she shakes like crazy
 

when we go for a car ride.. i cant stop her no matter what...im wondering why. is she afraid of the car? i was holding her last nite while mom drove and she shook and panted like crazy...what can i do...

I dont know what to do Chloe does this too, she pants like she has just ran a 100 mile marathon or something everytime we get in the car. She doesnt really seem to mind it though, Daisy my other one pukes everytime we get in the car. So I dont get to take them as many places as I would like because of it!

Biddy does this too. She just may need some getting used to. I was told to spend time with her in the car without driving anywhere. Then try driving around the block. Then make the trips longer and longer until she gets used to it. Good luck!

Jewels does this too but I have noticed the more car rides I have taken her on the better she has gotten about not doing it.

i take her in the car all the time... 2 weeks ago i took her to jersey about
an hour and half away.. boy that was a rough ride for me.....even if i take her around the block, the same thing happens.. ive been taking her in the car since ive had her...it just kills me to see her go through this.

car rides
 

Panting, nausea and vomiting and restlessness are all part of an anxiety attack. Some pups have inner ear distrubance when moving. One way that I have helped Maggie is to make sure she can NOT see out the window. I put her in the backseat on a familiar blankie with her favorite stuffed animal.

If I am not driving I sat back there and calm her with a low voice, and light gentle stroking.....She gradually improved. In our RV I make sure the blinds are closed so that she not see out the window.

Max, however, wants to be up high and see everything that passes outside the window.

She is getting better....we travel 9 hours from OKC to Galveston so it can be a problem.

Max and Maggie's Mom

Miko used to do this all the time when he was younger ( he even got sick a few times), and I attributed it to being stressed from just being in the car. Unfortunately, we have to travel alot, and I was worried about him but after time and time of taking him in the car, he got used to it, and now he's fine with it. Once we hit the interstate, he lays down and sleeps the whole way :) No more excessive salivating or panting...He does get antzy (sp?) when we get off the interstate and are in stop and go traffic, but it doesn't seem to bother him anymore.

Yes, that's what I would do.

Just take her in the car without starting it. Give extra yummy treats. Then get out. Repeat this until she can do it without stress. Then do that plus start the car. Don't go anywhere. Yummy treats. Stop the engine and get out. Repeat until comfortable.

You get the idea - gradually increase the duration but only as long as she is okay with it. If she starts shaking again, back up at least one step and go more slowly.

Good luck.

Cali is in a hard crate with blankets and a toy and just falls asleep until we get where we are going. My problem is she doesn't want to come out of the crate and I literally have to drag her out. When we go in a store she shakes so bad, i put her in her purse and she settles down a bit. I am trying to get her out more but she shakes so bad I worry about her.

My dog trainer said this is a sign of stress and the shaking and panting is the way small dogs deal with stress. I bet if you could take her in the car everyday even for 5 minutes, her distress would soon pass. I make my baby stay in her bag while we are in the car. I use to let her out if I was with someone else but then when it was just me - she would cry. I learned to just leave her in her carrier. good luck with your baby

Give her a bully stick to chew on. It will take her mind off of the stress and she may start associating the car with something pleasant.

Dont give up hope. I take my 3 pounder out in the boat and he used to shake terribly but he's fine now. I only get worried when he's shaking because of the cold, rain or wind. Of course it breaks my heart when he shakes when I leave for work but what can you do?

My pup was afraid to ride in the car and shook. However, even after the few rides he has gone on -- he is much improved. So - I know he'd become a veteran traveler quickly if I took him out more ---which I should do --thanks for reminding me.

Carol Jean

I'm far from an expert in this, but I've had some experience, for sure.
Not long after we first got Max....I'm trying to think how old he was when we first took our 8-9 hour drive.....but suffice it to say, he was a puppy....I'd say he was around 9 mos old...he was perfectly fine with the trip..he slept between me and dh the whole way..it was amazing. Fast forward to a few months later....he started shaking and freaking out when we went ANYWHERE in the car...I thought it was b/c of my dh's penchant for complaining and bitching constantly when he's in the car....but it seems like Max just has gotten to that "age", where they are afraid of the noises and everything else associated with the car. He shakes on short trips to restaurants, the vets...no matter where....he starts shaking as soon as he gets into the car. He's fine once you get to where you're going...and he's fine on the way back..which is kind of odd.
But let me tell you...we just had to drive 9-10 hours for Christmas....what a nightmare. Max shook, panted, and whined from the time we got into the car til we got to where we were going. We stopped several times to let him out, and he was fine out of the car...once back in the car, the shaking and panting resumed.
When we got to our destination, I knew I couldnt' deal with a return trip of the same nature, so I checked here to see what other people who had similar problems did....some said that Rescue Remedy worked for them...I made a trip to the health food store (In another town) and spent $15 on it, took it back to the hotel (thank GOD I tested it on him before we had to drive home again) gave him 1 drop and within 10 min. he was hallucinating! That lasted at least 2 hours....with him chasing his behind, licking his nose, frantically looking up at the ceiling like something was coming to get him..that could only have made a 10 hour car trip everything you've ever wanted it to be:mad: ....anyhow, I finally went to Petco and talked to a girl who worked there and she suggested something that worked pretty darned well...a tablet called "Content-um"....I will try the Rescue Remedy behind his ears while we're at home and see how it does...I gave it to him orally (I'm an RN....c'mon..that's how we give a lot of stuff), and a friend swears by it (but she's got BIG dogs....I think it really makes a difference with these little guys...I had the same problem with him when he came home after his pancreatitis episode and they had him on Metaclopromide (reglan)...he was hallucinating..so we stopped it and he instantly got better).....every dog is different, just keep that first and foremost in your mind..what works for one, may or may not work for antother, which is why I tested the rescue remedy on Max before we had to take a long drive! Good luck, and if you find anything that helps, please post it and help us all with this problem!

My Pookie looooves riding in the car, but we started by taking her to the pet store where they allow the dogs to come in on a leash if you want. So it was sort of like doggie play time for her. The pet store is only 5 mins. from our house so a short trip with a fun goal. We've had her since the first week of December and she can't get enough of car rides. When we get out the puppy purse, she dances around with glee, and then she sniffs and peers out the peep hole all the way, in anticipation of getting to see the other doggies. We've taken her to the vet as well, but it hasn't spoiled her excitement for car rides.

You might give this a try.

Lillybelle shakes and pants too. She gets really, really excited if we say, you want to go for a ride, go shopping, go to petco! and runs around and around in little circles by the door, and she runs to jump in the car. I put her on her pink pilllow, she's totally happy and excited-Once we start going for about 20min she pants and shakes, then she settles down...I just attributed it to a combination of total excitement and total nervousness all bundled together.

I know mine is afraid of the air conditioner or heater noise. She doesn't like sound when the air/heat is coming out.. She will shake up a storm.. Maybe something IN the car scares her..

[QUOTE=nvnvgirl]he starts shaking as soon as he gets into the car. He's fine once you get to where you're going...and he's fine on the way back..which is kind of odd.




Like Max, Siu Pao shakes once we get in to the car and stops if I talk to him soothingly and reassuring him. Sometimes, hubby stops to buy something at the grocery store and leave Siu Pao and I in the car and he shakes badly too eventhough I am in the car with him! He shakes when I am about to drop eardrops in to his ears or just before I go out. He never shake when we got him but it started this week and he is just reached 6 months old.

I don't think in Max's case, that it's something INSIDE the car...we don't use the heater much and we happened to be in a rental car which is much bigger than our cars (which Max also shakes in) and the heater made no noise whatsoever. I think it's more road noise and he hates it when the big trucks go by...I think having things flying by him that are bigger than him scares him. I noticed that he was really freaked out when it got dark and all the headlights making shadows really scared him.
I believe the first time we took him on a long trip, he was so mellow (which we were not only pleased by, but shocked at) b/c he was so young that he didnt' know any different and was in the lots-of-sleeping stage. Now he's more aware and tuned into what's happening. It doesn't help at all for me to try to talk soothingly to him; it makes no difference most of the time. It seems like a lot of people have very similar problems with their Yorkie and I think they're just very sensitive to so much loud noise and stimulus. I'm hoping I can find something that will be safe and effective for him, b/c I hate to fly, a lot of airlines won't allow pets in the cabin any longer and it's just such a hassle to fly anymore, so going back to see friends and family is always going to be a long trip most likely. The thought of leaving him home though seems even worse, since he's used to being with me almost all the time.

Rosi does the same, restless, panting like crazy...and i've had her in my Truck since she was 8 weeks old. When i was working i drove 30 miles one way... every day, she likes to go but her nervousness is driving me nuts, i feel soo bad for her....

I would be interested in what other people think about this situation. Of course, the obvious solution is to leave them at home. But I know in Max's case, he hates for me to be gone from him, which is the main reason I take him with me. I can't even imagine leaving him for more than several hours, like when we go away for a week (which is rare)...even when we go somewhere and we stop to go to the restroom or something, if I leave Max with my dh, Max starts whining and shaking, so the thought of leaving him with anyone doesn't appeal to me. Along with the fact, that almost everytime I've left any of my animals in someone else's care, something (bad) happens, and I'm just not really very willing to take anymore chances esp. with Max. But that's just MY story. I know Max does not even enjoy going to Petco or Petsmart...he hates being in the basket even in his carrier and whines and tries to climb out and onto me when we go there, so I have stopped taking him with me there.
Do you think it's harmful to them to be taking them in the car when they seem so scared or anxious? You would think that if you took them places freqently that they'd get used to it, but that doesn't seem to be working for us. Do you think it's a manipulative behavior, ie: "if I do this and she sees me so miserable, she won't take me anymore"? I only mention that possibility b/c I KNOW my one parrot was like that. I really would like to know what other people think and/or what they've done to accustom their Yorkies to the car (besides a carseat...that doesn't work either, and in fact, it seems to make Max even worse when he can really see what's going on). I want to do what's best for us all, but I also want to try not to make Max into a spoiled rotten little beast who is afraid of everything, you know what I mean? I'm just afraid if we don't expose him to the outside world that he'll be ill equipped to deal with any stress at all and I don't want to do that to any animal.

Scampers does the same thing. He starts shaking really bad and panting heavily. He will never be able to ride in cars without doing this. I took him time and time again with me, I actually took him in the car with me everytime I went somewhere. It didn't matter, he didn't get used to it and he never will. All my other dogs love riding in the car and are happy to go for a car ride. It is a shame Scampers won't ever be able to do this. With some dogs, no matter what you do, they won't ever get used to it.

So, are all your other dogs Yorkies also? And do you leave Scampers at home now when you go out in the car? Or do you take him along even though he shakes?


Sorry..I see now that they aren't all Yorkies, LOL..I should look before I type!

I have two yorkies, a yorkie poo, two maltese, and a cocker spaniel. All of them, even the maltese who are 12 weeks old have no problems in the car. They will lay down and go right to sleep the entire time. Just not Scampers.

I have been taking Scampers with me in the car since he was 12 weeks old, he is a year old now and has not gotten over his fear of riding in cars, I don't think he ever will. I do leave him at home more often but I still take him with me. Not nearly as often as I use to but every now and then I take him with me. I try to take him on shorter trips at the time so he isn't stressed out for so long. I just feel so bad that he is like this. He loves meeting new people and he is fine once the car is stopped. Pretty soon I might have to give him a tranqulizer for traveling long distances. Being stressed out for a long car ride is not good for their little bodies.

I really hope you have better lucky with yours than I do with Scampers. I guess some dogs will just never get used to riding in cars.:(