Dachshund owners please come and help me?

[Inbedbynine]

I have a LHM coming in a few weeks and just getting the last few bits. I’m unsure about what to get for the car as there seems to be a lot of options. I’m looking at the solveit seat things? Are they good? Will it fit in the middle of the back row in the car so he can sit between my kids on the way home? I’d rather he wasn’t sat in the front with me on his first journey (im a LP) but could put one dc in front if needs be.

I don’t want anything too big as he won’t get that big and don’t want to get a crate for the boot.

Also which urine destroyer thing is the best to use? Some don’t have great reviews. Should I use this if he pees on hard floor or only carpet/soft furnishings?

Anything else that is a good idea for him? This is my first pup so a little apprehensive as I want to be a good pup mum!

[Inbedbynine]

Also I take it it doesn’t matter what collar and lead he has? He needs one for puppy class

[Inbedbynine]

@shortlegoneachcorner are you able to help me here?

[Inbedbynine]

Or @chileansauvignonblanc?

[BorderlineExperimental]

I've no experience of the Solvit booster seats but it does look like they need to be used in conjunction with a proper car harness as there's just a simple attachment point. There's no use just clipping that onto a normal collar or harness as most would probably fail in the event of a collision/sudden stop.

You need to be very careful with products marketed as suitable for car travel as many don't actually afford much protection for either the dog or other occupants of the car. The Center for Pet Safety has done extensive crash testing on a lot of different products and has some great advice for choosing harnesses or carriers for use in the car.

Something else to bear in mind is that's it's not unusual for puppies to be sick on the trip to their new homes. It's a good idea to have something like old towels or plenty of kitchen roll and some plastic bags just in case.

For cleaning up accidents I've found Simple Solution products to be very effective, particularly the Urine Destroyer. It's worth using proper cleaning stuff wherever they have an accident as any lingering smell can encourage them to use the same spot again.

A couple of online resources I'd recommend are the FB group Dog Training Advice and Support and the Dachshund IVDD site. The former is run by professionals (who only advocate the use up to date, science based and force free training methods) and has a wealth of fantastic information for new puppy owners and the latter has lots of great lifestyle advice to help minimise as much as possible the risks of dachshunds developing IVDD.

[ErrolTheDragon]

I have a standard smooth haired dachshund, our second.

Ours travels in a soft crate on the rear seat. That might not work for you if you've got 2 kids in the back though. Apart from safety it helps keep the car clean. We tried a harness type thing with previous dachshund but it really didn't work with his shape.

Urine destroyers... Long time since I've needed those so don't know which is best. Do use them to thoroughly deodorise after accidents. Mop up the wee with an old cloth and put it in the garden or wherever you do want him to wee, let him sniff it there so he knows that's the right place, then try to remove the smell from the wrong places.

Re collars - dachshunds have quite streamlined heads, so are (IME) somewhat at risk of slipping their collar - obviously you don't want it too tight especially on a growing pup. So you might want to consider a harness. I wanted to get a wider whippet collar but DH thought it looked daft on a dachshund.

[Inbedbynine]

The breeder says a harness will be too big for him? So a soft crate, how does it attach to the car? Or does it literally just sit there? Is that safe?

Thanks for the tip on taking cloth out to the garden.

I’m a member of both those groups, thank you. Yes have heard about possibility of sick.... so just aload Of towels inside the crate? It’s about 45 mins from our house. I’m guessing he’s likely to toilet in there too?

[ErrolTheDragon]

Crate attachment will depend on the brand I expect - ours is bigger than what you'll be needing.

A towel or seat cover under whatever he's in is a good idea too.

[Inbedbynine]

Any suggestions of specific things I should try? He will be crate trained indoors but don’t know what to get for the car?