Friday, October 4, 2013

Ridin' Dirty

My Co-Pilot
Ray is my travelling dog. He and I have gone several places near and far without mishap and because Ray has always been such a good passenger that it’s been easy to forget that so many of my other transports have involved pukers and poopers. Yes, in my vehicle, a sturdy seat cover has been a necessity but lately with so much use, I’ve noticed it isn’t exactly waterproof anymore. The liner is pretty well cracked, and the flaps that Velcro open and shut around the seatbelts are potential leaky areas.



The big challenge in finding a reliable seat cover is that I drive a pick up so the back of the back seat is sort of stuck to the inside of the truck. Seat covers have to sit on top of the seat and can go over the head rests but can’t go over the back of the bench seat. While I mostly used the seat cover to keep Ray’s hair and possibly his muddy paws off of the seat, a good cover became critical when Julius joined the family.

He Tricked Me
The day I picked Smokey up and drove him home to his new life as Julius, he sat in the back seat fairly bewildered but enjoying a nice dried duck foot. He loaded in nicely and sat on the seat probably wondering what was happening to him. That was pretty much the only time he has been in the truck without vomiting. His next couple of rides were solo and I quickly learned the signs. First the strands of drool begin to form accompanied by a funk in the air. If I don’t pull over immediately, it would be too late.



Big Brother
When I began letting the boys ride together, things were a bit better. Julius didn’t begin to show signs of sickness with every ride, but I was able to stop and walk him more as well. This past weekend, however we had two showings of the house in the same day, and we had two vomits as well. Unfortunately, both Ray and Juli were in the back and both times I was too late to get Julius out in time. By the time I stopped the vehicle and opened the back door, Ray was ready to escape from his barfy little brother and very ready to take up the shotgun seat. The look of horror on Ray's face was just too priceless.

Another Cover
Fortunately, I’ve been throwing extra beach towels in the truck with us, so very little has soaked through our cover, but I knew we’d need something extra. The solution I came up with is that I bought a twin sized mattress cover and cut holes out to go over the head rests. That way it doesn’t have extra fabric in the back and I can tuck it nicely all the way around the seat. It’s also water/liquid repellent. The drawback is that it’s white and ugly but I put my old cover on top of it for now until I can think of something else.

What are your travelling arrangements?

9 comments:

  1. We use something similiar to this. While my pups are no longer vomiters, it is great for dirt, sand, etc.

    http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2753713

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  2. That is very similar to the one we have as well. Ours is made by Kurgo but it wasn't the hammock style. I love it but wasn't thrilled about the cracks.

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  3. You might want to try Dramamine. My pittie gets motion sickness. We give him 75mg (3pills) about 45 min before a trip and he is good to go. Just make sure its the purple one (Less Drowsy)

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  4. Oh no... a barfy dog!

    We've been lucky enough with Boomer and Dottie to not have that happen and I hope it doesn't because that might be too much for me... I just know I'd get sick too!

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  5. Have you talked to your vet about trying some Benadryl for the car sickness? It might help :)

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  6. Ugh, we know all about messy rides. Cocco doesn't vomit but he has diarrhea...all over himself. YUCK!

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  7. I love that Ray is the one that needs out of the truck when JuJuBee is the one that is sick! In our car, Melvin does great! He could travel the country and that would be his happiest time. Poor Jake is too short to see out the window so he tends to get wobbly and ill. I put him in a soft crate and for whatever reason, it gives his his bearings. I think he is able to pretend he is not the car.

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  8. Wait do comments pend waiting for approval? If so this might be a duplicate! I'm slow today... I love that Ray is the one that has to get out of the truck stat when it's JuJuBe that is sick! Melvin does great in the car, he could live on the road! Poor Jake can't see out of the window so he gets wobbly and disoriented. I put him in a soft crate and he is able to find his bearings. I think he pretends he's at home!

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