Hi
I posted on this board a couple of weeks back re: my german spitz mittel she was always sick on car journeys whether it be a 5 minute or 5 hour drive.Following advice I have been using a car harness for the last couple of weeks on a twice daily basis and she has not been sick at all. we even managed a trip to the beach . Hope this helps i was really desperate as I show her and being a coated breed she was always in a mess on arrival at shows, hopefully a thing of the past now.
Angela and Lily

good to hear that you solved your problem. I use a car harness and have tried various positions in the car and it hasnt helped. It appears that different methods suit different dogs and I just have to find the one that suits mine, or wait and hope he grows out of it!!

Another thing is that some people have found success to thier pets sickness
is by getting anti static strips for their cars.

I've always had the ginger nut biscuits successful, even when it's not travel sickness.
But just sickness. Luckily for me never had any that are really travel sick.
My Mum has found the serenum tablets worked for her rescue GSD that has never travelled
in vehicles until he came to them aged 9 yo. The DAP sprays etc didn't work for Merlin.
She was also tempted to give her OH the RR to calm him down too - as he got more stressed than the dog! :D

Some animals prefer to be able to see where they are going, others prefer to be in a darkened
cage etc.

It's just trial and error to find what is the answer for your dog.

Hope you soon find the solution
Kirstine