RVing with Pets
RVing with Pets
In many households, the pets are as much a part of the family as any other member. If that describes your family, you probably can’t imagine traveling without your beloved cat or dog. Luckily for RV owners, traveling with pets doesn’t have to be a big problem if you know how to set your pets up for success. Read on to learn our tips for RVing with pets and stop by Herold Trailer Sales when you need parts or services for your RV. We’re located in Indianola, Iowa, near Des Moines, and we proudly serve the areas of Clive and Ankeny, too. We carry the latest models from top brands and our team of RV experts will help you find exactly what you need.
Maintain Normal Schedule
It’s important that you maintain your normal schedule when traveling with pets. Even if you stayed home and kept everything else the same but disrupted their normal schedule, most animals will get anxious. Mix that with travel and an unfamiliar landscape and your pets might get extremely stressed out.
This is especially true with keeping exercise routines in order. Humans can usually deal with being cooped up in an RV for a ten hour day of driving, but a dog will get extremely anxious. If you don’t take your cat out of the crate and let him or her play, they’ll start to build stress. Exercise is one of the best ways to reduce anxiety in animals.
Bring Toys & Treats
Bringing along your animals’ favorite toys and treats is a great way to reduce stress. Treats are helpful when you want to reinforce good behavior. If your dog stays calm through a tense or unexpected situation, you can reward her or him with a few favorite treats. Treats can also be helpful for getting a shy and stressed out cat to come out of hiding. Toys are great for giving your animal exercise, and they also make an effective distraction during stressful times. Many dogs especially love to have their favorite stuffed animal or chew toy around to chew on when they get nervous.
Bring Food, Medicine, & Bedding
In addition to the fun stuff and the distractions, it’s important to bring the more practical things your pet needs. It’s necessary to bring plenty of their normal food because you might not be able to find the food when you’re not at home. A certain type of food may seem extremely common, but once you get out of your hometown, there’s no guarantee that you’ll be able to track more of it down. You certainly don’t want to switch your animal’s food while on the road, as that could lead to them getting extremely sick and that’s not something you want to deal with on your vacation.
You should also make sure to bring your animal’s bed, as well as any medication they might be on. Everything you can do to mimic their living conditions at home will be useful for keeping them content and relaxed.
Use the Crate & Leash
You might not like to use the crate or leash at home, but on the road, they can be extremely helpful. This is especially true when you’re actually driving. Animals should always be secured in a location that’s far from the driver to prevent driving distractions. A leash is necessary for when you get to the RV park, as there will almost certainly be several other dogs at any campground you find. Even if you think your dog is too sweet to get into a fight, you never know what the other dogs in the area are like.
If you’ve got beloved pets but are still looking for your first RV to travel with them in, come to Herold Trailer Sales. We’re located near Des Moines, Iowa, in Indianola, and we proudly serve the areas of Clive and Ankeny.