Category: Travel Tips

Is cold weather travel with your pets in your future? Maybe you’re planning a winter vacation in a cold climate? Or visiting family in the great frozen north? These tips will help!

 

Why Travel In Winter With Your Pet?

Winter is a great time to travel with pets. Unless you’re visiting a ski resort, you won’t find crowds. And many dogs and cats adore playing in the snow.

But if you live in a temperate or warm climate, you may wonder what you need to do to keep your pets (and yourself) happy and safe.

There are just a few things you will need to ask yourself and prepare for before traveling with your pets in cold weather.

Is It Too Cold For Your Pet?

If your dog is large with a double coat—think huskies or German shepherds—they will probably tolerate temperatures around freezing quite well. And they will also be quite happy without protective clothing until the temperatures go below freezing.

 

But keep in mind, that every dog is an individual. And if your Newfoundland has acclimated to Texas summers, it could take time for them to adjust to a cold climate.

Smaller dogs get cold easier because they have a smaller core to warm themselves. And any dog with a thinner coat might feel the cold more. So invest in boots, warm jackets, and an extra cozy bed if you’re traveling in winter with your small or smooth-coated pup. PetMD suggests that weight, conditioning, age, and other factors contribute to determining how cold is too cold for your pet.

And some pets are especially vulnerable to cold. This includes puppies, kittens, birds, reptiles, seniors, and pregnant pets. If your pet is in one of these vulnerable groups, do not travel before checking with your vet first.

Once temperatures go below freezing, you need to think carefully about how long you’re out and about. Frostbite will harm exposed ears and naked bellies. Set an alarm on your phone to make sure you check your pet’s condition frequently during your winter adventures.

Or better yet, keep part of your own skin exposed or lightly covered. It will help you empathize with your dog. When you start to feel the cold on your skin it will remind you to check if your pet is cold too.

 

Groom Your Pet For Winter Weather

If your dog will be hiking in snow for the first time, you’ll want to groom them before you go. Long, floofy fur attract snow balls. And it’s cute—for a while. But eventually, they can pull on your dog’s skin, much like matted hair.

Dogs with fur between their pads, like golden retrievers, can also get uncomfortable snow balls between their toes.

Once they form, the only way to remove snow balls is by melting them. A wet, warm towel will help. And it won’t hurt your pup.

But a good grooming will make snow balls less likely to form in the first place. And easier to manage if they do.

READ MORE ⇒ Which Dog Boots Are Best For Your Dog?

Pack Winter Supplies

Hopefully you already have a good checklist of what to bring your pet for a trip. If not, check out our posts on what to pack for your dog or your traveling cat.

For winter travel, you might also want to add the following items (affiliate links):

• insulated coat
• quilted blanket or sleeping bag
• boots
• foot/hand warmers
• self-warming pet bed
• Musher’s Secret paw wax
• bone broth for hydration
• extra food
• extra towels

Your pet will thank you for thinking of them.

 

Cold Weather Road Trips

Solo travelers face the same issue in the winter that they do in the summer: how do you go to the bathroom when temps make it dangerous to leave your pets in the car? Once again, you will want to think ahead.

Can you leave the heater running while you make a quick pit stop? Sure, if you bring along your spare key fob! Check your owner’s manual for any security quirks that could prevent you from keeping the car warm if you have to leave your pets behind briefly.

READ MORE ⇒ Is it Illegal to Leave Your Pet Alone in the Car?

If you’re traveling with others, you might be able to take turns on your breaks.

Take advantage of a long drive to help your pets gradually adjust to the cold. Keep the inside car temperature a little cooler than usual. And wear layers so you’re comfortable as well.

Prep Your Car For Emergencies

Don’t forget to take your car in for service before your trip. The last thing you need is to deal with an engine problem in cold temps. Especially when you’re traveling with pets.

And even if it all checks out well, pack an emergency kit in your car that includes a small snow shovel and emergency blankets. A sudden snow squall in a mountain pass or an accident on the highway can cause to you become stuck unexpectedly.

 

Flying With Pets In Cold Weather

Does the thought of driving in winter weather make you reconsider a road trip? Well, you should know that airlines will not allow pets to fly in cargo if the ground temperature of any leg of your itinerary is below 45 degrees Fahrenheit (7 degrees Celsius).

If you have a small pet who can ride in a carrier under your seat in coach, you could be in luck. But remember that airlines limit the number of pets onboard. So you’ll want to make your reservations far in advance.

READ MORE ⇒ US Airline Pet Policies

Once You Arrive

Keep an eye on the weather. And change your plans if necessary. Just because locals are out and about doesn’t mean it’s a good thing for you and your pets.

If your plans involve vigorous activities like hiking or skijoring, feed your pet a little extra food to make up for the energy loss from staying warm.

 

Cold Weather Concerns

During your outings, pay attention to these specific cold weather dangers that you might not be familiar with if you live in a warmer climate:

Rock Salt

If you’re not used to freezing temperatures you may not know about ice melt. Standard rock salt (sodium chloride) can burn your pet’s paws. It looks exactly like what it is—large crystals of salt that look like rocks.

Pay attention when walking on city sidewalks. Your dog might whimper if he steps on salt and gets it stuck between his paws.

Boots can help. Or carry your pet, if possible. If neither is an option, bring wipes. And a paw wax like Musher’s Secret might also help.

Rock salt is most painful for pets when it’s actively melting ice. Once the ice is gone and the pavement is dry, you’ll still see salt. But your pet is less likely to find it painful to step on.

Pet friendly ice melt products won’t hurt your pup’s paws. They’re made with potassium chloride, a different kind of salt. They look like blueish, round pellets. If you see them, you don’t need to avoid them.

 

Frostbite

Yes, frostbite is a real danger to pets. Vulnerable areas include ears, noses, paws, and the tip of the tail. And you’ll want to keep a close eye on the bellies of low-slung dogs like dachshunds. 

What does frostbite look like? The exposed area will turn red at first. As it worsens, frostbite turns the skin gray.

If you see signs of frostbite on your pet, take action right away. Treat the frozen area in a warm bath (about 105 degrees). Then wrap your pet in a warm blanket and go immediately to an emergency vet. 

Important tip: Do not rub the injured area. It will make things worse. 

Learn more about frostbite and pets at PetMD.

Antifreeze

Antifreeze is a hazard of cold weather travel with pets. Keep an eye out for puddles in parking lots. Antifreeze tastes sweet and dogs find it hard to resist (luckily, cats are not attracted to sweet). The yellow antifreeze (propylene glycol) is highly toxic and can kill pets quickly. If your pet ingests some, call the ASPCA poison help line at (888) 426-4435 and find a local emergency vet.

If you stay in a campground with winterized RVs, look for pink antifreeze (ethylene glycol). It’s commonly used to prevent waterlines from freezing. It’s not poisonous, but I wouldn’t suggesting letting your dog ingest it. 

READ MORE ⇒ What You Should Know About Emergency Vets (before you need one

 

Cold Weather Travel With Pets Dining

Boston, New York, and Chicago offer many options for outdoor dining with pets—in the summer. And some pet friendly restaurants even offer protected patios with heaters for cool nights in the spring and fall.

But you won’t find charming bistros willing to shovel snow much less provide wait service on their pet friendly patio when the temps fall below freezing. So what are your dining options with pets in the winter?

Of course there’s the old American favorite—the drive-through fast food restaurant. But if you’re already committed to eating in the car, why not support the many local restaurants that now offer carry-out food?

You know the saying, “there’s no bad weather, just bad clothing?” Well, you can always enjoy an outdoor picnic if you’re dressed warmly enough. And tossing treats into soft snow is nature’s version of an amazing food toy. Just don’t overdo it. You don’t want your pup to get a frozen nose before they find the last morsel.

 

Of course, room service was made for snowy days after enjoying cold weather outdoor fun with your pets. It might be something to think about when making your hotel reservations!

READ MORE ⇒ Questions To Ask BEFORE Choosing A Pet Friendly Hotel

A hotel room with a kitchenette is another option. Many upscale grocery stores (Wegmans is an excellent one in the northeastern United States) sell delicious pre-made meals. They are easy to heat up in a suite hotel or vacation property.

Most accommodations don’t allow pets to stay alone. But if your pet is a good candidate for staying behind while you go to dinner, you can try to find a hotel that allows it. Or hire a local pet sitter to sit with your dog or cat while you enjoy dinner on the town.

Search for pet sitters on GoPetFriendly.com. If we know a sitter will come to your hotel or campground, we list it as an amenity. But you can always call a sitter and ask.

READ MORE ⇒ Tips For Finding A Great Pet Sitter

 

Enjoy Cold Weather Travel With Pets

If you live in southern Florida, it might sound like a lot of effort to travel with your pet to northern climes. But, like most things you have to work for, it is well worth the effort.

You will love watching your dog catching snowflakes for the first time. And what better way to introduce your kitten to their first adventures than taking them out and about on a quiet, wintry day?

Hopefully these tips will help you enjoy cold weather travel with your pets, too!

Visit our Amazon store to learn about more products we rely on to make traveling with pets easier, safer, and more fun!

The post Cold Weather Tips For Travel With Pets appeared first on GoPetFriendly.com.

There are a lot of reasons to keep your dog busy indoors! It could be the weather, an injury, or an illness that prevents you from taking a nice, long walk with your pup. Whatever the reason, these enrichment games for dogs will keep your pooches entertained until you get back to their regular routine.

Here in Canada, we use stormy winter days and long nights to invent new ways to keep our dog’s busy and having fun inside. Enrichment games for dogs can be made easily with some items you probably have laying around the house. And in just a matter of minutes, too!

Designing puzzles for your pooch to solve and making a mini indoor obstacle course can help keep your dog satisfied on those days when you just can’t get outside. A lot of the games engage their natural instincts such as searching and foraging, which they’ll think is a blast. What dog doesn’t love sniffing out some treats?!

Does Your Dog Need Enrichment Games?

Do you need to bother making enrichment games for your dog? Yes! Because mental stimulation is just as important and physical stimulation for dogs. In addition, these enrichment games for dogs could also:

• Divert your dog from destructive chewing
• Prevents boredom that can lead to ‘finding his own things to do’
• Reduce anxiety
• Decrease unnecessary barking
• Prevent cognitive decline as pets age

Just 10-20 minutes a day can give your dog’s mind the mental stimulation he craves. And you’ll get to watch him build his problem solving skills and confidence. Plus the added benefit of a joyful wagging tail.

There are a plethora of games available from your favorite pet store to choose from – I’ll let you know a few faves and handy ones we have. But before you go shopping, I’d like to share with you some DIY enrichment games for dogs you can make right now for free!

READ MORE ⇒ 11 Ways To Tire Out A Dog In A Small Space

Enrichment Games You Can Make For Your Dog

With a few supplies – some you might even save from the trash – you and your dog will be having fun together in no time.

Keep in mind that you don’t need to use treats to play these games. If your dog eats kibble, feeding him his meal as rewards in the games is an option, too!

“Egg” Hunt

Really get your pup’s mind working by teaching him to search for the magic “egg” (or “eggs”) in this enrichment game. There are two ways to design this game. The first option is to use an actual egg carton. The second way is to divide a small box into sections.

Whichever works for you, the next step is to fill the container with the paper eggs. It’s completely up to you how many of the “eggs” will have treats in them. You can make it different every time!

Keeping your dog guessing makes it more exciting for him. So, decide if he’ll be looking for one prize amongst them all, or savoring twelve!

Indoor Obstacle Course For Dogs

To create an indoor obstacle course for your dog, begin by gathering items like towels, buckets, cushions and a broom handle. The more often you make up indoor obstacle courses, the more random ideas for new obstacles will come to you.

It can always be different, making it really fun and engaging for both you and your pooch. Here are some ideas to get you building your first indoor obstacle course!

Jumps are one of the most common items you’d find in an agility course, and you can make one (or many in a row) pretty easily in your living room. The most important part to making one is to make sure your jump bar easily falls off its stand. This is so your dog will not trip if their paw knocks the bar. If you find your pup is bumping the bar, lower it until they get the hang of their jump.

Riley also likes a small teeter totter made with a plank and a few rolled towels. Then switched it up and use the plank just as a ‘walk-it’ obstacle.

Next, I added a row of buckets for Riley to weave around and a couch cushion where he could do a “down-stay.”

When I was ready to change the course I added a series of rolled towels to create a ladder effect where he can practice paw awareness by stepping cleanly over them.

Towel “Fruit” Roll Up

If you don’t mind getting some fruit juice and colors on your dog towel, you could truly make this a doggie fruit roll up game! For a cleaner game use some dry treats.

To start, lay the towel out flat, place a few treats on one end, roll a bit, and repeat until the towel is fully rolled and full of snacks.

For more difficulty, have your dog sit-stay and watch you fill the towel.

Then release your pup to snuffle out the treats. If you find you need to up the challenge of the game, tie the towel into a knot, or knot it with a second towel.

Keep an eye out to make sure chewing through the towel doesn’t become your dog’s preferred method of getting to the treats. If so, you could opt for playing the game with rolls of newspaper instead, so that shredding is okay!

Snuffle Treasure Chest

Snuffle boxes (and mats) are great enrichment games for dogs and a fun way to give your pooch a nose workout and get that tail waggin’! The search for hidden snacks is definitely one of Riley’s favorite activities.

To play this game, start with a cardboard box and some newspaper or brown packing paper that is ready for recycling. Pick a box that is the appropriate size for your dog’s height so he can snuffle all the way to the bottom. Or go for one that is big enough for him to jump right in and root around. (So cute!)

To ease your dog into this game, place treats inside the box with newspaper lightly placed on top.

From there you can begin to increase the difficulty level of the game by adding more and more paper, smaller boxes with treats inside, or bunching up balls of paper with treats in the middle. You can also add their toys, a towel “fruit” roll up, or any other safe, light-weight items you can think of to provide different sensory experiences for your pup.

Repurpose Children’s Toys

The pet store isn’t the only place to find a dog toy! The children’s toy aisle of your favorite consignment shop is another opportunity to look for fun for your dog. With a bit of practice your dog could be stacking up rings like this!

Bottle Tumbler

For this dog enrichment game you’ll be digging into your recycling bin again for a plastic beverage container. I also chose a sock that was ready for retirement to cover the bottle because I wanted a softer mouth feel for Riley.

Next, cut 1-3 holes in each side of the bottle (more holes to make the game easier). Then, drop a handful of treats into the bottle and replace the cap.

This game can be played two ways. The first is simply to place the bottle on the floor for you dog to boop around.

If your pup isn’t sure what to do at first, show them how treats fall out as you push it. Soon they will be eager to try it themselves!

To increase the challenge, string up the bottle to an appropriate nose height for your pooch. This requires more problem solving skills to retrieve the treats. If your pup is up for the challenge, it will be very entertaining for them!

As with all these games, you’ll want to decrease the difficulty if you find your dog is feeling discouraged. Only play the games your dog loves and increase the difficulty as it is appropriate for them.

Tip: Always stay with your dog to monitor how they play any enrichment games you provide. That way you can make any safety adjustments to their playing style.

Bonus – Teach Them To Help You Clean Up

Once the cardboard is shredded and toys are everywhere, continue your pup’s engagement with a clean-up ‘pawrty’. A lot of dogs actually like to have ‘jobs’ like this, so give it a try by teaching your dog to pick up items and place them in a bin.

They’ll love to see how happy their help makes you and be especially proud and confident in themselves for a task well done!

A Few Of Our Favorite Purchased Enrichment Toys For Dogs

GoPetFriendly may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below.

Toppl

Toppls, along with other styles of feeding bowls and mats are so handy for getting meal time to last longer! I think it’s pretty safe to say that most of our dogs love eating. So having something that extends their favorite activity is really nice! Riley always looks so soothed, relaxed, and blissed out when he’s working on his Toppl.

Treat Ball

Treat balls are awesome for how interactive they are, as well as their ability to promote movement. I get Riley moving around every morning with one before breakfast to wake up the body and mind. These create strong focus for their minds as they ‘hunt’ all the treats.

To keep your pup busy without frustrating you, be sure to buy a treat ball large enough that it won’t roll under your furniture!

Remember: You can also create a DIY style of this game with a plastic bottle.

Hol-ee Ball

The Hol-ee Ball doubles as a toy for fetch and a toy for mental stimulation! To make this toy into an enrichment game for your dog, roll up pages of newspaper with treats. (Like the towel game). Then wind and twist the paper through the holes.

Your pup will sniff out treats inside and begin problem solving by tugging on the paper to release the treats.

It’s really wonderful how much our dogs can benefit from making these simple games from items we’d just be tossing anyway! Now your recycling bin is a gold mine for creating fun DIY indoor enrichment games for your dog! Save up a few extra newspapers and boxes for your next stormy day.

Visit our Amazon store to learn about more products we rely on to make traveling with pets easier, safer, and more fun!

The post DIY Indoor Enrichment Games For Dogs appeared first on GoPetFriendly.com.