Camping with our dogs

Ohsirr · 03-05-2019, 03:06 PM

My wife and I have three Weimaraners. One is 11 the other is 9 and a 5 month old puppy. I have a question for everyone. We go camping with our dog which are on a leash the whole time. Our puppy likes to climb underneath the RV. What are some ideas that you use to keep your dog from crawling underneath the RV?
We’ve tried to tie them away from the RV so he doesn’t get under theRV but some campsites are just not big enough or wide enough?

Please don’t tell me to leave our dogs at home because they’re part of our family

rk911 · 03-05-2019, 03:18 PM

shorter leash
block the underside
reward training

SLOweather · 03-05-2019, 05:29 PM

We use 1 or 2 wire dog pens clipped together. If we want to have the dog contained and have the door open for her, I made a short section of wire fence (I think it is No-Climb) that fits under the coach, behind the step, and clips to the pens on each side.

blueridge-fl · 03-19-2019, 11:30 AM

Not to be contrary but what is the issue with the dog laying under the RV? Our dog does it all the time. It's the coolest spot in the campsite.

SLOweather · 03-19-2019, 01:23 PM

No issue with her under the motorhome. After 4 years, she still has a lot of street in her, (rescued street dog). She will wander off, go say Hi to a passerby, chase something etc. When we got her at about 1, we learned that she had a permanently dislocated hip and a split pelvis, possibly from a car hit. She really dislikes buses, garbage trucks, and other large vehicles. So, for our sake and hers, she is confined or leashed.

The hip has formed a false joint, so she gets around fine.

BobC · 03-19-2019, 06:38 PM

The only problem I've had with my dog going under my MH is that they can get hung up or get their restraint wrapped around things like jacks, etc. And puppies can find something to wrap around in a matter of seconds.

Clearly they need to be leashed on an appropriate length leash when outside for any reason. Folding fences work but I wouldn't trust it with large dogs like Weimaraners, no matter how well behaved they might be.

Personally, I use a flexible, plastic-covered dog cable attached to my motorhome in a way that I can easily adjust its length. Especially when he was a puppy, he could chew through a rope or soft leash in a couple of minutes. With a little creativity I'll bet you could find a place to secure him with the right length of cable so he can't get into trouble underneath.

My dog is never ever outside off-leash or off-cable and I never leave him outside alone. Too many things can go wrong, including being attacked by someone else's unleashed dog.

If you Google "RVing with dogs" or the like, you'll find lots of helpful videos and other information.

Not that it has anything to do with this post but we once met a couple at a campground who had a Great Pyrenees, an Aussie and a cat, all in an 18' TT. I asked them how they were able to do it and was told that the secret was to shuffle their feet if they got up in the middle of the night.

Meowtorhome · 03-19-2019, 07:20 PM

Check out gopetfriendly.com. They have a blog and also a facebook page. They have been fulltiming for several years and have 2 dogs that travel with them in their motorhome. They are a great source of info for traveling with your pets. I'm sure they have addressed this issue at some point. They are extremely helpful and responsive! >^..^<