Mary Allen
Many dogs love to ride in the car. Is your dog not one of them?
He drools and salivates while driving and has he even thrown up in the car?
The causes can be varied.
This article explains the 5 most common and what you can do about them.
In a nutshell: Why does my dog drool when driving?
If your dog drools while driving, it is usually due to anxiety, stress or motion sickness. Other reasons can be dehydration, heat stroke or excessive excitement.
These causes can usually be prevented with appropriate preparation and some knowledge or eliminated while driving.
5 causes of drooling while driving
1. Motion sickness / motion sickness
Similar to humans, motion sickness is not a disease, but rather a physical reaction to conflicting sensory impressions.
As with us, your dog’s balance organ is in his ear. The fast drive signals to your dog that he is moving quickly and at the same time he perceives that everything in the car is standing still.
Travel sickness can usually be recognized by heavy drooling. He often struggles with nausea. In the worst case, this can also lead to your dog vomiting while driving.
Dizziness is also typical.
Other symptoms related to motion sickness include:
- Frequent or constant yawning
- Your dog seems listless
- He often licks his lips and smacks
- Increased salivation
- Frequent whimpering or beeping
Young dogs and puppies in particular are often affected here. Depending on the breed and sensitivity, the symptoms can also vary greatly.
The following tips can help before and during the journey:
- If possible, your dog should not be fed for a while before the start of the journey
- Avoid giving your dog snacks while driving
- Take regular breaks on longer trips
- Your dog should look in the direction of travel if possible
- Alternatively, there are also medications for travel sickness
Tip:
Avoid hectic and fast driving. These can make the symptoms worse.
2. Anxiety and stress
If your dog is scared or exposed to high levels of stress, this also leads to increased salivation and associated drooling. This is particularly common in young dogs.
This is usually not due to the car, but to the often cramped space. Typical anxiety and stress factors can also be:
- A closed trunk
- A hectic and restless driving style
- Generally too small a car
- The distance to you or other caregivers
- It may be their first car ride, or your dog may have existing trauma related to driving
- Too high a temperature in the vehicle
In addition to drooling, you’ll often see your dog tremble and tail tuck.
Other signs of anxiety or stress include:
- Your dog is generally restless and constantly changing places
- He squeaks and whines
- He lays his ears back
- Strong panting
- The dog urinates in the car
The fears your dog feels can usually be reduced or completely solved. Getting used to car journeys step by step helps here.
It helps to associate the ride with something positive, especially for dogs that associate driving with bad experiences, because they may have had their paw pinched painfully or something similar.
Unlike motion sickness, a few treats or your favorite toy often help here. With small dogs or puppies, your own basket or blanket in the car can provide a familiar environment.
3. Dehydration
It is often very hot in vehicles, especially in summer. Your dog will stick out his tongue and start panting heavily. Your dog’s need for fluids is increasing rapidly.
Combined with the following pre-existing conditions, this often quickly leads to dehydration:
- Your dog is vomiting and has diarrhea
- He has kidney problems
- The dog has a fever or heat stroke
- He suffers from diabetes
In addition to panting and drooling, sometimes with foaming at the mouth, you can recognize dehydration from other typical symptoms:
- An increased heart rate
- Dry gums
- listlessness
- sunken eyes
- Very dry nose
- dizziness and fainting
- A dark urine color
Offering water helps. This can also be mixed with some salt-free bone broth. In acute cases, you should visit the nearest veterinarian.
4. Excitement
Driving is very exciting for young dogs and puppies, especially for the first time. You are in a room that is moving faster than you can walk yourself.
The constant roar of the engine, the background noise of oncoming vehicles and much more means that your dog hardly has time to watch everything out the window.
This overload of sensory stimuli creates additional excitement and your dog pours out enormous cocktails of hormones. The drooling here is due to the excitement. He also wants to constantly walk around in the car and sniffs around curiously.
In contrast to stress, there are no symptoms such as trembling or whistling.
Here, too, you can already prevent or simply calm down your dog:
- A long walk or romp before the ride makes him a little “tired”
- A familiar blanket or pillow can help contain the excitement
- Ignore his activities in the car.
Tip:
Do not give your dog too much attention, otherwise, he will feel validated in his actions.
5. Heat Stroke
An increase in your dog’s body temperature of just 2 degrees is enough to cause heat damage.
Dogs cool down by panting. Thus, panting and the associated drooling at high temperatures are the most important symptoms in addition to a high pulse.
To prevent this, you should:
- Make the air conditioner cooler
- Leave the windows slightly open or allow the greatest heat to escape by opening all the doors
- before setting off
- Regular breaks in shady places
- Darkened windows
Danger!
Never leave the dog in the car in the summer, even for a short time.
Conclusion
If your dog drools while driving, it can have more or less dangerous causes. You can often prevent it or remedy it while driving.
However, if the drooling also occurs at home or during other activities, the causes can be quite different.