Dog Carrier Training
The holidays are coming up and you want to take your best friend on a family trip? Firstly, you will need to carry out training with a carrying case for your pet to get used to being inside it for long periods.
It is also necessary to check the health status of the animal. We cannot expect him to feel comfortable the first time we carry out training with the crate. So today we invite you to learn some tips to make this training easier.
Choose and prepare the shipping box
To make your pet’s vacation trip safer, whether by car, train, motorcycle or plane, you should choose a suitable carrying case. To choose well, it is essential to consider the size, weight, age, health status, among other characteristics of the animal. The shipping box must be larger than the pet’s size. Thus, inside it, he will be able to move, lie down, turn, get up and be comfortable.
Also, if traveling by car, it is important to accompany the transporter with a bowl of food and a bowl of water suitable for him. However, it is not recommended to offer food before starting the trip.
Movement and bending can cause dizziness, nausea, vomiting, flatulence and other digestive problems. It is essential to make frequent stops to provide fresh water and thus avoid dehydration.
choosing the destination
It is also essential to think about your holiday destination. We must consider that the more different the environment, the less favorable it will be for your pet to adapt. If you take it and leave it tied up or locked up, it may be preferable to leave it with someone you trust or choose a good hotel for pets. .
Tips for carrying case training
Respect the adaptation time and never force
Forcing a frightened animal to do something against its will can be very dangerous. Our pet may adopt a defensive posture when feeling threatened or insecure. This can lead to aggressive behavior. Furthermore, exposing our friend to situations of high stress favors the emergence of negative effects on his health.
We must remember that adaptation is a process. Every living being experiences it in a unique way. In order to carry out the training with the transport box properly, it is essential to have patience and respect the animal’s time.
It is necessary to stimulate our pet’s curiosity. We must reward their positive attitudes, because in this way we favor adaptation without harming the well-being of our furry.
Presentation: the first step in carrying case training
For starters, we must leave the transport box within reach of our pets. It is important to keep the door open at all times. If your pet enters the cage voluntarily and the door closes, the effect is counterproductive. In this way, it only increases the animal’s feeling of insecurity.
To encourage the animal to want to explore the inside of the box, we must make it more attractive. Like? The simplest way is to place some snacks or grains from your own feed at the entrance to the cage. We also recommend using games, praise and caresses as positive reinforcement. Thus, we stimulate the animal’s curiosity to “discover” the transport box.
Once you see that your dog is calm, we can move on to the second stage of training. We can start by placing the feeding bowl at the entrance to the cage. Progressively, we’re going to move the bowl to the middle and then to the bottom of the box.
How to close the door?
The third step in crate training is to close the door and make your dog feel calm. This will require a little more patience than the previous phases, as we must progressively close it.
Once you manage to move the door halfway, it’s time to close it. At first, we should leave it closed for just a few seconds to see our pet’s reaction. If the animal is safe and calm, we can progressively increase the time (second to second, very slowly). The goal is to keep our pet calm for five minutes inside the box.
Do not use the box as a “punishment”
In order to carry out the training with a carrying case, we must not associate this object with negative experiences or feelings. Therefore, we must never leave our animal locked in the box as a “punishment”. The transport box should be synonymous with good times, tranquility and security, as part of your home.
Finally, it should be emphasized that, before traveling with your pet, it is essential to go to the veterinarian to find out its health status and obtain an official certificate.
