If you have a 'difficult' dog what do you do with him when you go abroad?

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Our pup is 16 months so still an adolescent, he's lovely in many ways but also a pain in the arse at times. He can be reactive to other dogs, at times will bark at people, bikes and buses. He's nervous of screaming/shouting children. His recall is awful and be pulls on the lead.

Please don't judge us as bad owners. We've put a huge amount of time and love and energy into trying to train him, not to mention money!

We've got a holiday booked for spring 2022 and I'm already worrying about who on earth will look after him.

What have you found works for you? My parents have offered but I feel he's too much of a handful for them.

Our dpuppy was similar. Young enough not to be labelled a twat ime... Our kennels are very good - we did an overnight booking to gauge her behaviour.. She was better than at home!! Managed 2 weeks when we went away. Kennels were more than happy - suggested - they did soem training with her...
Our previous ddog was banned at 8 for extremely vicious behaviour....

Find a kennels. Speak to them. Use one with personal recommendation only op..

Thankyou, so we're not a hopeless case then?! I'm hoping that in another year we'll have made some progress!

Is it better to get them used to kennels from an early age or should we wait until he's older and (hopefully!) has his shit together?

Earlier the better I understand.. She went at 5 months. Never seen a stranger. never been touched by a stranger.. No other ddogs been near... Complete loon on lead. Never been off lead... Got her in Feb before all this Covid crap. Get your ddog used to the car. Vital in general.. Visit the kennels. The smells and noise.... Ask if they do day care /1 night stays.
Try a Halti for walks. Massive instant improvement ime.. Our dpuppy has recently calmed down at 14 months. What breed is yours? We also bought a muzzle to try. Snarling snapping teeth isn't a good look! She actually stopped with the teeth flashing on the first day!
Alternate between Halti and muzzle. She is happy with either - she goes off lead now muzzled. For my peace of mind!

We use a home-boarder , a lovely lady who looks after our 2 in her own home. She met them before she said she would have them. She has 3 dogs herself so it’s to check they get on, but if necessary she can keep the separate.
One of my dogs can be a bit ‘funny’ with others and I would prefer them not to go to a normal kennels.
Costs us £20 per night per dog but charges us £35 for the pair.

I have the same kind of dog, and I use Kennels.
I wouldn’t trust mine in a home boarding situation. I want 6foot fences, locked doors, no mixing with other dogs or children etc

The earlier the better.
My dog loves his kennels.

I’ve had boarding kennels and would be happy to take on a dog like yours to board.
I would get your dog booked in for a day or overnight stay as soon as possible to get them used to kennels.
Dogs that came to us from being young were always the best boarders and most actually enjoyed coming, dragging their owners in!

Thanks so much for all the replies and for not making me feel like a shit owner! He is lovely dog and we all love him, he's just a bit tricky.

I think we'll start with kennels and see how he gets on there first. I'll try and get him booked in for a taster.

Please please seek help op... Our ddog was 10 and we had to get a family member to stay at our house 3 years running as she was as I say banned from the kennels...oh the shame!! Glad I had sent dh to collect her and get The Talk!! Ha ha!!

Kennels. One of our dogs used to be an utter pain with unknown dogs (barking and lunging) and was strong on the lead, and we have a local kennels who were 100% happy to take him.

Kennels do vary so have a good chat to the owner. Ours used to breed dogs and has dog experience stretching back 50+ years. Our dogs all trust and like her and you can tell how much she enjoys dogs.

Santaisironingwrappingpaper We've been working with a behaviourist since he was 7 months old and this behaviour first started. I think its just his personality, I would imagine that without the behaviourist things would be much worse. I've reached the conclusion that some dogs are just wired that way. He's generally lovely and we’ve been able to tailor his environment so that he's happy and safe. I just need to find someone who can give him a bit of extra support when we're away.

Not sure where you are but I can def recommend the one we use. Def not the first one who let our Husky off lead in a local field despite strict instructions she was not to be off.... I was raging... Glad dh had collected her and not me.

We have a very dog aggressive Labrador who is now 14. We have had about four dog sitters over the 14 years staying in our house when we go away. Each one has been very experienced, come recommended and have been very happy to take him on. We have not had one issue in all this time. So I’d definitely use a dog sitter who comes recommended via word of mouth.

Kennels did not work out at all for him.

We used a dog walker who also did home boarding.
Obviously dog and her were well used to each other so this worked well.

I was going to use kennels, home boarders can’t usually separate dogs off like I would have needed mine to be.

Then he got ill and ended up on at one point 24 tablets a day... but was reactive to people other than us touching him.

We just didn’t go abroad after that, lol

My dogs aren't tricky, but ddog1 would hate kennels as he has a thing about wire mesh (he was a rescue puppy). We get a residential dog sitter as then they look after the house, dogs, cats and chickens and the dogs get to stay in their own routine and we can specify what they do

I would think your dog might have calmed down by 2022? My girl hates other dogs, we normally use family to take care of her when we are on holiday. She loves people, hates dogs!

It is hard when you cant use dog boarders but there is normally a way round.

I use a home boarder for my difficult dog. My dog has different ‘issues’ to yours though. My boy is a spoilt whippet, prone to separation anxiety but generally gets on well with other dogs. He also hates overly noisy environments (I joke that he’s on the spectrum) so would hate kennels.

We used a home boarder last time for our dog reactive lab.

I initially booked him in to a dog sitter in her home with other dogs. He was a nightmare m. We got a call to come and collect him at 9pm!!! So that’s out.

I’m thinking kennels next time as I find it stressful having someone in our house.

We have a local kennels who keep the dogs separate. I’ll try him for one night to see how he gets on.

Agree some dogs are wired like that. My dog has had two personal trainers, been on umpteen courses. Currently working with a behaviouralist...

After trying several options we no longer holiday together 🙄

Seriously though, having a friend to stay has worked best for the odd night.

Have used kennels and closed my heart for the duration.

We had a terrier like this. Lovely with us and family but awful/aggressive with strangers and other dogs. When we went on holiday, we found a kennel that were happy to take him. I phoned a few and many said he couldn’t be accepted if he was unable to mix with the other dogs. Then I found one that had a run section attached to the kennel , so he could he let out safely. Wasn’t ideal but it was a way of managing him safely and getting a holiday too.