Celebrity
Dr Katrina Warren’s five tips for travelling safely with your dog this Easter
Plenty of pet owners are looking forward to an Easter long weekend getaway with their dogs and with a little preparation the trip can be a happy and stress free one.
Vet Dr Katrina Warren stopped by the Today show to share her tips for travelling with a pooch and there were five main takeaways.
Watch the video above.
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1. Research and preparation
”You want to do your research about where you’re going. Be careful over this Easter break because up north they’re still having paralysis ticks so you want to just prepare,” she said.
That means making sure your pet’s tick prevention is up to date and doing regular checks of your dog’s fur and skin while you’re away.
“If you’re going on a long road trip go and have a vet check first make sure you’re up to date with everything,” she added.
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2. Pack home comforts
Unless you’re a regular visitor to a holiday spot you won’t know how easy it is to get hold of your dog’s favourite food, so Dr Katrina always takes her dog Chilli’s food with them on their adventures.
A portable water bowl is also important to keep your dog hydrated on the go.
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3. Safety
If you’re planning to go swimming with your pooch Dr Katrina highly recommends taking a dog life jacket with you.
“Don’t rely on the fact that people think dogs can swim – not all dogs can swim, they have to learn to swim and a lot of dogs like little pugs and stuff will sink if they don’t have a life jacket,” she said.
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Restraining your dog in the car is also important.
“The laws vary state to state but your pet can’t be a distraction and you’re not allowed to drive with them on your lap. But a secure harness or in a crate behind a grill,” Dr Katrina said, urging pet owners to check the harness they’re using has been crash tested.
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4. Avoiding lost pets
Before heading away Dr Katrina recommends checking your microchip details are up to date so that you can easily be tracked down if your dog goes missing while away.
She also encourages ID tags with a phone number on them so pet owners can be contacted straight away without having to take the dog to a vet to scan the microchip details.
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5. Grooming products
Heading outdoors means dogs can get very dirty very quickly so Dr Katrina makes sure to have Chilli’s grooming tools on hand to brush out things like mud and sand from his fur to keep him comfortable.
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