Hi everyone

Hope you can help.

We have a 12 wk setter puppy who every time she gets in the car she is very sick. The day we brought her home which was only 5 mins from our house she was sick. Then each trip down to the vets for jabs etc she was very sick. Today we decided to take her in the car on a 5 min journey to pick our son up from after school club - so she could see being in the car and going places can be fun, she was very sick on the way there and then pooed and was sick on the way back - she gets in such a state, its so sad to see her like this.

Any ideas? Is this normal for a puppy being new to travelling??? Should we do it another way. I just don,t want her to be so scared she won't go near the car, as we want to be able to take her with us on camping week ends.

Puppy Love xx

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And they called it.......Puppy Love xxx

The only successful way I have found is taking them in the car every day, just round the block or up the road, so just a minute or two at a time, gradually building up.

Sorry I meant to add lots of pups are very car sick, thats why I ensure any pups we breed are regularly driven round from five weeks, so their new owners never have any problems.

Try a half a ginger biscuit before travelling it may just settle her tummy, or do you have a crate sometimes they feel safer travelling in a crate as they have less room to move/fall around in, also put her in the car without travelling and give her a couple of treats whilst sat in the car sit on the back of the car with her and then take her out and lots of praise.

Good luck

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Small enough to bath in the sink

this is normal behaviour for a lot of pups and nothing to worry about

my mother recently bought a new pup and on the way home he whined and howled the whole time and was sick 3 times, she took him out in the car every day for short trips as Jenny said abuve,
she also brought him to my house which is only 5 min car ride away so he had a nice play with my dogs before he weny home so it would be a positive experience for him, after a while he stopped being sick and is now quiet in the car.

Thanks so much for the info

I will do as you have all said and get her in the car just to sit and look around, then later this afternoon I will put her in again and go just a few mins down the road and then off for a nice walk and gradually build up the time - we are suppose to be going to our first ring craft class next Wednesday but its about 15 miles away so I will just have to see how she goes over the next few days.

Tashi - I will get some ginger buiscuts and try that too.

Thanks again
Puppy Love x

__________________
And they called it.......Puppy Love xxx

When cassie was a pup she was also very car sick but has grown out of it. we recently took her to skegness for the day which is about 2 hours away and she was fine, when she was a pup you couldnt get off the street without her being sick.

When we brought Jet home he was 10 weeks and very sick all the way , every time we took him out he was also very sick, we did the ginger biscuit it has to be real ginger in it though that seemed to help , then we took him very short rides with a walk at end of trip then back into car and home as he loved the walks he started to enjoy the car rides so we went longer , he stopped being sick after about two weeks and loves the car now, but i know its not nice at all as we were stopping more than driving to clean it up, good luck im sure he will be fine soon.

Hi again
Still trying our best to get Tilly to enjoy being in the car. Since all your replies I have tried most things. First we had the ginger biscuit - no change. Also been sitting her in the car and playing with toys then taking her for a walk - each day taking things a little further like starting the car but still did not move the car. Then progressed to 3 mins up the road to a great walking area with forest and a lake at the bottom - we all had a great time but on the way back home she was dripping everywhere - no sick but very nervous. We have had her in the boot, we also bought a car harness, we tried her in the front foot well next to me but she throw up all over my lap. Our latest attempt today was in a crate in the boot (I have been trying to de-sensitize her by again sitting in with her then starting the car but not moving) we prepared ourselves for all the sick and took her off about 10 miles to a fantastic beach, she was very sick and was shaking by the time we got there (oh I had spoken to the vet and they had recommended Scullcap and Valerian which she has also had the last few trips) but she had a really wonderful time on the beach running off the lead, playing with other dogs - you could see she was having a great time. Back to the car and we had the usual performance - not keen to get in, then her mouth dripped loads, she did seem to settle down for a while as she was tired, sick only once. We praised her when we got home but she did appear really scared and ran away into another room when my husband spoke to her, then she did the same to me. After 5 mins she had calmed down but this is scaring me - its really putting me off doing this to her.

Do you all really think we should just keep trying and she will calm down in time. I hate upsetting her like this even though she had such a wonderful time It upsets me too to see her shaking.

Puppy Love xx

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And they called it.......Puppy Love xxx

Your doing all the right things but if you dont get her used to it you,l be held to ransom with where you can go .some dogs are never great no matter how much you try some just need to get over it , did you say she is a red setter ? if she is then the breed is generally a little nervy and take lots of calm methods to train them well or you,l end up with a nutter that jumps at anything . keep going honest it will get better baybe try putting a blanket over the crate so she cannot see out as this will reduce the motion that they experience as they cannot watch the world go rushing by making the sickness worse a lot of it will just be anxiety you couls also use rescue remedy a natural spray on the tongue to calm her . Good Luck
Andrea