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by Rachel

On Labor Day I plan on spending the Week-End with Princess (and my hsuband) in Manhattan at a hotel. I am carrying her in a nice doggy bag with vents. I don't want to bring the crate since we will be with her the entire time and it's so big! She'll sleep on the bed and I'll bring extra wee-wee pads. Am I going to be OK with my 4 1/2 month old?

DISCUSSION:

As long as your baby has had all of her shots there shouldn't be a problem unless she doesn't behave!! Have a good trip! Jackie and Mika
-Jackie Floiro

Hi, I recently traveled with my four month old puppy, too. The first thing you should know is that most hotels will not allow pets, and if you sneak her in, and she barks even once, you can be booted out on the street w/no refund. Wee wee pads are a precarious bet at this young age, when bladder control is still tenuous. My baby pee-peed all over an antique bed at a bed and breakfast in GA and I had to pay a fine for the clean-up, plus endure a humiliating glare from the persnickity owner. My advice is to find a Budgetel or other chain which will WELCOME your baby. Pay the $20ish charge for clean up, and be glad to have your little one along for the fun. But where will she be while you're out? Remember: if she barks and the maids come into your room, it's game over. Whatever you do, DON'T let her sleep on the bed. BIG MISTAKE! Try to arrange for her to be w/friends while you're out so she doesn't yap too much. Good luck!!
-Pamela Shaw

Sounds like fun to me! Does your little one usually sleep on the bed with you? Ours has since the day we brought her home--a little of a bed hog she is. I know mine would be fine as long as we were with her the whole time. Wee wee pads, toys, you and your husband, what else could she ask for? We took ours camping for the first time a few weekends ago, and we were extremely surprised how good she was. These dogs are the best friends anyone could ask for.
-Pamela

Last December we traveled to New York with our 3 month old Maltese. He did very well in the car. It is a 12 hour drive from where I live. We didn't stay in a motel since I have family on Long Island. We also just came back a day ago from a trip to New York. Now that he is 11 months it was a lot better. The only problem travling with a dog is you only can eat fast foods. I don't know of any resturants in New york City that will allow pets in. If it was me I would leave the puppy with some good friends. We took a trip to St. Louis a month ago for a long weekend and I left him with good friends. I did't think it would have been fair to my puppy to leave it a lone in the motel room. He was very happy to see us as I was him, when I picked him up. Well good luck with what ever you do.
-Joanne Maltese

New York is a very dog friendly city - my maltese has been all over Manhattan. They are not allowed in theatres, resturants or museums, so if this is the type of trip you are taking you may want to rethink your plans. If you are staying at a hotel with a concierge call and see if they can find a "doggie day care" facility. These facilities will take your dog for a few hours at a time, walk him etc. Also you should plan on bringing some kind of carrier for him while you have him out - the crowds can get intense and public transportation requires animals to be contained. Have fun!
-Jennifer

I hope you have a great time with your little one on vacation! We travel with ours quite often, and I also suggest that you ensure that the hotels take pets. I have had some luck with Best Westerns, and Sheritans, and have heard most Ramada's take pets as well. If your particular one says no, you might offer a credit card guarentee, or offer an inspection afterwards. Eating can be tricky, but we have not ever been asked to leave picnic tables such as at McDonalds (they were outside of the play area). As well, a lot of restraunts will do take out for you, if you get tired of the fast food. Having some "pooper scooper bags" might ward off some glares as well-PetsMart carries some. We have done the doggie day care as well, though I am not sure how to check references for them when traveling. All in all, we have enjoyed traveling with our boys; it just takes some creativity and some willingness of everyone to take their turn puppy sitting when needed. One thing we plan to add is a pet pouch, to help free up our hands. Good luck and let us know how it goes!
-Beverly

Yes, the pet pouch is wonderful. My little guy loves it since he gets tons of attention when he's in it because he looks cute. We use our Sherpa bag when we stop to eat at restaurants. Geppetto goes in the bag (which looks something like a gym bag), the flaps go down, and nobody can tell there's a dog inside. When we get to the table (we request booths), I put the bag beside me on the seat, and then fold a flap up so that he can get fresh air. He has his dinner in the bag, we have ours-- everyone's happy. In hotel rooms, he's always in his crate unless we're there and watching him. It's dangerous to leave these tiny creatures in a room without being crated since they could easily run out door the minute it's opened, or they could be stolen. We pad-lock our crate and stay at hotels that welcome dogs. I haven't noticed that they're that hard to find. Many Hampton Inns accept dogs.
-Deb Bert

My week-end with Princess in Manhattan went smoothly. We did stay in a hotel that did not accept dogs, but she did not bark. We were very carefull and stayed in a corner room. She slept in the king size bed with us. She was in heaven. We walked her all over Manhattan and we got so much attention. We ordered room service and stayed with our baby the entire time. Now its back to reality for her - the crate. She probably is so depressed right now, since she just spent 4 straight days being pampered by us.
-Rueben