Leaving Dogs In Vehicle

I've never worried about leaving dogs on the rig when it's cold but heat makes me real nervous. I am a huge fan of having a bluetooth/remote temperature sensor in the dog box that I can monitor from inside the truck while I'm driving-they make these where you can monitor them from your phone too. During early season/opener, I've had a few instances over the years where I took a dog out of the aluminum dog box and tied them to the tow hitch of the truck. The dog had enough cord to move under the truck (shade) as needed. The times I did this I parked the truck deep in the center of the ditch and on a chosen side of the property hunted where the wind was blowing parralell to the ditch and the rear of the truck was on the incoming wind side. A water bowl is also planted in front of a rear tire. This has always worked well for us the few times we've had to improvise due to heat.
 
My vehicle is a suv with rear air conditioning where their open wire crate is located so I can keep them cool while I’m traveling. I’m not likely to be hunting waterfowl on warm days so I won’t be leaving them in there unattended on any warm day. Kayaking or hiking off into the darkness to hunt ducks in the morning and returning afterward, when you take into account getting to the spot and back, along with set up time and break down time, plus hunt time, can easily be a four-five hour event that I’m leaving the dogs in the vehicle. Even in the cold, I’m pretty sure I need to leave a window cracked on each side of the vehicle for cross ventilation, and I’ll probably have to cover the crate with a sleeping bag or something similar while also having some nice no-cotton blankets inside the crate for them to burrow into. I’m just wondering if 4-5 hours is too long for their bodies to be in a tight space, although they can stand and sit-up and turn around in it if they keep their head ducked a little. Also wonder if they could get too warm in that situation with the blankets and a cover over their crate. Hard to say.
 
In the heat:
Crack the windows
Battery powered fans are great, especially if you can set them up to where they blow cold air (from a frozen water jug) over the dog (think of a dog a/c)
Fresh water in the crate
Park in shade (those reflective shade things you put in your windows help, or have tinted windows)

In the cold:
Good bedding (straw or blankets)
Keep the air off them
Keep them fed well and hydrated
Those insulated kennel covers (or even moving blankets wrapped on the outside of the box) help a ton.

North Dakota can be warm early season I imagine, but we transport dogs in +90 degree temps in the summer field trialing. My dogs are hauled in a open truck bed in ruffland kennels.

If you are worried about time, 6 hours should be fine (if they are crate trained reliably). I stopped once or twice on a 14 hour drive to Kansas in January, with no issues. Never hurts to have some Clorox wipes and old towels though just in case, long hunting trips can take a toll on dogs.
 
Like most here have said, it's all weather dependent. If it's over 60 degrees and sunny, I would probably not leave them for more than 2 hours with the windows completely down.

Cold? You're fine for quite awhile. 5 hours in 30 degree temps is no issue at all.
 
The upshot of all the comments above is that if it's warm, be very careful with your dog
 
First off I like your choice in dogs. I had a French Brittany and she was a hell of a dog. You have a lot of advice already. Somebody mentioned that u will probably be gone for an hour or two when hunting small bodies of water. Just remember heat is always more of a problem than cold. If u go out in the dark, you will probably be thru within an hour of daylight each time. So heat should not be a problem. Good luck, it could be a hunt of a lifetime. Also check average temps in ND in November. Not sure what part of the state you are going to.
 
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dhuggins said:
When making long 10+ hour drives in the heat, I use an icy breeze cooler/fan combo in the camper shell that is run off a deep cycle battery. Then I just refill it with ice when I stop for gas or potty break.. (y)
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Done the icy breeze cooler thing for many years but never left the dogs for more than 2 hrs or so. Had four GSPs in the back truck topper all set up in crates and hunted all four on the ground more often than taking turns. With all 4 on the ground, it was an obsolete blast. Crazy at times but a blast. THE PACK WAS ON A HUNT. Waterfowl hunting was without the dogs on those trips. So I can not say what the experience would have been. Left them at home or in my travel trailer crated.
 
Hunthemup said:
Done the icy breeze cooler thing for many years but never left the dogs for more than 2 hrs or so. Had four GSPs in the back truck topper all set up in crates and hunted all four on the ground more often than taking turns. With all 4 on the ground, it was an obsolete blast. Crazy at times but a blast. THE PACK WAS ON A HUNT. Waterfowl hunting was without the dogs on those trips. So I can not say what the experience would have been. Left them at home or in my travel trailer crated.
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Yes, I have a little Bluetooth temperature thermometer that tells the temp of the bed, so I can monitor that. Also, this is late Sep-Oct not June, July, Aug so big difference there.
 
I had several dogs that would stay in there kennel or backseat while I would bowhunt in the morning before hitting the fields. Key is to let them out to do their business first. As some one else mentioned Heat is the killer here.
 
Read a lot about dogs and heat. I think dogs may be better at handling heat than we give them credit for. I'm not saying to ignore them or close them up in a vehicle/shell...in the southern states the temps are very hot for many months, yet dogs survive. If they have water and shade, and a bit of a breeze, they will do quite well.
 
Rogue Hunter said:
Read a lot about dogs and heat. I think dogs may be better at handling heat than we give them credit for. I'm not saying to ignore them or close them up in a vehicle/shell...in the southern states the temps are very hot for many months, yet dogs survive. If they have water and shade, and a bit of a breeze, they will do quite well.
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My experience, NOT IN A CAR. shade under a porch or a tree is entirely different.

All the discussion about alternatives in the world will not erase the sight, feel and heft of that limp, heat-exhausted dead setter puppy from my mind. It gutted me.

Be safe.
 
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