We are known as a nation of animal lovers, though it is only fairly recently that the idea of taking our dogs on holiday with us has really taken off.  The increase in numbers of people booking dog friendly holiday cottages has increased, as has the number of enquiries about pet friendly holiday cottages online.

Part of the reason for this is that the owners of holiday cottages in the UK have twigged that one way they can compete with foreign holiday bookings is to offer a pet-friendly service.  Dog owners in particular are often unwilling to take their dogs abroad if their dog does not travel well.  Being able to take their dogs on holiday with them within the UK is something that many dog owners welcome and are willing to pay for.

Dog friendly holiday cottages in places of natural beauty such as the Lake District, the Highlands, or the Norfolk Broads, or along any of the British coastline, are the perfect place to book a stay to enjoy the countryside with your pooch. 

Often, the alternative to taking your dog on holiday is to book them into a boarding kennel, or to ask a neighbour to call in to feed your dog while you’re away.  Some boarding kennels offer an excellent service, where they allow you to visit with your dog as many times as you need, and allow the dog to stay for increasing durations so that they are used to the idea of staying there (and that you will return), in much the same way as children are introduced to nursery or school.  But even so, many dogs find boarding kennels a distressing experience, particularly if they are kept in close quarters with other, unfamiliar dogs.

Asking a neighbour to feed your dog might be convenient for you and your neighbour but it is far from satisfactory for your dog, who may feel afraid, lonely and bored without you there as its family.  Dogs left on their own can cause a nuisance to your other neighbours through barking and howling, and often the RSPCA is called by concerned members of the public who have noticed that a dog seems to have been left alone.

Taking your dog on holiday is a great way to spend time together as a whole family, and you are sure to find some really lovely parts of the UK to explore.  But do your research before you book to make sure that there are plenty of places nearby to visit where your dog will be welcome too – there’s little point in booking a dog friendly holiday cottage if your dog ends up having to spend most of its time tethered outside the places you want to visit.  

If you are planning on taking your dog with you when you go on holiday this year, you will need to make sure that you are fully prepared.  Packing and organising luggage, tickets, bookings and so on for you and your human family can be trying enough; add to that the need to ensure that your dog is healthy and vaccinated and that they have everything they need for the journey and holiday and you’ll have a long ‘to do’ list!

So get organised nice and early and plan for all eventualities and you’ll be fine.  There are many dog friendly cottages and pet friendly cottages in the UK that offer accommodation that will welcome your pet(s) and that option reduces the amount of planning you’ll need to do, compared to planning a holiday abroad with your pet. 

Here is a list of things to help you to prepare for your holiday with your dog, wherever you are headed:

•  Take your dog to the vet to make sure all its vaccinations and treatments for worms and fleas are up to date.   If you are travelling abroad, you will need to get all your paperwork sorted out for your pet passport (see next point below), so ask your vet how early you need to visit before your holiday starts.  Whether you’re travelling abroad or not, you’ll need to visit your vet a few days before you leave, for the most up-to-date treatment for worms and fleas.  Most places – even dog friendly cottages in the UK – will ask for proof of this (if they don’t, you should be worried about what your dog might pick up whilst they’re there).
•  If you are travelling abroad, your pet must be micro-chipped and vaccinated at least 21 days before travel.  If you are going somewhere where there is a high incidence of rabies, you will also need to have a Blood Titer test done soon after vaccination – ask your vet for details.
  
• If your dog tends to get travel sick, ask your vet for help in managing that before you travel.  If your dog gets really distressed by travelling then think hard about whether to take it at all – if you really must (say, if your dog would be more distressed by being cared for in a kennel) then ask your vet for advice on how to keep your dog calm.  Medication might be necessary.
  
• Find out before you travel about where the local vet is, and take a note of their address and telephone number.  
  
• Make sure you have appropriate restraints for travelling with your pet, either to keep them safe in your car or for transporting them on public transport (e.g. a pet carrier with proper ventilation and waterproof base).
  
• If transporting your pet in a carrier, write your name and address and phone number on the case.
• Remember to take:
  

- all your documents from your vet proving your pet’s health;
- Sheets and towels for lining the places where your dog might sleep, to keep shedding to a minimum;
- Your pet’s own bedding, for comfort and familiarity;
- Food and fresh water for the journey and for your stay. Dog friendly cottages often stock dog food but don’t assume that it will. A change to your dog’s normal diet might make it unwell anyway so take your own food.
- Food and water dishes;
- Dog toys and chews;
- Grooming tools;
- Bags to pick up your dog’s waste;
- Disinfectant and cleaning supplies;
- Any prescribed medication for your dog. 

Once you’ve got organised, you’ll be able to relax and enjoy your holiday as a family.

The summer is finally here!  If you haven’t already booked to go away this year, have you considered booking somewhere that will allow you to take your pet with you?  Even if you have already booked a holiday, is it somewhere that would also welcome your pet?

Taking our pets with us on holiday is a growing trend and one that seems set to increase as the price of boarding accommodation for pets rises.  Fortunately the number of pet friendly cottages is also increasing in number as people offering accommodation realise that there is a market for holidays catering for people and their pets.

Dog friendly cottages abound in the UK countryside, and this is arguably the best place to take your dog on holiday: all that free space for your dog to run around!  There are also plenty of dog friendly cottages close to the coast, so you can take your best friend for some fantastic walks along some of Britain’s best beaches.

There are other pet friendly hotels that welcome a wider range of pets such as cats and birds, but always check with the owners whether your particular pet would be able to stay.  Also check the rules before you book – many pet friendly cottages or dog friendly cottages state that pets must stay downstairs or keep off the furniture, for example, and if you feel that your pet would find that difficult then book somewhere else.

Most pet friendly cottages require proof that your pet is in good health and has been properly vaccinated (you can get this proof easily enough from your vet).  If they don’t ask to see this, think about how many other pets may have stayed there before you and what your pet might bring home with them (e.g. fleas, infection, worms) as a result. 

If you are taking your pet on holiday with you and are travelling by car, make sure that you take regular breaks for them to get some exercise and water.  If your pet suffers from travel sickness, ask your vet for advice well in advance of your travels.  And of course, never leave your pet in a car as they can suffer heat exhaustion and die within a very short space of time.

If you don’t want to take your pet on holiday or feel that you can’t because they don’t travel well, then finding suitable boarding accommodation that will care for your pet properly is the next best alternative.  Animal charities like the RSPCA receive lots of calls every year from concerned neighbours about pets that have been left at home alone: leaving bowls of food and water out for your pet is not good enough.  Water bowls can be knocked over; pets can eat all their food supplies in a couple of days; pets can become very distressed, confused and lonely at being left by their owners.  Even if you have someone who will call in and feed them every day, animals can feel very unhappy at being alone for most of their day.

So consider taking your pet on holiday with you this year.

Many people with pets, especially dogs, choose to take their pets on holiday with them and choose pet friendly cottages to stay in, usually within the UK.  Business is booming for dog friendly cottages in places where there are plenty of good walks and beautiful scenery to enjoy, and for many pet-owners this is far preferable to putting their pet or dog into kennels or having a neighbour pop in to feed them.  Unfortunately, animal charities such as the RSPCA have cause to rescue many pets each year that have been left alone and inadequately cared for whilst their owners are on holiday, so owners who care enough to take their pet with them are to be applauded.

But this sort of holiday can be a bit limiting in that it can restrict you to holidaying in the UK.  But there are plenty of pet friendly cottages abroad, too, and indeed many of the European countries that you might want to visit are very welcoming of dogs and other pets and you’ll be able to find dog friendly cottages or other holiday accommodation by doing a quick search on the internet. 

If you do decide to take your pet abroad, though, you will need a pet passport, because the UK has strict quarantine laws that protect it from rabies and other diseases carried by pets.   If you didn’t have a pet passport and wanted to bring a pet in from abroad, the pet would need to spend several months in quarantine whilst it was tested and then monitored for any sign of disease.

Pet passports were introduced to allow healthy pets to travel in and out of the country without quarantine restrictions.  The passport contains details such as the pet’s breed, age and, most importantly, its health details such as any records of illness and vaccinations received.

You can get a pet passport for free from any vet through the Pet Travel Scheme, but your pet must have be micro chipped and have been vaccinated against rabies, with paperwork in support to demonstrate that appropriate blood work has been done to check that the vaccine has taken effect.

Other countries have restrictions on when a pet may or may not enter its borders and so before you travel you should check what information your destination country will need your pet passport to contain: it could be that you need to show that your pet has been treated to protect it from tapeworm or ticks within a very short period of time before departure. 

You can get pet passports for cats, dogs, rabbits, ferrets and other pets, but you need to check what information you would need about all of these pets before travelling.  There are other regulations that affect the pet passport scheme such as the length of time which a pet must have lived in a qualifying country before they can be given a passport, and you should check details carefully before booking any holidays.  

Taking pets (especially dogs) on holiday is now becoming more and more commonplace.  There are many pet friendly cottages available throughout the UK, so if you’re planning on travelling in the UK this year there really is no need to leave your pet to be cared for at home, or to put your pet in a kennel or cattery.  Whilst it is possible to travel abroad with your pet if they have a pet passport, most people find that taking their dogs on such a long journey is unfair or too much for their pet to handle comfortably, so they stick to holidays in the UK. 

Dog friendly cottages are very popular in places that attract walkers and ramblers, such as in the Yorkshire Dales, the Highlands, Cornwall and Devon, and Norfolk.   However, it is important to act responsibly when taking your dog or other pet on holiday.  Some holiday homes that have previously advertised themselves as ‘pet friendly cottages’ stop doing so because of the mess that has been left behind by irresponsible dog or pet owners.  Pet friendly cottages can only continue to exist if they are treated with respect.

Before you book with a pet friendly hotel, make sure you tell them what sort of pet (and/or how many pets) will be travelling with you and check that they will be happy to accommodate you.  If you have several particularly large dogs, for example, you might find that the dog friendly cottage you had hoped for is rather reluctant to let you stay.  It is better to book into somewhere that knows what to expect than to hide information and make things awkward later.

You should be asked for proof that your pet is free from disease or parasites before your visit, so that any future pets are not infected – if you are not asked, then beware that whoever visited the cottage before you might have left behind some unwanted pests!

If you are staying in a pet friendly cottage, don’t leave your pet behind when you go out because your pet could get up to all sorts of mischief (and may spend the day annoying the neighbours with barking or other noise).  Make sure you clear up any mess left behind in the garden (or inside, of course!).  Keep dogs on a lead when near other people and if you are travelling on public transport keep your pet close to you and contained in a suitable pet carrier.  

Make sure that whatever happens, you know that the people who have rented their cottage to you would be happy for you to return.  If you act irresponsibly then you may make them decide not to accommodate any pets in future, which spoils it for everyone.