Traveling with your Pets

In France, Switzerland and to a lesser extent, in Italy, doggie family members are warmly welcome in hotels and most restaurants. But in the US over the last 15 years, we have found more and more hotels and motels turning us away with our furry family member. (Restaurants have a city code situation to consider banning pets in most communities).

True, some high end establishments like San Ysidro Ranch and The Bildmore Hotel in Santa Barbara, CA, accept them and pamper them as does Doris Day's charming inn in Carmel CA, The Cypress Inn, but usually at ungodly rates while small children who pee in the beds and make an unholy noise are often housed for free!

So call me a cranky old idiot, but I have to ask why is it that in America what the Europeans do without a problem, is such a problem? Well it seems some hotel and hotel chains are begining to realize that there is an untapped market, a huge market, here and are finally doing something about it. The Los Angeles Times published an article that states there are about 30 million families in the US who travel with their dogs and need some place to stay with them. Now that must have some economic impact!

In August, 2003, the "mega-chain" of hotels, Starwood Hotels and Resorts (740 hotels world wide), decided to provide beds, food and water bowls and ID tags to their doggie guests at their Sheraton, Westin and W hotels. Now there is a good start! Only the "W" hotels charge a fee ($25) per stay. The Ritz-Carlton group also welcomes dogs, often lavishly.

Useful Pet Travel Tips

OK out there, let's prove to these folks that dogs and their owners can be responsible guests with well behaved pets and pet owners who know how to clean up after them. Let's be more like the Swiss. Try carrying a roll of those little sandwich bags (no zip locks necessary) to pick up poop. Just put your hand in it like a glove, pick up the poop and reverse the baggie. Simple, clean. Just drop it in the nearest trash can.

Also when you travel, plan on leaving no impact on the temporary space you are using. Take an old blanket for your dog. Spread it over the bed if your dog won't stay off beds. Take on old hand towel to dry and clean their feet when they come in muddy or wet after walk. Take their tummy medications if they tend to upset tummies due to changes in diet, water and often hot cars. A great site is that of Petco who has almost everything the traveling pet family needs such as the doggie "weewee pads" for puppies. These look like babies disposable diapers and work the samee way. You just lay one down and train your puppy to pee on it. It has a plasic backing and absorbant padding. The trick is to keep your dog using them as an adult.

Our dog Doogie does. So in hotels, airports and other places, he is fine with them. No mistakes, no smell, no problems.

Make sure you have with you also your pets health papers from your vet with certificates for Rabies and other vaccinations. You may never need them, but you never know.

Make sure you give your dog bottled drinking water. This may seem a luxury, but just as different water supplies can upset our own stomaches it can do the same for pets. Giardia (click here for more) is another reason. What is Giardia? Giardia is a one-celled parasite that can cause a gastrointestinal illness caused giardiasis. Where does it come from? Giardia is found in the feces of infected animals or humans. To become infected, a person must consume contaminated food or water including drinking from streams or rivers.

Stomach upsets, bowel disorders and other illnesses are hard enough to deal with at home, but on the road it is an even bigger problem. So with a little thought and preparedness, you can avoid most problems.

ALWAYS, ALWAYS keep your dog on a leash. In seconds, dogs can ingest infected feces, drink tainted water, scorf up rotten food. And they love it! Even after a 3 star meal by a famous chef!

Follow these ideas and many establishments will welcome us.

Useful Pet Travel Links

We hope these news items, tips and links help, but we want to emphasize that all of these details and topic can change overnight so please do not base your actions on this information and we cannot be held liable for any problems you may encounter in your travels based on this or any other information. This is only a guide so that you can find the sources for your own research. YOU MUST VERIFY ALL INFORMATION YOURSELVES BEFORE TRAVELING AND YOUR EXPERIENCES MAY DIFFER FROM THOSE SHOWN HERE.