Should we take our fur babies with us?

[LilithBegonias]

Hey y'all! Long time lurker, New posting to STP. Long time outdoorsperson and traveler, but new to the actual "traveler" scene.
I need some info a/o opinions. My buddy and I are currently prepping for an upcoming trip. Sometime in the next 4-8 months we will be dropping out of life and hitting the road in a van we're reconfiguring. We plan to rubber tramp our way for at least 6 months. Probably a lot longer, eventually leaving the ride behind for periods of time hiking, traveling and camping... and probably, eeventually, bummimg around. We are budgeting to stay in a hotel or camp site once a week if we need to for the first 6 months but will be mostly camping. We both have pets that we would normally take with us to travel. 2 dogs. But since we will be in a car and won't have another place to take them except for when we have a motel room, we can't decide if we should leave them home this time? Like, what would we do with them if we both needed to go somewhere and couldn't take them with us? For example, we plan to volunteer at a lot of music festivals where we would be able to have pets at the camp site with our van but wouldn't be able to bring them inside the concert grounds during our volunteer shifts lr to see shows. Both dogs are incredibly well-trained and would be fine on their own from a discipline POV but not only would we never leave them for a long time without everything they need (including attention) it would be against the law in a lot of places to leave them unattended, especially out in the boonies where most camp sites are.

What type of resources exist for taking care of road doggies when their humans are temporarily unable to house them? If we have to, we could probably delay our trip a few months and that would allow us to be able to afford boarding in kennels, but that is not exactly ideal for a whole variety of reasons. Any tips or info would be appreciated.

<3

Jude

 

[Deleted member 2626]

Ah jeeze. Anyone?

 

[Kim Chee]

Life is full of choices. Since you chose a dog, his/her choices are pretty much up to whatever you can or can not provide. If you decide to do this or that versus caring for your animal yourself, perhaps you can just find somebody who can provide for your animal in a way that you are unable to do since you would prefer go to venues your animal is not permitted to go. Your animal is likely to be good with whatever decision you make...so maybe make it a decision you can live with as well.

p.s....I don't like picking up dog poop, so I don't have a dog.

 

[Kim Chee]

btw...welcome. There are plenty of ways to have an animal and be on the road which will be healthy for all concerned.

 

[wanderwhy]

Hi, I'm a first time poster as well and I also struggle with this issue. My partner and I travelled last summer for 2 months in our van with our dog and had no problems, aside from having to make a few sacrifices as far as not doing many things in public or hiking in wilderness areas that don't allow dogs. Our guy loved traveling and probably got more attention than he would at home since he was with us basically 24/7. I guess I suggest just really planning carefully those times you want to do something without them, because there are few opportunities. For instance, in Denver and Seattle I wanted to visit friends and properly "go out" for dinner and the bars, so we got a hotel these nights so we could leave him in the room. Obviously budgets can't handle that very often, so you really have to think about it. After the trip I now swear by motel 6. They have a no pet fee policy, and if you've ever tried finding a pet friendly hotel you know that pet fees are ridiculous, sometimes being as much as $50-$75 even in shitty motels! Any other time, like when we went grocery/supply shopping one of us stayed in the van with him. We have left him in the van within sight at night when there are absolutely no questions about the temperature being safe, which some people have problems with. People leave their dogs in tiny crates all day when they're at work (we don't) but act like a dog can't sit happily in a car alone for 20 minutes while you eat something 10 feet away...I say just know your dog and always be safe. We're planning a longer trip this year and we'll be bringing him again. good luck

 

[LilithBegonias]

Hi, I'm a first time poster as well and I also struggle with this issue. My partner and I travelled last summer for 2 months in our van with our dog and had no problems, aside from having to make a few sacrifices as far as not doing many things in public or hiking in wilderness areas that don't allow dogs. Our guy loved traveling and probably got more attention than he would at home since he was with us basically 24/7. I guess I suggest just really planning carefully those times you want to do something without them, because there are few opportunities. For instance, in Denver and Seattle I wanted to visit friends and properly "go out" for dinner and the bars, so we got a hotel these nights so we could leave him in the room. Obviously budgets can't handle that very often, so you really have to think about it. After the trip I now swear by motel 6. They have a no pet fee policy, and if you've ever tried finding a pet friendly hotel you know that pet fees are ridiculous, sometimes being as much as $50-$75 even in shitty motels! Any other time, like when we went grocery/supply shopping one of us stayed in the van with him. We have left him in the van within sight at night when there are absolutely no questions about the temperature being safe, which some people have problems with. People leave their dogs in tiny crates all day when they're at work (we don't) but act like a dog can't sit happily in a car alone for 20 minutes while you eat something 10 feet away...I say just know your dog and always be safe. We're planning a longer trip this year and we'll be bringing him again. good luck

Thanks for your story about how you made it work. It's helpful to hear those kind of details. I hadn't thought of hotel fees, for example.

 

[Dameon]

Dogs mean sacrifice. I would never leave mine behind for anything. I pass on work and social opportunities all the time just because they're not dog friendly. With the very occasional exception, my dog goes where I go.

You could volunteer different shifts and take turns being dog watcher. You can find bars with outdoor patios. You can do all kinds of things, if you consider alternatives. It's just a bit more of a pain in the ass.

Even if you have to pass on something because of your dog, you get a limited amount of time to be with your dog, and you're an idiot if you don't take advantage of every day.

 

[landpirate]

I have a dog and I rubber tramp. I say 'No' to a lot of things that I would love to do but can't because of my dog. It's a sacrifice and sometimes I feel a bit pissed off I can't do what everyone else is doing but I chose to have a dog and I wouldn't change that for the world. Maybe think about doing WWOOfing where you can have your dog with you instead of volunteering at festivals where you can't have your dog with you.

Having a vehicle as a base is really useful when you have a dog but remember in the summer it is way too hot to leave them in it. Its definitely not easy rubber tramping with a dog but I would say the positives outweigh the negatives. I hope you work something out that makes both you and your pups happy.