I have a 2 yr. old female Yorkie that gets car sick. Any suggestions? Thank you.
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Yes, keep her in a dog carrier when you have to take her anywhere in the car. This might keep her calm and less likely to vomit or get ill.
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I have a dog, Jesse, a Shipoo, who gets sick every single time we take him someplace in the car. It doesn't matter how short the distance. His groomer is only 4 miles down the road, but he's vomiting before we even get there.
We hate having to leave him home every time we go on trips, but we don't like putting him through the misery of getting sick each time. Does anyone know of an effective treatment for motion sickness for dogs?
By Martie from MN
What is he in when traveling? I bought doggy car seats for mine and as soon as they were elevated and could see out the window and could focus on distant, unmoving objects, they were fine. (07/16/2010)
By Jarron
I also have a pup that gets carsick. The vet said to give her a quarter gravel. Today I tried it. She wasn't sick but cried the whole time. She gets so uptight that she is all over the place and I have to keep her tied down. She gets so hyper that she will throw up, pee, and at times have a bowel movement. I talked to the vet after and she said to give her a half gravel. She is only 12 lbs. She is a Shiranian, Shitzu and Pomeranian. Does anybody have an idea of what to do to get her to like a car ride? My car seat is covered with a pee pad and a blanket over it. (07/16/2010)
By Janet
What can I do to avoid car sickness for my small dog?
Orab from FL
Mine does the same thing just make sure he/she has not eaten or had anything to drink for some time. When Princey has a full tummy she upchucks. I make sure she has an empty tummy, also the windows are down, too. She doesn't go on long car rides though just short ones. She also likes sitting in the back seat of the car sometimes I put her in the front depending what is going on. (08/05/2008)
By Barbara
We had a carsick puppy. Thankfully that has gotten better. He's now 18 months old. Our vet said we can give the dog children's Benadryl liquid (for humans). There is a certain dosage amount per the weight of the dog. Please ask your vet for the proper amount. It acts in the same way as some of the prescription medications I see written about.
We had the same problem with our 80 pound dog. Our Vet told me to start with small car rides and get her used to the car. We would take her for a ride around the block every day when we got home from work. She actually started looking forward to it! We then slowly worked up to two and then three blocks. It helped that we also took her for longer rides to Mc Donald's for 99 cent burger. She is fine now and has no more problems. Loves to go for her rides! Good luck with you dog. (08/05/2008)
By Nancy
My sister-in-law used to have a Basset Hound that couldn't ride without getting sick. She would give him a chewable Pepto-Bismol tablet 1/2 hour before they went "on the road". It worked every time! (08/06/2008)
By Chris
I wouldn't take him in the car. Good luck.
(08/06/2008)
By Carol in PA
My Yorkie also got carsick. I give him about 4 drops of Bach Rescue Remedy about an hour before we go in the car. It works. It also works to soothe him when there is a thunderstorm. You can find it in any health food store. It is also good for human use. (08/06/2008)
By Barbara Kamm
I need help with my 5 month old pup. We do not bring him in the car a lot, and when he does he gets MAJORLY carsick. I know it is because he will not stay laying down, he moves around like a wiggly worm.
Crate train him and transport him in his crate.
Don't feed him at least 2-3 hours prior any car ride. (03/19/2008)
I had a HORSE that got "trailer sick" . it was a disaster! She'd fall over in the horse trailer. What a MESS! I was 4 month pregnant when I had to trailer her home with a friend & driver that had never been around a horse before & was terrified of horses. I'd only bought the horse several years before & didn't know she got "trailer sick". We were driving on a curvy road & had gotten only about 20 miles from my property when the truck & horse trailer started swerving all over the road.
We thought. "What the heck is going ON?" . "Are the horses (a small horse & a pony) doing strange things back there or WHAT?" So we turned around & went back 10 miles to a vet's home. (Thank God there was a veterinarian along the way!) When we tried to SLOWLY bring the horse out of the trailer, She was in a BIG hurry & did a BACK FLIP out of the trailer! Breaking the lead rope that was tied to the front of the trailer at the same time. And Me, being PG, I was afraid to get near my crazy mare!
Well, the vet saved the day. He injected my special friend with "Ace"(Whatever that is?) I think it's some kind of horse tranquilizer? Anyway it would only last just so long & we had to drive SLOWLY & carefully home (6 hours away). BOY! were we ever glad to pull into the driveway of her pasture! We didn't know if we could make it before the Ace wore off! We all lived through it! But WHAT an experience!Maybe your vet has something you could give your pet. I gave my kids a half dose of Benadryl for car sickness on long trips. It always worked & not as strong as Dramamine. I'd never give Benadryl to a pet without asking a vet first though, as (I'm sure you know) animals react differently than people to meds.
I had a cat who was always terrified to be in a car. She'd shake, pee, poop & throw-up. All at the same time! And she wouldn't stop until she was let out of the car because she was so scared. It didn't matter if she was in a carrier or not. We couldn't even bring her to the vet for her shots! Is your pet REALLY car sick, or TERRIFIED?
* To remove the smell use a half water, half vinegar solution sprayed over the area after you've cleaned it. This will remove the "barf smell". (03/19/2008)
By Cyinda
We had the same problem with our dog, and the vet prescribed Acepromazine. We give it to her half an hour before traveling, and she has been fine. It really isn't all that expensive, and since the vet sees her regularly, we didn't have to make (and pay for) an extra appointment. I think it comes to around $4 per dose for our dog. Of course, the dosage is probably based on weight, so your dog will probably need more. Even though we're on a limited income, it is well worth the cost. It does make our dog somewhat sleepy, too. She dozes while we drive and wakes up when we stop the car. (03/19/2008)
By Patty Zion
Don't feed him at least 2 hrs before your trip then I would give our dog 1/2 a gravol pill about 20 mins before the car ride. Eventually after about 1 year he is now fine in the car without any medication.
Cyndi Ontario Canada (03/20/2008)
By Cyndi
When my huge dog was a pup he was sicking the car all the time. I tried everything, and nothing did any good, including vet medication. Then I found a "people" travel sickness medication in the chemist based on ginger. Ginger is the ultimate stomach calmer, and though Tom was sick once after his first dose, he was never sick again, and now he is an adult he doesn't need anything, and adores the car.
Best of luck, regards, Leah. (03/21/2008)
By Leah Jones
I know that ginger is a safe motion sickness remedy. I have not personally tried it though. I'm sorry you are having such a rough time of it. I would be frustrated too. The best of luck to you with finding a solution that works for you. Blessings! (03/21/2008)
By velsgal
I'm sorry not to have any preventative measures, but having a couple of bread sacks stowed in the dash gives you something to stick his head down in when the retching starts! Makes cleanup so much easier.
tamak
A life long pet owner (03/22/2008)
By Judi
Your dogs motion sickness is NOT because he won't stay lying down. Motion sickness is kin to vertigo. He's disoriented because of the motion of the car. My little boy used to go to his grandparents 90 miles away & stay sick because the insurance required they travel the 90 miles again to see a doctor.
We discovered what was wrong when he started into his thing once with my sister who gave him Tacky, the dog's, motion sickness medication & cured him instantly. yep! sane stuff! Dramamine (Ask your vet about dosage).
He eventually outgrew it when he learned to drive & had to keep track of which way was up. No meds? Get up, look forward, & count cars going opposite direction... Avoid anything that adds to his not knowing which way is up... don't make him lie down, no paper bag over his head, a kennel on back seat where he faces forward, a car bucket and a roll of paper towels, kindness & understanding. Pets are people too! (03/23/2008)
By Lynn Loucks
We had the same problem for years with our dog, and tried all sorts of things. Finally a new vet gave us hydroxyzine. He takes one capsule the night before travel, and one in the morning of travel. It has worked completely-no more vomiting! (03/23/2008)
By joyce
I have a Bassett hound who gets extremely car sick no matter where we are going. I give her 1/2 a Dramamine pill 45 minutes before we go anywhere & she does awesome! (04/05/2008)
By miss grace
I know it helps to put the windows down a few inches. If he is in the back seat, put the windows down about 5 or 6 inches so he can get fresh air. This might keep him from throwing up. It always worked for my dogs. Don't open the window too much or he might jump out. Use good sense. (04/25/2008)
By Nan Corpe