My husband is taking my 9wk mixed breed terrier on a 4 hour car ride on Friday. We have taken him on small trips in the car since getting him two weeks ago and he does fine. My husband plans to leave with him for the trip after work on Friday which is typically when the puppy eats. I don't want to get him too off schedule, but I am wondering if we should feed him eariler in the day and a little less to make sure he goes to the bathroom first and doesn't get car sick? We plan to have him crated in the car, stop every hour or so for him to eliminate and give him a kong with puppy paste to keep him occupied.

Since I am unable to go with them (and I am primarily responsible for puppy care:) ), I want to make sure it goes as smoothly as possible. I have already told my husband not to take him to rest stops or areas with other dogs to relieve himself. He has only had one round of shots and I am deathly afraid of him catching something.

Any suggestions on when to feed him and the best way to travel that far with a young pup would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

We took our puppy at 10 weeks old on an 7 hour trip to VA to visit family. We too crated him for most of the trip (there was 2 of us in the car). We made sure that we stayed on our potty schedule and stopped every 2 hours to let him go to the bathroom and fed him while on the road. He did quite fine with it, but it did lengthen our trip considerably.

As for the shots, that is a better question for labman or Ruby.

A number of puppies ago, I was told flat out not to use the dog exercise areas at rest stops. The dog guide school saw a few puppies with longer trips to their foster home getting parvo, while the nearby ones from the same litter didn't. Unfortunaterly, I can't make a 5 hour trip without stopping at one. When the car stoips, the puppy wakes up, and will urinate soon. What I do is carry it way out the off ramp where no sane person would take a dog, and put it down with its leash on. When it is finished, I carry it back to the car.

I have had good luck with puppies sleeping from one stop to the next. Once in awhile one will wake up restless and I make a special stop for it. Usually, I just stop at any exit, again choosing an unlikely looking area for the puppy.

Yes, feed it a little early and then walk it around before putting it in the car.

Thanks so much for the information! He is a pretty good boy and we can usually tell when he has to go so hopefully if he sleeps they will make it longer between stops.
I will make sure to tell my husband about carrying him to and from far off spots to eliminate. Great advice... thanks labman!