Kombis and Dogs

Meet Barney our 10 week old Cockapoo. Barney needs to get used to travelling in the camper particularly as he will be coming with us to the sleepover and 10 days in Cornwall this summer. Any advice about travelling with a dog would be really appreciated. Does Barney sleep in the van with us or in the awning? What's the best way travel with a dog??

Barney looks FAB

Same question here!

We've inherited an 18 month Tibetan Terrier - collected him 3 days ago so it's pandemonium in our house! Apologies for the poor picture, it's the only one I can lay my hands on right now!



WeBuyAnyCat has rejected Kang

Is that because he's not a cat?

Tallulah wrote:

Is that because he's not a cat?

Well, yeah - but it was worth a go!

We have a 4 year old cocker spaniel who absolutely loves the Kombi... As soon as we open the garage door she bolts through and sits by the Kombi crying with excitement!!
We allow her to sleep with us in the kombi which normally means between me and the missus... I get the guilt trip that the awning will be too cold for her....
We've not decided yet if she's coming to the sleepover with us yet , more peace if she stays at home with our daughter... Barney looks adorable btw...

Boris loves coming out in the van too. He sleeps in a cage in the awning unless it's too cold when he takes up most of the bed!

He seems to think he can drive though:

Here's our recent family addition: another Cockapoo 'Bumble.' He's wearing his cheeky sneaker ears in this pic. Belongs to my folks but may well be joining us on some trips.

Hopefully you get the best of both worlds with a cockapoo. Gundog friendliness and energy with a non shedding coat - just my luck I'd get them the other way round.

Absinthe wrote:

Hopefully you get the best of both worlds with a cockapoo. Gundog friendliness and energy with a non shedding coat - just my luck I'd get them the other way round.

What, a silly "lion cut" and shedding hairs

harryhornet wrote:

Meet Barney our 10 week old Cockapoo. Barney needs to get used to travelling in the camper particularly as he will be coming with us to the sleepover and 10 days in Cornwall this summer. Any advice about travelling with a dog would be really appreciated. Does Barney sleep in the van with us or in the awning? What's the best way travel with a dog?

Scooby sometimes travels with Bobby a little Yorkshire Terrier.
The owner and Bobby sit on the back seat with his favourite blanket and the odd toy.
We try to stop every hour and half or two hours for a 'wee break' and to refuel.
When camping overnight Bobby (and owner) get the Kombi and we sleep in the awning!
If Bobby needs to 'go' in the night he is let out the passenger door to prevent the sliding door noise.
Hope this might help.
Roo b Roo

It seems that Kombis and dogs make a good combo. Perhaps we should organise a dog crèche at the sleepover?!
Barney is currently having a few flatulence issues which makes me think that he is definitely 'air cooled'

Don forget you are welcome to bring dogs to the Sleepover. There is an 'exercise' area where they can do their thang!

We have Fletcher a 45kg alsation and a toy poodle called William they go everywhere with us, Fletcher curls up under the rock and roll bed no problems and you can guess where the poodle sleeps. Tim

We have a Beagle who sleeps in the van in her bed on the floor....when she's not trying to eat the entire contents of the van, us included.

Our two dogs come with us as well. They sleep in their beds on the floor at the foot of the bed. They are both small though

TimV wrote:

Don forget you are welcome to bring dogs to the Sleepover. There is an 'exercise' area where they can do their thang!

There is a K9 mix at the end this link from last year's Sleepover that illustrates the dogs that attended:

K9 Mix

Part of the fun is that we intend to take Skipper, our present german shephard with us. Danbury fitted a dog safety harness fixed by the passenger seat, and she has a bed to rest on just behind/between the seats. She really loves being by us, rather than behind a dog guard in our car.
Having said that, she did get a bit agitated on the way home today. She didn't like going over cattle grids that sound extra noisy in the van. I think she got overexcited jumping into snow on Clee Hill, just hope she is not trying to be a bad traveller.
On a completely different subject, Clee Hill Primary School must be one of the most spectacular school locations in the Country, wonderful views over the hills.

In theory our dogs sleep in the passenger footwell, but in reality they are ideal hot water bottles!

Molly, our old dog, sleeping between the seats


Poppy, our eldest, doesn't like cattle grids and unfortuately managed to get wedged behind the handbrake - thankfully we had stopped at the time!


We took our new pup, Luna, on holiday last year when she was only 9 weeks. We found a puppy pen was invaluable - you can see it in this pic:



Unfortunately by the end of the two weeks, Luna has worked out how to escape!



Enjoying a wee mid afternoon nap


Luna travels in her crate, which initially we had right behind the drivers seat, but now we put it in the 'boot' area and Poppy's bed/blanket goes next to the cage, that way the can both see out the windows

Dogs and buses definately work well together!

And you never know who they may meet

Anyone taken their dog on the ferry to France? We've got 2 weeks booked in April with the van, but in two minds whether to take our collie Bryn, or put her in the kennels. She hates kennels and doesn't mind travelling, but any pitfalls we should look out for would help with a final decision. We've never taken a dog abroad before.

We have only used Eurotunnel with Skipper and before her Rebel. We have confidence in the Eurotunnel system, and would also be interested in ferry experiences.
You do need to make sure you have the pet passport and rabies vacs all sorted of course. The paperwork is a lot simpler than it was, but you still have to meet all the regulations. For the treatment pre return to UK we have found French vets very good, but we have not met one who wants to converse in English.
France is very dog friendly. It has always been a pleasure taking them to France, but you do need to be organised.

Boris is very much part of Absinthe's krew;


Sleepover 2012


Sleepover 2013

She's coming with us! A few hours on the ferry shouldn't be a problem as she can sleep in the van. Great pics, Boris looks very much at home.   

Don't forget 'Sleepover 17' is great fun for our canine friends. The farm is in lovely countryside which is perfect for a dog walk.
Last year we organised a really successful dog show on the Sunday morning and it's all going to happen again this year.
If you've not yet booked and you have a dog, go ahead - you're all guaranteed a great time