You’ve decided to go away on a trip with your dog – awesome! But what you should expect that first night or two away?

Now of course I need to preface this post by acknowledging that all dogs are different. Of course they are! Some take everything as it comes, some are more nervous, others are somewhere in between. I would say that Taylor sits somewhere in between, depending on the circumstances. You may go away with your dog and experience none of the below – which would be amazing! But in case you do, I want you to feel prepared.

After traveling with Taylor for a cumulative 70 nights now, as of the date of this post, staying in a tent, cabins, a camper van and airbnb / rental homes, this is what I’ve come to expect:

1. A sleepless night! Give it time, it is all new for your pup. Different surroundings, possibly a different routine (though I encourage you to keep their normal routine as much as you can, where practical), and new sights and smells. If you’re staying in a rental property, be that a cabin in a caravan park or an airbnb, chances are there will still be smells from previous dog guests that your dog is also picking up.

Just because your dog is a good sleeper and settles quickly at home, it doesn’t necessarily mean they will be the same when you go away. Even after all the travel I’ve done with Taylor, some nights are still hit & miss – sometimes, especially if we’re in a new place, she’ll wake me up just wanting a pat and some reassurance that I’m there with her before she settles down again and goes back to sleep. Give them – and you – time to get into the groove of being away. Don’t expect everything to be perfect from the get-go.

In late 2023, Taylor and I had a few nights in a cabin in a caravan park in Paringa, South Australia. It wasn’t planned – I’d planned to be elsewhere camping in our tent – however a big storm was forecast and the weather was very hot, so we were lucky to find an available dog-friendly cabin at short notice. On one of our walks around the park we found out a greyhound was staying in the cabin next to us for the next two nights! Later that night as I took Taylor out for a bedtime wee, we ran into the dog’s owner. He mentioned that his greyhound was struggling to settle – it was the first time he’d ever taken him away. I offered to lend him a lickimat and some peanut butter to help calm his hound, to which the man replied “thanks but he’s got his toys. I don’t think we’ll be staying another night”, and they packed up and left the next day. I really felt for both of them – if it was the first time they’d ever been away, of course he might have trouble settling at night.

In contrast, one long weekend Taylor and I went away with her greyhound bestie, Mazy, and Mazy’s mum, K. Mazy had been away with her mum before, however it was usually to her grandma’s house, which she was obviously familiar with. The plan was to stay 3 nights, however after the first night when Mazy wouldn’t settle, K said that if the second night wasn’t any better, she would head home, as she didn’t get any sleep the previous night. Of course I understood, though secretly hoped that would not be the case! The second night Mazy settled, and they ended up staying for the whole 3 nights. I can’t stress enough that if you want to travel with your dog, give them time to adjust.

2. Loss of appetite. With so many new things to process at the one time, don’t be surprised if your pooch is off their food for a few meals. Even now, it is not unusual for Taylor to still go off her food for the first couple of meals when we go away for a trip. Try high-value treats to tempt them into eating. For Taylor, that is normally cheese or chicken, especially chicken nuggets on road trips!

I know some dog owners will disagree with me, however I work on the theory that so long as they’re eating something (within reason, of course – you don’t want to upset their stomachs unnecessarily) then something is better than nothing.

Don’t forget that your dog will also pick up on your emotions, so if you’re anxious or nervous about the travel, then your dog may be picking up on that as well.

3. The unexpected! It’s cliched, I know, but also true.

I’ve had two stand out unexpected moments with Taylor. The first was in July 2023 when we were staying in a beautiful park in Dimboola, Victoria (you can find out more about our stay in Dimboola here – Silo Art Trail, Victoria (Pt. 2) – A girl and her greyhound).

Not long after we’d arrived, the local Sulphur-crested Cockatoos (“cockies”) came home to roost in the nearby trees for the night. Their screeching was quite something, and went on for such a long time, even I’d had enough of it after a while! This was Taylor’s first encounter like this with cockies, and the screeching got too much for her quite quickly.

I tried to get her into her bed which was set up in the tent, however she wanted to get in the car. I’ve learnt that the car has become her safe space when we’re away on a trip (which makes me happy as that means she’s not sick of the car after our road trips!) so I popped her in the car and left the windows down. She stayed in there for quite some time and I just kept checking on her, reassuring her that she was ok and wrapping her up in a blankie as the evening started to cool. I let her decide when she was comfortable to get out, which was when she stood up when I went to check on her and she was clearly wanting to get out of the car at that point.

The second time was in October 2024 when we were camping at Nug Nug Reserve, nearly Myrtleford in the high country of Victoria. Taylor was napping under the car awning when the caretaker started to whipper-snipper the lawns. As he got closer to our camp site (though was still a reasonable distance away) Taylor decided that the noise was too much and wanted to get in the car. For context, I don’t have a lawn at home so whipper-snipping is not a sound that Tayor is familiar with.

I opened the door to let her in and once again put all the windows down. I was sitting right next to the car reading under the awning, and again just kept checking in on her to reassure her and make sure she was ok. As you can see in the pictures below, it was pretty clear when Taylor wanted to get out – she realised there was a lot happening in the reserve that she was missing out on by being in the car!

The final word…

Travelling with your dog is a wonderful opportunity to bond with them and to understand them better, which can only set you up for even more exciting adventures in the future!! It can be an amazing and rewarding experience for both of you, but I would be lying if I didn’t say that it sometimes does come with its challenges. Recognising that everything won’t be as it is at home, and that your dog won’t necessarily always behave the same way that they do when you’re at home, is, in my view, the first step to having an enjoyable trip away together.

The more you do it, the more you will learn about your dog in new and different situations, and the more exciting your adventures will become!