Hi, Everyone, this is my first post, but, having read the lengthy discussions and debates about dogs and rv camping, I want to ask you the following: Knowing that many campers do not wish to hear barking dogs in other campsites, and recognizing that most campgrounds forbid campers from leaving their dog unattended, is there ever an occasion when you dog owners want to go out for dinner at a local restaurant and you have found a way to leave your dog with others while away? We want to bring our dog on our next trip and we intend to follow all the rules with him. It just might be nice every week or so to take part of an evening at a restaurant in a local town. Any advice?
Most dogs can be trained to wait quietly for you in your rig. We always took our late and still deeply missed Chocolate Lab, Lizzy, with us and would leave her with the blinds down and either the radio or TV on for 'company'. It was just a matter of leaving her and rewarding her for being quiet, starting with a few minutes and lengthening the time bit by bit. I will admit, though, that Lizzy was a true 'Wonder Dog' and very easy to train. We never received a single complaint about her barking while we were gone, and sometimes we'd be gone for hours. I think it helped that she was alone in the house while we were at work & the kids were at school, so she had lots of 'practice'. Now, on the other hand, we're trying to train our 8 mo old Dachshund, Crash, to wait quietly for us. It's not going quite so easily, but he's finally starting to 'get it'!! If you are at a place that forbids leaving animals unattended, even inside your rig, then your only option would be a 'doggy daycare' if there is one near where you're staying or finding a restaurant with patio eating that permits pets on the patio (pretty hard to find in the US).
Just my 2 cents.... your Rv/camper is your home, throw in a little common sense and as long as your confident your dog will not disturb your camping neighbors home, I see no problem leaving the dog in for a few hrs. That said you need to be aware of your surroundings, I've been to some popular beach area campgrounds where they heavily post they don't want dogs left in the rv's and on the opposite side I've been to some very well run country campgrounds and found dogs tied up outside the Rv's, alone (seen for a few hrs) where the dogs are perfectly quiet/content and know one says a thing...just depends where you are and who's around you. Mike
We don't currently have a dog, so I depend on the kindness of others to share theirs. Several times we've been asked by neighboring campers to look after their dog for short spans of time and MOST of the time we've said "yes". We declined with a dog we felt might be a bit too temperamental. You might consider asking other dog owners if you could do an exchange: You take care of their dog for a few hours and they take care of yours for a few. Personally, I have trust issues and wouldn't be able to leave my dog with a stranger....if I had a dog. That's just me though.
Always take the pups. They are quite and we do leave them alone. That rule is for the dog that barks the whole time the owners are away. Had that happen a couple times.
QUOTE(John S. @ Jul 19 2013, 06:40 PM) [snapback]34168[/snapback] Always take the pups. They are quite and we do leave them alone. That rule is for the dog that barks the whole time the owners are away. Had that happen a couple times. X2
I wish I had a dime for every person who swears that his dog *never* barks when he's gone......and the dog barks the entire time he's gone.
We've monitored our dog when she's been left alone in the coach via webcam, both live and motion/sound activated recording, as well as asking neighbors to call us if she causes any problems. Other than an occasional woof at a loud noise, she mostly just sleeps and gets an occasional drink of water. The only time she's been any more active than that was years ago when a young kid kept running over and banging on the side of our coach to get her to bark. A neighbor had the park manager speak to the child's mother, and that ended that. Now she's 13 years old, and her hearing has gotten pretty bad, so it takes a lot to even get a woof out of her.
We leave Miss Daisy in the RV when we go out for dinner or site seeing. I think continuity is important in keeping her quiet and calm; so when we leave her alone at home, we always turn either PBS or The Weather Channel on. I think she has come to recognize the voices and sounds of each program as familiar. We do the same when we leave her in the RV. We close the blinds and turn the AC or fans on. She has her usual bed and toys and just sleeps while we're gone. Yes, we've tested this by leaving her alone inside and going across the street to listen. After an occasional "take-me-too!!" bark as we exit, she calms down quickly and goes to sleep.
There are probably morerigs in this park where Iam with dogs than toes without. There are dogs all around me and not one of them has barked all day.
QUOTE(Dutch_12078 @ Jul 20 2013, 04:57 PM) [snapback]34185[/snapback] We've monitored our dog when she's been left alone in the coach via webcam, both live and motion/sound activated recording, as well as asking neighbors to call us if she causes any problems. Other than an occasional woof at a loud noise, she mostly just sleeps and gets an occasional drink of water. The only time she's been any more active than that was years ago when a young kid kept running over and banging on the side of our coach to get her to bark. A neighbor had the park manager speak to the child's mother, and that ended that. Now she's 13 years old, and her hearing has gotten pretty bad, so it takes a lot to even get a woof out of her. ******************** We take two dogs with us everywhere we go. We take their favorite blankets with us (from their home beds) and when we have to leave them we turn up the A/C (or heat), and turn on the radio. We close all blinds so that they don't feel the need to look out. They settle in on their FAV blankets and wait for us to return. Usually we are just out to have a quick meal, or ck out a museum. They have been excellent about being left.
QUOTE(jamarynn1 @ Jul 20 2013, 02:12 PM) [snapback]34184[/snapback] I wish I had a dime for every person who swears that his dog *never* barks when he's gone......and the dog barks the entire time he's gone. So true. "It's not our dog has to be someone else's dog."
QUOTE(Nolan @ Jul 27 2013, 01:58 PM) [snapback]34256[/snapback] So true. "It's not our dog has to be someone else's dog." ******************* LOLOL
"Don't leave dogs unattended" almost always means outside your RV but if you are unsure ask the campground. You can try a few different things if you are concerned about your dog barking while you are gone. We always close all the blinds and turn the radio on. No reason to give the dog something to see and bark at and the radio covers the smaller campground noises. Leave the dog but don't actually go anywhere. We did that the first time and the dog barked for 2-3 minutes before giving up. You can also talk to the campground host before making a reservation and explain you are going to leave your dog for the first time. If you are the friendly type talk to your neighbors as well and give them your cell#.
For the past four years my wife and I have been traveling extensively in our RV. We have stayed at RV Parks all across this country and for the most part our experiences have been pleasant. In those instances when our stays have been less than pleasant it has usually involved dogs. While most dog owners at least attempt to be responsible, many are not. They tend to think that their dogs are “special” and that they can do no wrong. They are so “adorable” that they don’t have to abide by any rules. Many people leave their dogs unattended for hours on end and assume they are quiet. These people have no problem inflicting their dogs on others, assuming that everyone shares their enthusiasm for their pets. Worse yet, when we have complained about excessive noise or dog droppings on our site we are called “Dog haters. These people are simply wrong. We like all animals, and would never intentionally harm one. We just believe that if you really love your dogs you will train them to behave. Don’t let them bark and growl at people, jump on people, stick their cold noses in people’s crotches and pick up their droppings. Is this asking too much? Does this make me a dog hater? I would like to see RV Parks keep people with pets in a separate area away from those of us without them.
We have had a few issues over the years with the dog so... She was soaked once so we left her outside for 45 minutes as we left the site, big mistake for us. We left her in the rig once while we went out, she tried to get out and ruined a screen. We now leave her in her crate when we go out and it has been OK lately as long as it is only once during the day, she does not like to go in the crate a second time unless ge are there going to bed. On an upcoming vacation we are planning day trips so we have already found someone to watch her for the week as that will be best for all. We use to like to stop at a restaurant on the way home etc but do not if we have the dog as we do not have a way to keep her cool.
We had to leave our 4 when we went to a dinner the campground was having. We just put them in their crates inside the tent. When we later went on the hayride that drove by our site, the dogs were still quiet.
