Some people will choose to arrange for a pet sitter. Others will find a kennel for the dog to visit. Or you may choose to have the dog go with you on the road trip. If your plans involve taking the family dog on the long road trip, you may have to change the way you think about the trip. It’s a little tougher to impulsively jump into the car and start driving if the dog is going along. As shown in the accompanying infographic, planning for the five items listed here will ensure you and your pet will have a great road trip!The absolute last thing you want to have happen when taking your dog on a family road trip is some sort of digestive problem for the animal, especially if it induces vomiting, then you have a much bigger problem.  Take your dog’s regular dog food with you, and feed it as close to its normal meal time as possible to help keep its digestive system on track. Don’t introduce a new pet food while on the trip, as you really don’t know how the unknown ingredients in the dog food will affect your pet.

Should your dog get loose while on the road trip, you’ll be glad you made sure your dog had up-to-date ID tags before you left home. Make sure the dog’s collar fits snuggly too, so it can’t wiggle out of the collar while on leash, as the animal could be spooked while in an unfamiliar place during the road trip.If you’re going to be staying overnight on your road trip, you’ll want to do a little planning to find somewhere that will allow you to keep the pet in your room. Many hotels allow this now, although some limit the size of the dog. Consider a pet-friendly bed and breakfast too!Some dogs may struggle to sleep in a strange place, so bring along things that it sleeps with at home, such as a favorite toy or blanket. Bring a crate if your dog is crate-trained, and the dog can feel safe in the crate while in the car as well as while in the hotel.If you like to drive eight or 10 hours straight while on a road trip with no breaks, taking your dog on the trip is probably going to be a bad idea.

Your dog needs to get out of the car and stretch its legs every few hours at the minimum. So plan ahead for dog parks, rest stops, or other areas where you can exercise the dog for 10-20 minutes every few hours, and the trip will go much more smoothly. And if you’re going to leave the car for a long period of time, don’t leave the dog alone in the car, as it can begin suffering from heatstroke within 15 minutes on some days. Testing for Car Tolerance Many dogs love riding in the car with the family, but not all tolerate it well. If you’re unsure whether your dog likes riding in the car, take a few short trips to see how the dog performs. Problems like trembling, whimpering, and drooling can indicate a dog that is car sick and could vomit. Don’t take a long car ride before learning how your dog handles the car, or you may end up dealing with the same disgusting digestive problems I mentioned earlier! Amber is a journalist and social media manager in South California.  

She is lifelong pet lover and owner, and she will be contributing insightful articles from time to time. Thank you Amber for contributing to our blog.  I am sure many pet lovers are planning trips now, and your article will be very helpful. Our calendar is currently being sold by several of our board members, volunteers, and the order form will be at our adoptions.  If you cannot find any of these people or cannot go to the adoptions, then you can order and pay on our website through PayPal.  Make sure you make a note on your order that the payment is for the calendar.  The calendars are $12 for one calendar and $10 each if you order more than one. BOWLING FOR PETS FUNDRAISER IS FEB. 26TH 2 TO 4PM  PLEASE EMAIL US FOR A FORM TO SIGNUP YOUR TEAM OF 5 PEOPLE AT $20 EACH PERSON!! All of our fundraisers are for a good cause; to help save more lives.  Thanks to everyone who has supported us in the past. We have a day of fun and music planned for our first annual Adopt-A-Thon on Sunday, April 27, 2014. 

This event will be at the John Stiff Park gazebo area from 1-5 pm.  Come see our dogs and cats available for adoption.  The cats will be in crates and our dogs will be accompanied by their foster parent.  This will be a perfect time to get to know the dog/cat and ask the foster any questions.   The Panhandle Paws of Hope, ASPCA and the Amarillo- Panhandle Humane Society will also be attending with their available pets. Several fundraisers are scheduled for this event.  One of the Texas Panhandle Pet Savers’ goals is to keep dogs in their homes and out of the shelter. If anyone owns a pet that does not have a microchip, we will microchip your pet for $10.  This is very cheap and will help tremendously if your pet is lost.  We will also have a silent auction, t-shirt sales and a raffle.  If you are planning a vacation, remember to pamper your pet.  The raffle is for a “Pamper Me Vacation” from Le Chateau Pet Resort; The tickets are $10 and includes 3 days and 2 nights in a premium chateau suite;

television in the suite, nightly gourmet treats and cuddle time, free toy or bag of treats, spa services of massaging bath, blueberry facial, plaque cleanz treatment, blow dry, brush and nail trim. We will be selling brisket, chips and drinks for you to enjoy while you listen to music provided by local musicians; such as Andy Chase, Mike Fuller, Woody Key and Joe Ed Coffman.  These musicians will be playing individually or as a group. Make plans to attend this fun event and tell your friends.  If you have a Facebook page, please share this post with your friends by clicking on the Facebook icon below.I love people that will be gentle with me and give me time to warm up to them.  I do well with any dog, and I am willing to snuggle up with cats!  One of my special skills is being able to smile (while lying on my back)! Though I do enjoy exercising, I tend to be a mellow dog most of the time.  I would love to have a warm home with soft beds, gentle people, and plenty of treats. 

If you will give me time, I will soon be the most loyal best friend you will ever have!  Click here to read more. The Texas Panhandle Pet Saver board members want to give a special thank you to Jason Hudson for setting up our blog.  He has volunteered his time, and we appreciate it very much.  Our not for profit organization always appreciates the special talents people provide to help us succeed. We decided to add the blog to our website in order to provide better communication with our prospective adopters, volunteers and fosters. We plan to feature our dogs and cats currently available for adoption with a special write-up by the foster parent(s). We will also include adoption stories, animals needing a foster, stories about our dogs/cats needing special veterinary help, ask the expert post – which includes questions you might have for a dog trainer or veterinarian, and information about our fundraising events. Remember to check our blog frequently for posts about our available animals!