Lab puppy just hates the car

[SoManyFidgetToys]

Any advice? Lab puppy (4 months) just hates the car. Even if one of us sits in the back with him cuddling, reassuring, offering treats etc he is desperate to escape - he scratches at the door, licks our faces frantically, tries to stick his head out of any window gap, cries loudly the whole time.

It’s not safe to drive if it’s just me, he has a harness that clips into the seatbelt holder in the back seat but flings himself around, cries, tries to get to me in the front.

I’ve tried spending time just sitting together in the back seat (car not moving), I’ve given him the good treats etc.

Do I just need to put him in a crate in the boot and ignore the whining until he gets used to it? He goes in a crate fine at home so maybe he’ll be ok with that?

Yep in the boot. A crate is a good option but we just have a dog guard which is fine and means they can't try and climb over the seats to get to you.

We got ours from here. If you put your reg in then it'll direct you to one that fits your car perfectly.

https://travall.co.uk/collections/dog-guards

My Goldie was like this and it passed. Keep doing what you are doing with treats etc, use a crate or guard to make sure all is safe, and just do it. He will soon learn that when you go in the car you go to fun places (unless it’s the vet!). Mine still doesn’t love it but isn’t reluctant.

Thanks both I will persevere!

My Lab puppy was crying in the back seat with his harness on because he wanted to reach me in the front (driving). The same was true if my husband was driving and I was sitting in the back seat with him.

I tried putting him in the boot of our hatchback with a dog guard, and a bit surprisingly, he settled better there. Gave him a treat to chew the first couple of times, now he is happy to go in with just a few bits of kibble.

They are all different though. Our previous Lab puppy hated the boot for ages but was happy in a dog harness on the back seat.

A crate in the boot for now and you can progress to a dog guard later on
If he's frantic to get to you then you don't want him being able to bolt out of the boot when you start opening it and potentially run out infront of a car

Any update @SoManyFidgetToys ? Hope the situation has improved.

Thanks for checking in @Twiglets1 .

I bought a crate for the car, let him explore it a bit in the house, put one of his favourite toys in there and have been leading him into it in the car with treats.

We go out twice a day with him in the crate - short drives of 5 minutes to a nearby park, I always give him treats as soon as we arrive and then a fun walk in the park with lots of other humans and dogs, he seems really happy there. We’ve on day 5 of this routine.

But he still whimpers and cries every journey! So I’m at a bit of a loss tbh. He has to get used to the car, so maybe I just persevere but I hate hearing him upset.

I wouldn't worry too much. It doesn't sound like he's scared, he's not having any accidents and he is safe in his crate so I would just persevere. Maybe try longer journeys and see how he does? He might calm down after a bit. He's still a baby and it's all new to him.

Is the crate in the boot of the car?

Thanks @Starlight1979 - yes he’s safe, in a crate and in the boot, just whimpering and it’s a struggle to get him into the crate (I lure him in with treats but then he tries to escape as I try to close it!)

I’ll try driving for longer, that’s a good point that maybe he’ll calm down with longer to get used to it.

I'd say the complete opposite.
My dog developed a fear of the car after one too many trips to the vets. She'd tremble as soon as we started moving. It took me months of doing the same 3 minute trip before she stopped. Once she was happy with that, we added a minute on by driving round the block. We've gradually built this up until she can now manage half an hour. Anything over that and she's totally stressed out.

Our lab puppy hated a crate in the boot but was fine once she had a bed in the boot with an isofix strap on her harness.

I had a rescue dog who was terrified of going in the car. At first, I literally had to catch her to get her to go in. I did similarly to you, OP, I took her on short journeys every day - ours were to fetch the children from school. She went in the boot on a bed with a dog guard and I kept it very low key - no fuss or treats, just part of our routine. Within a few days she improved and was a good traveller from then on, happily leaping into the car and settling on long journeys. I used to work with animals and have found that sometimes it is more reassuring to just get on with it.
I hope he settles soon. You’ll get there!

Thank you for all the advice!

Just off for my second short car trip of the day, going to drive a bit longer and be a bit calmer/more low key about it and just see how it goes.

We bought some travel pills online- they helped but our lab has never liked the car.
He's better if someone sits in the back with him, reassuring him until he sleeps. With plenty of blankets to rest on.
When the car stops, we have to hold him back in his desperate rush to get out!!! He is strapped in, but I think he'd break the seat belt if we let him.
Short trips is a great idea and I do wish we'd done this but he's an old boy now.

Puppies often get travel sickness/nausea but usually outgrow it, so it may just be a matter of time.
Our cocker was travel sick and whined constantly (likely due to nausea), we persevered with very short car trips to the park (so it was a good reason to go in the car, but for a short amount of time) but by about 5-6 months he was fine and just snooze now.