How to Safely Travel With Your Dog in a Car

At Family Car Deals, we know that dogs are part of the family and travelling with them is essential to everyday life. Whether it’s a trip to the vet or a family road trip, prioritising their safety and comfort is crucial.

In this guide, we'll share essential tips to ensure your furry friend's safety during family car journeys, as well as expert tips on keeping your car clean when travelling with your pup.

8 expert tips for safe dog travel

Before we get to how to keep your vehicle clean post-travel with your pup, our experts explain how you can travel safely with your dog during every journey:

1. Use a dog seat belt or harness

Invest in a high-quality dog seat belt or harness to keep your pet secure. These restraints prevent your dog from roaming the car and protect them in case of sudden stops or accidents that could put them, or others in the car, in harm's way if not properly restrained.

2. Avoid letting your dog hang out the window

While it might look fun, allowing your dog to hang their head out of the window can be dangerous. Debris and dust can cause injury, and sudden stops can result in accidents. You also must have the dog restrained, by law in the UK.

3. Use sunshades and cooling pads

Keep your dog cool and comfortable by using sunshades on windows and cooling pads in their seating area. This helps prevent overheating, especially during long journeys in warm weather.

4. Drive carefully

This goes without saying but ensure you drive carefully with your dog in the back. Driving erratically can cause them to fall over if standing and injure themselves or make them carsick.

5. Prepare your dog for travel

Start with short trips to help your dog get accustomed to the car, especially if you plan on taking long trips. Gradually increase the length of trips to build their comfort and reduce anxiety.

6. Bring familiar items

Pack your dog's favourite toys, blanket, or bed to create a familiar and comforting environment. Familiar scents can help reduce stress and make the journey more enjoyable for your dog.

7. Maintain a calm environment

Avoid loud music or sudden noises that might startle your dog. A calm environment helps keep your dog relaxed throughout the trip.

8. Plan your route with pet-friendly stops

Research and plan your route to include pet-friendly rest stops. Look for parks or rest areas where your dog can safely stretch and play during breaks.

But how can you keep your car clean, particularly if you travel regularly with your dog?

You should aim to clean your car’s interior once a month, especially if you travel with your dog

A good rule of thumb is to clean your car’s interior once a month. This includes:

• Doing a sweep through the car and removing any miscellaneous items, including dog toys. At the same time, you could always give them a wipe down as dog toys can carry harmful bacteria if not cleaned properly, which could then spread to your car surfaces.
• Wiping down all hard surfaces, including doors, centre console, dashboard and any other areas your dog might touch.
• Removing car mats to clean.
• Hoovering the floor and the seats, paying particular attention to the areas your dog travels in the vehicle - including the boot.
• Wipe down the windows, focusing on marks from your dog.
• Don’t forget places such as your cup holders, which can contain bacteria from spilt drinks and can even lead to mould if left untreated.

We also suggest upping this clean as we move into the colder, rainier months.

Germs thrive and spread in dry, cold air so take extra care when travelling with your dog from September

The closer we get to autumn and winter, the more we will see bacteria thrive. Germs can spread very easily in the dry air, meaning bacteria in your vehicle can spread from your dog to other areas, and to you.

Damp items - such as towels or a dog bed - are perfect spots for bacteria to lie in wait. Pair that with the dry air and the bacteria could spread quickly through the car.

A closer look at germs in your car

We recently swabbed five household cars to understand what kind of bacteria is living in your vehicle. Three of these cars had previously been used to transport pets – and contained up to 32,000 colony-forming units of faecal streptococci. Faecal streptococci are an indicator of faecal contamination and are commonly found in the intestines of humans and animals. It’s a low-grade pathogen, and commonly found in cars, but can cause illnesses such as urinary tract infections (UTIs) and skin irritations. So, it’s essential that you keep on top of your car’s cleaning schedule, especially if your pets are regular passengers.

How to keep bacteria at bay when travelling with your dog

That’s not to say you should never travel with your dog, far from it. However, there are several steps you can take to ensure you keep your car clean and free from bacteria.

1. Don’t forget to wipe down the car interior surface after EVERY trip with your dog because of this bacteria

As we get into rainier weather, your regular monthly clean will need to increase and we recommend wiping down the car interior surfaces after every trip with your dog.

At all times, dogs will have some form of bacteria on their paws. However, after a muddy session down the park, that bacteria can accumulate and even spread to other areas of their body, as well as your car.

Common bacteria that can live on your puppy’s paws include pseudomonas, which is a bacteria that can be spread throughout the vehicle. This can often leave your dog’s paws with a distinct corn smell.

However, if the paws are not properly cleaned, this bacteria can spread very quickly and can even cause infections that can affect the airway and urinary tract. This bacteria can also cause irritations for those with sensitive skin.

2. Always keep a towel on hand in the car to wash your dog’s paws, but bag it and wash it after one use - DON’T leave it in the car

To avoid the spread of bacteria, we recommend keeping a towel - designated for your dog - to minimise the spread or contamination of your vehicle, especially after a muddy day at the park.

However, we don’t recommend that you keep that towel in the car for your next trip. Leaving moist, damp, muddy towels in your car overnight or for several days can lead to mould spreading in that area, especially if left for a long period.

The bacteria on that towel could also spread throughout the car, putting you at risk. Not to mention, the smell won’t be pleasant when you open the car door the next day.

Instead, have a rotation of gentle, microfibre cloths - which have good absorbency - to wipe your puppy's paws after every outdoor walk or activity.

3. Check your windows for any mud splatters and keep them clean to avoid up to a £1,000 fine

After a muddy day at the park, it’s easy for mud to make its way onto your windows, especially if you have a dog shaking the mud off in the back. However, it’s essential you remove the mud immediately before driving.

You could be fined for having an obstructed view of the road, and could face three penalty points and up to a £1,000 fine if you are unable to drive properly due to mud covering the windows.

4. Limit your pooch to just one area or risk facing up to a £5,000 fine

When travelling with your pup, restraining them to one area not only keeps the rest of your vehicle clean and minimises the risk of germs spreading, but it also could see you avoiding a £5,000 fine and up to nine penalty points if you are taken to court.

Rule 57 of the Highway Code states that you should ‘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.’

5. Wipe any spillages straightaway

If you keep your dog in the boot when travelling and feed them water, make sure to wipe up any spillages immediately. Leaving them will allow the car to get damp and, if left long enough, germs to spread. This could also lead to nasty odours if you ignore spillages regularly.

Try to have a bag and microfibre cloths stored in your car which are regularly removed and cleaned to ensure that bacteria does not breed in the damp cloths.

6. Use coffee granules to remove nasty odours in your car

One good way to remove any odours from your car is to use coffee granules. Pop them safely in a container with a lid, with holes in the lid for the smell to escape. Coffee is a natural deodoriser and can help keep the vehicle fresh. However, just make sure to keep them out of reach of children and pets.

Check out our best cars for dogs or contact us to chat to one of our experts about the best vehicle for your precious pooch.