Car sick puppy

[Dante's mom]

I have never had a dog or puppy that had issues with getting car sick. Dante is now 16 weeks and still gets car sick. He gets excited to go on rides but I think he has motion sickness. Any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated.


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[Fephie]

Well, I don't have any advice but I am right there with you. Mine is also 16 weeks and she gets sick often in the car. Doesn't seem to make a difference if the trips are super short either. I just try to make sure she hasn't eaten recently before getting in the car. I hope both our pups grow out of it soon!

[KZoppa]

Shasta used to get carsick. what I did was short trips to fun places like the pet stores or a park a few times a week. We'd work on obedience at the fun places and then back home. Limited her water and didn't feed her 3-4 hours before we went anywhere. It helped. She'll turn 3 in May and loves the car now. She was 12 weeks old when she came home with him. I think the last time she got carsick she was about 22 weeks old. She's excited to go for rides now and hasnt had any issues, even after several long road trips.

It may be a matter of your pup just needing to get used to the car and learn it leads to fun places and its not so bad. May just need some time to outgrow the carsickness. Keep in mind that some pups dont outgrow it but most do. Good luck! Even just sitting in the car with the car running for a few minutes and getting out and repeating a little later can help.

[valb]

It's been many years since I had a pup but there's a few
things I did that helped quite a bit.

First of all, WIDE, SLOW turns. My pup used to get sick when
daddy drove, but not when I did.
Let the pup stay as far to the front of the car as possible.
Make sure there's fresh air available, either crack a window
or vents.
Short trips to start. I did a couple blocks, went and got a
newspaper at the Quik Mart or something.
Some people try ginger snaps. Don't feed too much, but totally
empty might just get you a pool of bile.
Make it a fun thing, use your happy voice. Like KZoppa said,
just sit in it a few minutes with it running. If even that proves
to be too much, heck take a book and some treats out there
and just hang out for a bit, slowly increasing time and THEN
starting car. Don't jump ahead too fast, and return to start
if you have a problem.

Getting some age on your pup is probably what will help the
most.

Good luck!

[Dante's mom]

Thank you for the advice. I am hoping he will out grow it =)


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[Magwart]

My last dog grew out of it. My current dog likely will not--because he's blind, and already at least 3-4 y.o. We're learning to deal with it.

He is miserable in the car. It's so sad. We don't feed him before trips, and that helps, but even with an empty tummy, he'll drool excessively (all over himself, actually). He shuts down and won't move. It's heart-breaking.

There is a (fairly expensive) canine motion sickness prescription RX called--I think it's called Cerena.

There's also music that's supposed to help -- though I haven't tried it (yet)--it's on my list of things to download before our next trip: Through a Dog's Ear - Using music and sound to improve the lives of dogs...*and*their people!

I'm also going to try Bach's Rescue Remedy.

Here's a good article about things to consider:
Natural Aids for Motion Sickness

[arby665]

We once had a pup who we had no idea would get car sick. In fact, I've never before or after seen a dog get car sick. We just happened to be making a long trip back to OH for the holidays. We got about 100 miles away from home when it started. I called the vet and they told me she could have Dramamine but it was too late to give it to her as she would just throw that up too. So, we had to deal with the puking for the entire 10 hour drive. Unfortunately it was also the first time my daughter got car sick. It was a terrible drive! Thankfully we were staying with the in-laws and were able to wash everything once we got there. It was a nightmare and a complete mess. We gave her the Dramamine on the way home and she did great. The daughter and dog slept most of the way home. I would call the vet and ask about the dosage.

[Dante's mom]

Thank you for the links. I am so sorry for your guy. I am going to try the music too. He is in that land shark phase and during the holidays when the nutcracker would be on he would just mellow out. Maybe it will work in the car too.


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[JeanKBBMMMAAN]

This does not have the good desensitization information - which I would highly recommend - but my post lists a ton of things you can try:
Do I have a serious problem??

The Sick Dog Blog | Dog Desensitization Training I am a carsick person - it is really an awful feeling! Using Desensitization Techniques to Treat Car Sickness in Dogs - Yahoo! Voices - voices.yahoo.com

Good luck - it seems like most dogs outgrow it. Mine still needs Cerenia, but has progressed to being able to go for very short drives without it. When I see the lip smacking start, we get on home fast! Or...as fast as I can drive with him!

[Fephie]

Originally Posted by Magwart

My last dog grew out of it. My current dog likely will not--because he's blind, and already at least 3-4 y.o. We're learning to deal with it.

He is miserable in the car. It's so sad. We don't feed him before trips, and that helps, but even with an empty tummy, he'll drool excessively (all over himself, actually). He shuts down and won't move. It's heart-breaking.

There is a (fairly expensive) canine motion sickness prescription RX called--I think it's called Cerena.

There's also music that's supposed to help -- though I haven't tried it (yet)--it's on my list of things to download before our next trip: Through a Dog's Ear - Using music and sound to improve the lives of dogs...*and*their people!

I'm also going to try Bach's Rescue Remedy.

Here's a good article about things to consider:
Natural Aids for Motion Sickness

You can give rescue remedy to a puppy!? I love that stuff! I'm not sure it will help our pup because she doesn't seem to be stressed in the car. Worth a try though, I already have it.