Travel Dogs
Our travel dog Jits has been living full time with us on board our van for two years now. He’s such a well behaved boy that it’s easy to forget all the work we put into teaching him his manners. Now that we have a new family member, a tiny chihuahua puppy named Uke, we have been focussing more on training. The travel dogs love exploring with us, and what dog wouldn’t? They get to be with us 24/7, take lots of hikes, be outdoors all the time, smell all the great smells and enjoy chewing on lots of tasty sticks.
Transitioning your house dog into a travel dog
When we got our first van we put Jitsy’s bed and his favourite toy on board. He had plenty of time to hang out in the van as we built it out. When we moved in full time he already had his space on board. For the first while he would look at us strange at night, like when are we going home? But it didn’t take long for him to realise the van was home. Now he loves being in it!
Working with boundaries
From day 1 we have been very strict with the vans sliding doorway. Even when the slide door is open Jits needs to wait for permission to go in our out. Because we change locations all the time we don’t want the dogs to run like crazy out open doors. We could be in areas with traffic or at a van show on display and in summer we have a bug screen on the door which we don’t want a dog sized hole in. We also unfortunately find a lot of broken glass at campgrounds, which we go out first and clean before letting the dogs explore, we don’t want any cut paws. This is why the slide door is a very important boundary zone.
To create the boundary for Jits we used the simple command ‘wait’ when we open doors, make Jits wait and then say ‘ok’ when he wants to exit and ‘load up’ when it’s time to get on board. After a while of using the ‘wait’ command we can open doors without saying it and Jits will naturally stay inside and give us a look when he would like to leave. With Uke joining us we are making boundaries again. Being smaller we want to keep him away from the door when it closes or opens, and we don’t want him to fall out so his boundary is the floor, he can’t go onto the step well. Again we use the ‘wait’ command, we make him wait and then we exit and come back to pick him up and let him out. We also train him by leaving him on board the van while we do something in front of the doors where he can see us, like work out or cook dinner. We can see him and when he steps down to the step well we say ‘no’ and he gets back up into the van. We are testing him more by leaving him and Jits on board with the door open while we go out of view. Start with small goals and remember to work on them consistently.
Boundaries outside can be hard for travel dogs whose ‘yard’ changes every day. When we get to a new camp we are excited to explore, so are the travel dogs! It’s important to let them enjoy the experience of new places too. Once we are in our spot for the day, have checked and cleared the area its time for the dogs to be allowed to sniff around. We take them out and show them the edge of the camp and where they should go potty. Jits is really good with this, he will stay inside the boundary we make, Uke is still small but he is learning to stay near.
For Uke to learn we have been using something with a more obvious edge, a picnic mat! We sit on the mat all together or just the travel dogs, with lots of sticks and leaves to play with and if Uke leaves the mat we say ‘on the mat’. He is learning very fast. We also play fetch with the mat as the base, both our dogs love fetch and it’s a great way to play and let them learn to come back to the mat. Eventually we won’t need to have a mat and they will both stay close.
Stick to routines
Each day in van life is different, but potty breaks and food time is always the same. Create some little routines you can do every day with your dog and they will develop good habits around them. Give rewards for being good, our boys love greenies and get one for doing their morning poop. On driving days Jits will always jump up on the passengers lap to peek out the window as we take off, after that he likes to nap on his bed.
Keeping clean
Van life has us sweeping the floors a hundred times a day, it’s just part of the life. To handle the fur in small spaces we also have a Milwaukee 12V vacuum which is super handy. Keeping the dogs themselves clean is different for each. Uke is small and he likes showering indoors with Levi. Jits uses the wash down hose at the rear of the van which also has hot water, so he’s got a luxury dog spa situation. We use Mossy Oak dog shampoo, they have a great citronella one which helps keep any bugs away from the dogs. The citronella is perfect for their adventure life, we also use the Mossy Oak citronella spray in-between baths.
To keep dog beds and seats from getting smelly Mossy Oak also has another product which is a spray and works great. Look for Mossy Oak Odour and Stain Eliminator, honestly I use this product a lot around the van. I like the smell so I’ll use it after we have cooked inside, it stops any smells getting stuck in the fabric walls of the van.
Nail clipping
Most dogs hate their nails being clipped, Uke is totally fine with it BUT from the day we got him we have been playing with his paws. If you get your dog as a puppy that’s a great thing to do, play with the paws and the teeth, that way when they grow up and you need to touch they let you. Jits was a rescue, so we didn’t get to do the puppy paws but even as a grown dog we always play with his toes to get him comfortable. Jits doesn’t like nail day but what makes easier is using a dremel, he doesn’t mind this as much and its rechargeable so great for using on the van.
Life is better with a travel dog
We couldn’t imagine taking this journey without our travel dogs. They make every day better! They give us so much love, they encourage us to get out and explore and are the best boys ever! Heres a few links below to some of their favourite things, maybe you have a good boy or girl who may like these too.
