Take That Road Trip With Your Dog

Puggsley’s enormous brown eyes gaze at me, concentration unbroken, anytime he’s awake in the passenger’s seat. A little cloudier as time goes on, but never losing that rich, humanizing depth that made us fall in love with him. His left paw reaches for my right arm, prodding at it gently when he needs reassurance that I know he’s there. Soft paw pads land on the memorial tattoo of my soul rabbit, Sinnabun, his pal until we said goodbye in 2022. Puggs’ face pressed up as close as it could be beside me, sometimes his cold nose nudging my resting arm. Just like our day-to-day lives at home, he is my Velcro dog, and road tripping with him only strengthens our bond. 

His watchful eyes always let me know he’s got my back, while my affirming pats on his greying noggin let him know I’ve got his too — always. He’s not much of a navigator, but he is one heck of a right-hand man … er, pup. 

Puggs is accustomed to short trips, two-and-a-half-hour jaunts North to Wisconsin for “grammagrampahouse” time. He yowls from the back seat for a pup cup on the inevitable Dunkin stop, demanding his sugar fix as we hit the road, undoubtedly, earning a bigger reward if the person at the window finds his Puggle (Beagle/Pug) screams as charming as we do. Dunkin never lets us down. Our 2023 trip from Chicago to Nebraska was a first for us. At roughly eight hours, it was by far the longest time he’d spent in the car. This time, we were making the trip alone, just him and me, to throw a baby shower for one of my best friends. 

For a Midwesterner, eight hours is nothing — an easy, one-day adventure on the open highway. Yet, with a senior dog in tow, that journey became a two-day one to accommodate plenty of potty breaks, sniffaris, and chew toys. Everywhere we stopped, a stranger always told Puggs how adorable he was (obviously) and asked if he was having a fun time. Wearing a themed bow tie, he would look up at them, head tilted, sometimes bottom teeth showing between his parted lips, and stare in agreement. He was having the best time. The adoration of total strangers was the cherry on top for him, while the real joy came from uninterrupted time with his Mama. 

Car karaoke to my long, shuffling list of musical theater songs never fazes Puggs. In fact, he always perks up anytime I sing along to Christian Borle in Something Rotten or anything from A Strange Loop. Though on this trip, if he wasn’t nestled up near me or sleeping, his nose was high in the air, sniffing out the passing smells from the partly open passenger side window. Barking every once in a while if we slowed down and he spied a cow, bird, or the air just smelled offensive to him. God forbid another dog appear in his vicinity. He would unleash mighty yowps that would make even Horton shudder. 

I never minded. Every single thing he saw and smelled was brand new to him. This multi-state adventure was his biggest one ever, and I wanted him to enjoy every single moment. We are our pets’ whole world. Any opportunity we have to show them a little bit more of the actual world is one we should take. They don’t appreciate it in the same context that we do, but just like taking your baby to Disney World, they are memories you hold onto forever, even if they can’t recall it the same way.

See, as much as I adore traveling, leaving Puggs (and his bunny siblings, plus my spouse Kyle) for any length of time dampens the excitement. That ache only grows as 11-year-old Puggs and my 12-year-old satin rabbit Clove get older. Having elderly pets and taking time away from them to see the world feels wrong. 

Though, I do struggle to get my best pup out into the world when I’m home. Puggs, in all his human and dog-centered anxieties and fears out in the world, isn’t well-suited for many local adventures. Dogs are an ever-present reality in Chicago, especially in my neighborhood, so dog beach days are a no-go, park visits are nonexistent, and our walks are often interrupted by attempts to keep other pups away. A two-day road trip followed by several days in a new place and a two-day trip back is ideal for a pup who just wants to spend time with one of his humans. 

It feels especially important to let rescue dogs see the world. Pups who haven’t had a fair shake in life deserve everything good there is. Whether their hardships lasted a month or years, their second chance at a happy ending is our responsibility to give them. 

No one knows that better than my Puggs. He was relocated from a high-kill shelter to a safe one in Chicagoland, adopted, and then returned a few months later — all before we adopted him. His former family said he was a mean dog. A bad dog. He is neither of those things. He is the sweetest dog, an anxious dog, and one that merely wants to be loved. A dog who may not have known much love in his first three years on Earth. He is a dog that is my world, as I am his. I meet him where he is to give him glimpses at the big, wide world around him. 

His life looks different from the lives of other pups I know, though he will never stop loving a simple car ride with his humans. Eight minutes or eight hours, it makes no difference to Puggs. He’s got his people, his sniffs, and things to see as the world around him zips by. 

There are plenty of concessions you have to make to travel with your dog, especially on a road trip. You have to stop every few hours to let them move around or go potty, keep them occupied in a hotel room or the car, and alleviate any newfound anxieties they may discover while on the road. It’s an imperfect science, though one well worth studying. 

After all, if we’re lucky, our dogs get 10 or so years with us. That is only 10 of every season. They deserve every possible memory that can be made, even if, like my best pal Puggs, they are nervous pups and need a little more accommodation. Even with that extra effort, it is an incredible experience to share new horizons and adventures with your pets. 

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