Traveling with their dogs is an exciting experience for many pet parents. However, it comes with its own set of challenges. According to experts, crossing new environments exposes dogs to dangers like infectious diseases, parasites, and environmental hazards. Therefore, meticulous planning and an understanding of the risks are important to ensure your dog’s safety and comfort throughout the trip. If you are also a pet parent planning to embark on a journey with your furry companion, you’ve come to the right place. In this blog, we will specifically discuss the health risks that you should consider while planning to travel with your dog.
Read on to find out more!
Health Risks to Consider Before Embarking on a Journey with Your Dog
The following are the health risks that you need to consider before taking a journey with your dog.
1. Parasitic Infestations
Parasites like fleas, ticks, and heartworms are common culprits that tend to infest dogs during trips. The risk levels vary by location and can lead to several vector-borne diseases. While ticks can transmit Lyme disease, fleas can trigger flea allergy dermatitis (FAD), and heartworms can cause heartworm disease, which can lead to severe damage to a dog’s heart, lungs, and blood vessels.
2. Infectious Diseases
Exposure to other animals during travel can increase a dog’s risk of contracting infectious diseases. Common infectious diseases dogs may contract while traveling include kennel cough and leptospirosis. Dogs generally contract these diseases from dog parks, boarding facilities, and pet-friendly hotels and resorts.
3. Gastrointestinal Disorders
Dogs often experience changes in diet, water sources, and environment while traveling. This can disrupt their digestive system, causing several gastrointestinal disorders like diarrhea, vomiting, and loss of appetite. Car trips can also trigger motion sickness in many dogs, leading to vomiting.
4. Waterborne Diseases
Open water may look idyllic during outdoor trips but may not be safe for your dog. Contact with water contaminated by the urine of infected animals can expose your dog to Leptospirosis, a serious waterborne disease that can be transmitted to humans as well. During warmer months, dogs may also be exposed to blue-green algae found in ponds and lakes, which can release toxins that are dangerous to dogs.
Pre-Travel Checklist for Dogs
Let’s look at a quick pre-travel checklist for dogs.
1. Schedule a Health Checkup
Scheduling a health checkup for your dog prior to a trip is highly recommended, as it helps ensure if they’re fit to travel. During such checkups, the veterinarian can also update your dog’s vaccinations against common diseases that your dog might be exposed to. It also gives you an opportunity to discuss concerns like motion sickness, anxiety, or existing medical conditions with your vet and receive appropriate advice or treatment. You can also obtain a health certificate from your vet stating that your dog is not suffering from any potentially contagious disease and is fit to travel.
2. Pack Important Treatments
It is crucial to pack any treatments, supplements, or remedies your dog may need during the trip. Even if your dog is not suffering from any chronic disease, you must carry treatments to combat unexpected health issues like motion sickness, digestive issues, allergies, stress, or injuries.
To address motion sickness, you can use HomeoPet Travel Anxiety and Ecovet Eco-Travel Liquid. To help manage sudden allergic reactions, you can carry Ecovet Eco-Allergy Liquid. If your furry baby is prone to digestive upsets, you should carry HomeoPet Digestive Upsets, Ecovet Eco-Diarrho Liquid and Dorwest Digestive Tablets. In case of a sudden injury, HomeoPet Healing Cream can be of great help. Most importantly, do not forget to carry an effective flea and tick preventive like Bravecto Chews, Simparica Trio, NexGard Chewables, and Frontline Plus, as dogs are highly vulnerable to parasite infestations during trips.
3. Carry Enough Food & Water
It is not advisable to change your dog’s diet while on a trip. Therefore, it is important to carry an adequate supply of their regular food to support their overall well-being and maintain their energy levels. It is also important to have fresh drinking water handy to keep your dog hydrated and reduce the risk of waterborne diseases associated with contaminated water sources.
4. Update Identification Documents
Updating your dog’s identification information before a trip can help ensure they are easily identified and reunited with you if they accidentally get separated from you. Therefore, you must make sure that your dog’s microchip and identification tags have accurate information and your updated contact details. You must also carry updated vaccination certificates and ownership documents as they can be prerequisites for airline travel, border crossings, certain accommodations and boarding facilities.
Concluding Note
Traveling with your dog can require careful planning and preparation. However, by prioritizing their overall safety and taking preventive care, you will be able to make the experience memorable for yourself and your doggo.
Having the right essentials makes traveling with your dog easier. From health products to everyday essentials, CanadaPetCare offers a wide variety of travel-friendly pet supplies to help keep your dog comfortable and cared for throughout the trip.