01/02/2025
National Pet Travel Safety Day serves as a reminder to keep your pet safe every time you travel with them. Whether it's a family vacation, a car ride to the park, or even to the vet, you want to make each and every trip a safe one! 🚗✈
- Keep your pet secure in the car. An unsecured pet can be a distraction for the driver which puts them, any passengers, and the pet in danger. Also, never let your pet ride in the bed of a pickup truck. This is illegal in some states and, regardless of the law, puts your pet at a high risk of injury. The best way to keep your pet secure in the car is by using a harness or putting them in a pet crate and keeping them buckled in.
- In addition to keeping them secure, avoid letting your pet ride in the passenger seat or in your lap. If the airbag deploys in an accident, it could severely injure your pet (or worse). Secured in the back seat is the safest place in the car for your pet.
- Keep them comfortable while traveling with a spacious crate. As a rule of thumb, your pet should be able to stand up, sit down, and turn around inside the crate without touching the sides. You could also place a comfort item in the crate for them to travel with to help relieve some stress.
- Prepare a travel kit ahead of time with everything your pet might need while traveling and when you reach your destination. For example, your kit might include the following: food, water, bowls, medications, a leash, waste bags, a scooper, a litter box, and extra litter.
For additional travel tips, check out this article from the AVMA: https://www.avma.org/resources-tools/pet-owners/petcare/traveling-your-pet-faq
