Travelling Home With Your New Dog

So, the day has finally arrived, you’re picking up your Rommie rescue and there is great excitement.  But, have you thought about how you are going to safely travel home with your new dog? 

We shall go through some advice and must do’s in a while, but did you know that you are actually breaking the law if your dog isn’t suitably restrained whilst you are driving?

Here is what The Highway Code says:

Rule 57

“When in a vehicle make sure dogs or other animals are suitably restrained so they cannot distract you while you are driving or injure you, or themselves if you stop quickly. A seat belt harness, pet carrier, dog cage or dog guard are ways of restraining animals in cars.”

When your dog comes off the transport they will be unsure and scared, they don’t realise that all you want to do is to shower them with love. This is why we insist that you treat your dog as if they are the worst kind of escape artist until you have them home and safe.  Even then, until you feel that they know you, you must keep them on long leads in the garden until you have built up a relationship. 

We insist that you bring a good quality slip lead with you to collect your dog. We ask that you please leave any resident dogs at home and don’t bring them to the collection. The dogs will be unloaded from the transport one at a time. This can be a lengthy process as all the travel documents, microchips etc need to be double checked. If your dog is particularly nervous then we will insist that they are taken straight to your car to keep them safe. We suggest that you bring plenty of puppy pads or towels as this is the time that dogs will often relieve themselves. Bring some water and a spillproof bowl, so you can offer your dog water on the way home or put it in the boot of the car or crate. 

Securing your dog in the car

Whether you are travelling home with your new dog from transport collection or just going out for a walk, your dog should be secured in the car. This can be either in the boot of the vehicle using a dog guard to block access to the passenger part, a crate securely fastened or by using a harness with seat belt attachment. The last thing you want is your dog being hurled forwards like a cannonball should you have to brake suddenly. 

This picture shows a dog in the boot of a car with a dog guard in place. 

Do not expect your new Romanian rescue dog to sit calmly and quietly in the boot of a car without a dog guard. If you are going to travel home with your dog in the boot they should either be secure in a crate or you must use a dog guard.  You may want to strap your dog onto the back seat of your car with a harness, but this must be attached to a seat belt attachment. We insist that if you use this method of restraint in your car, there must be a passenger sitting on the back seat next to them.  Please bear in mind that a lot of these dogs will not be used to wearing a harness or even travelling in a car, so their safety is paramount. Don’t expect them to sit quietly on the back seat of your vehicle on their own.  If you collect your dog on your own, your dog must be in the boot of the car with a dog guard or in a crate, not on the back seat on their own.

This dog is shown here on the front seat just for purposes of illustrating the seat belt attachment plus a suitable harness. As you can see, this attachment has three types of seat belt connectors to choose from. It is secured to the dog’s harness at the other end using a clip. 

If you need to open your window on the way home, please only open it slightly ajar – an open window is another potential escape route to a nervous dog who still hasn’t worked out that they are on their way to their forever home and are about to be loved more than they can ever imagine. 

We play relaxing music at our Happys shelter : we will send the link to this before the dogs travel, which we suggest you download and have ready to help settle them. You may like to play it on the journey home, it just gives them something familiar to relax them after a long drive.

Remember to take your dog straight home, don’t be tempted to stop halfway and give them a toilet break.  Get them home and safe.

Once home please remember that your dog will still be nervous and unsure, they won’t realise this is their new home you are taking them into. Make sure their slip lead (and harness if you have one) is securely on before you take them out of the car.  If you can reverse into your garden or if your dog is in a crate and can carry it straight into the house, all the better. 

And finally

All this advice applies whether you’ve picked up your dog from the transport, kennels or a foster home. Please remember that your Romanian rescue dog will be physically and emotionally exhausted when they arrive and may well have never been inside a house before. They may never have been on a led walk before. There will be all new experiences, noises, sights and emotions for your dog, so please take your time with everything and follow the advice from the 1 Dog Team. Most of all enjoy every minute with your wonderful dogs.