Guide to traveling with your pet

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Keeping pets has become quite popular in recent times. People who have pets will tell you that making travel plans (whether for business or pleasure) involves making the decision to bring your pet with you or leave it in the care of an animal boarding facility.

However, most pet owners become so attached to their pets that they prefer to travel with them wherever they leave them behind. This, therefore, requires preparation for a pet-friendly trip. This article provides you with a checklist of pet travel tips for this preparation.

1. Identification labels

Pets cannot be identified. Regardless of the chosen mode of travel, it is necessary to tag your pet with the proper identification before leaving. This would help ensure that your pet finds its way back to you in case she gets separated. It also helps avoid confusion among owners in cases where two pets may resemble each other.

2. Permanent Identification of the Pet

The sages say that you can never be too cautious. In addition to tagging your pet with the necessary identification tags, it is recommended that a more permanent form of identification be fitted, such as a microchip. This would also help to track your pet in case it strays or gets separated.

3. Train them while they are young

It is important that you train your pet while it is still young because it takes time for animals to fully master commands and expected behavior. You need to train them to stay calm during the trip and to respond correctly to commands. A reward system is highly recommended as it helps the lessons learned to stick longer. If you have more than one pet, it is recommended that you train them separately.

4. Protect your pet for its safety

After training the pet, most people assume that it is safe to let it roam the car/plane during travel. However, this is incorrect. Just like people, pets can be injured when the travel craft assumes a sudden movement or in the event of an accident. Therefore, it is recommended to lock up the pet to keep it safe.

5. Choose a suitable travel box

The carriers made with fabric are a good option to transport your pet. However, plastic pet carriers are preferred for their versatility, offering security for different modes of travel.

6. Pets and cars

Pets like dogs and cats are fast and agile. Therefore, they will naturally make use of these abilities when their safety is threatened. Therefore, it is important to ensure that the pet feels safe and comfortable throughout the trip.

7. Sedate the pet

Pets, like all other humans, tend to become anxious when exposed to unfamiliar surroundings. Sedating them could help ease their anxiety and save them from trauma and even accidents that result from fear.

8. Bring a Pet First Aid Kit

We can never know if or when accidents may occur. The best way to counter this is to be prepared in case they happen. Pet owners are advised to carry a pet first aid kit that includes bandages, gauze, and hydrogen peroxide in case vomiting is necessary. You should also always follow steps given by an animal health care specialist before personally treating your pet for possible toxin exposure.

9. Bring food and water for pets

Unexpected events, like train delays, are unavoidable. Therefore, during travel preparation, it is important for the pet owner to keep this in mind and pack extra food and water for the pet in case these events occur.

10. Be extremely cautious

Regardless of how well you know your pet, you can never know how they will react to new stimuli. Your cat, for example, may decide to seek shelter between your legs while you are driving after hearing a loud noise, such as a truck horn. This could result in a fatal accident and therefore it is strongly recommended that you keep your pet safe at all times during the trip.

11. Dealing with a dog during air travel

Most airlines will allow you to bring your pet into the cabin of the plane only if the pet will fit in the pet carrier under the seat. It is a requirement that the size of the pet allows it to stand and move in the carrier. You’ll also need to pack a few essentials for the dog, such as a poop bag, water bottle, collapsible bowl, recent photo of the dog, and a leash.

The above tips focus primarily on the safety and well-being of your pet while traveling. Therefore, it is important that preliminary safety precautions are observed, such as ensuring that your pet is in good physical condition to travel. It is also important to ensure that the travel destination is free of animal diseases such as rabies. By following the tips above, traveling with pets becomes less of a hassle and a more comfortable experience.

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