Road Trip with Your Dog: The Complete Packing and Safety Checklist

A road trip with your dog can be the highlight of the year, or it can be eight hours of stress followed by a sleepless night in a strange room. The difference is almost entirely preparation. Work through this list before you set off.

Essentials to pack

• Food for the whole trip, plus an extra day’s worth
• Water from home and a collapsible bowl
• Lead, collar and ID tags showing your current phone number
• Waste bags and cleaning wipes
• Any medications, plus a copy of vaccination records
• A familiar blanket and one or two known toys
• A portable kennel for rest stops and overnight stays
• A towel, which you will need at some point

Give your dog a familiar den

Unfamiliar environments unsettle dogs, and hotel rooms and relatives’ houses are full of unfamiliar everything. A portable kennel gives them one constant: a space that smells like home and behaves the same way wherever you are.

The Portable & Foldable Pet Car Dog Cage Kennel folds into a carry bag, so it takes up little room alongside the luggage. At your destination it sets up as a familiar den with a removable, washable cover.

Practice before the trip

Set the kennel up at home for a week or two before you leave. Let your dog nap in it and eat meals inside so that by departure day it is already their space rather than a new object in a strange place.

If your dog is new to crates entirely, our guide to crate training made easier covers the full process.

Safety in the car

• Keep your dog secured during the drive, never loose and never in the front seat.
• Make sure anything used in the vehicle is stable and cannot slide forward under braking.
• Never leave your dog alone in a parked car, even briefly and even with windows cracked. Interior temperatures climb dangerously fast.
• Feed lightly before travel to reduce the risk of car sickness.

Plan regular stops

Stop every two to three hours for water, a short walk and a toilet break. Keep your dog leashed at every stop, including in service areas. Unfamiliar surroundings plus a car park is exactly how dogs get lost.

At your destination

Set the kennel up in a quiet corner, away from the door and foot traffic. Walk your dog before settling in, so the first thing that happens in a new place is a positive one.

Keep routines as close to normal as you can manage. Mealtimes and bedtime at the usual hours do more for a dog’s sense of security than anything else you can offer.

Plan the return too

Overnight stops

Check in advance that your accommodation accepts dogs and ask where they prefer dogs to sleep. Set the kennel up as soon as you arrive, before unpacking anything else, so your dog has somewhere to be while the room fills with suitcases.

Because the Portable & Foldable Pet Car Dog Cage Kennel opens in a couple of minutes, that is realistic even after a long drive.

The journey home is often worse than the outbound trip, because everyone is tired. Build in the same stops, and do not try to make up time.

Pack the Portable & Foldable Pet Car Dog Cage Kennel for your next trip.