It’s difficult to perform everyday activities when you know they cause your dog anxiety. For this reason, it’s important to socialize them to common objects, sounds, and locations when they’re young so that they are familiar with these items and less afraid of new things. When a dog is noticeably anxious in the car, it’s particularly stressful because removing the stressor is impossible. After all, you can’t avoid events like visiting the vet or moving to a new home. Fortunately, there are some car training steps you can take to try and dispel your pup’s fear of the car.
What Causes the Anxiety?
First, try to determine why your dog is anxious in the first place. Do they get sick in a moving vehicle? Are they excited or nervous in anticipation? Have they had a bad experience in the car previously, and now are scared it could happen again? Understanding the answer to this question could help you determine the correct approach to take with your dog.
As with any other training, keep your training sessions short. Dogs respond much better to short sessions than long ones.
Car Training Your Dog
Introduce your dog properly to the car and whatever equipment you have for them, such as crates or seatbelts. This will help dispel fear of unknown objects that could contribute to your dog’s anxiety.
If your dog gets nauseous and throws up, call your vet. This is a common issue that may be resolved with anti-nausea pills–an easy fix that could make your life a lot easier!
If your dog is just over-excited, it’s probably because they know that getting in the car means something really exciting, like going to a park. To help end their over-excitement (barking, panting, pacing, etc.), make a point to take boring trips in the car–drive around the block a few times, or go to the post office and back. Your pup will realize they don’t need to get over-excited about each car ride, and this knowledge will help keep them calm in the car.
On the other hand, if your dog is obviously distressed and anxious by car rides, you may have the opposite problem–they associate the car only with “bad” experiences like going to the vet or groomer. To change this, be sure to bring them to happy places like the park or to a friend’s with a dog. You’ll find your pup is much more relaxed each time you get in the car once they understand that it doesn’t always lead to a negative experience.
If your dog is nervous about the car in general or had a traumatic experience (like a fender-bender, for example) in the car, you’ll need to put in a little more effort to change their association. Bring along high-value treats, and feed them to your dog as you drive. Equipment such as crates, seat belts, or non-slip hammocks for the backseat of your car can provide some stability for your dog and make them feel safer–many pups feel more at ease when they’re not constantly needing to readjust their stance to balance in the car!
The team at Gulf Coast K9 Dog Training is here to help with any obedience or behavioral challenges you may be having with your dog – including car training. If you are in the Sarasota, Bradenton or Palmetto area, call us today.
