Pet Friendly Motorhome Hire

Did you know that we are able to offer pet friendly motorhome hire? Since motorhome holidays allow you immediate access to the great outdoors what better opportunity could there be to take your family pet with you? The most usual motorhome rental pets are dogs, but some customers have brought their cats. Many people look for motorhome hire that is dog friendly because they do not have anybody to look after their pet while they go on holiday. Some dog-owners prefer not to leave their animals in boarding kennels.

If you are looking for a pet friendly motorhome hire holiday you have come to the right place. We have a wide range of different sized motorhomes that are specially designated as pet friendly vehicles. Some of these are from the private hire section of our fleet, in which case the owner of the motorhome may have their own animals and is realistic about the needs of people taking their pets on holiday.

We always advise customers that animals should travel in a pet carrier and not be let loose in a motorhome while it is transit. After all you wouldn’t let your children travel without a secure seatbelt would you? Many larger motorhomes have a well ventilated garage storage space at the rear of the vehicle which is big enough to house a pet and pet carrier. Remember to take frequent rest breaks if travelling with a pet and to make sure that they have enough water to drink. Never leave your animal unattended in a vehicle, especially in hot weather.

It is always a good idea to check with any campsite that you are aiming to visit that they accept well-behaved dogs or other animals. Do remember that campsites are for everyone and not all small children are used to dogs or vice versa. Be prepared to keep your dog on a lead in certain situations and clear up any mess they make.

Many people hire motorhomes in England and other parts of the British Isles with the intention of travelling abroad with their pet. It would be very difficult to take your dog on a foreign package holiday which involved flying and transfers. It is much easier to organise motorhome hire with pets allowed so that your animal can stay with you at all times.

Before travelling abroad with your pet you must take it to a vet to be fitted with a microchip, vaccinated against rabies and issued with a pet passport. You are required to wait 21 days from the date of the rabies vaccination before travelling. Dogs must also be treated by a vet for tapeworm, not less than 24 hours and not more than 120 hours before the scheduled time of entry back into the UK.

The pet that most people like to take with them on holiday is their dog. We have a few cat friendly enquiries, but that is about it. Most pet friendly motorhome and campervan rental enquiries are for dogs.

Taking your dog away with you is not always that easy with traditional holidays, regardless of how friendly he is. Flying is pretty much out of the question as no standard airlines will allow a dog to fly. Most hotels and guesthouses (even friendly ones) simply won’t take them. A motorhome hire holiday is an ideal pet friendly alternative. Even if you are travelling abroad, taking your pet with you is no longer a problem as long as you have the required vet’s certificate. A well-behaved pet can travel on ferries as easily as its owner can. The only thing you need to do is to tell the hire company, when you get your hire quote, that you are taking a pet so that they can supply you with a suitable pet friendly hire motorhome or campervan.

In our experience we have found that most owners seem to think that dogs prefer to travel in a campervan or motorhome in preference to a car, because of the extra space they have. Even with the extra space we do recommend using a pet carrier while the vehicle is moving. This allows your pet to be secured safely and stops them walking about the motorhome while you are driving. If you are bringing a pet in a pet carrier then you might find that best vehicles to hire are ones with the rear storage area with a little window, such as the Chausson Flash 03, Chausson Flash 25, Mooveo C6 or Mooveo C7. This storage area, at the rear of the motorhomes, can also be used for sports equipment, bikes or whatever you wish to take with you on holiday.

General advice for your pets is fairly obvious, but worth mentioning before you hire:

• Check in advance that any campsites that you are staying on are dog or pet friendly. Most are pet friendly, but it is still worth checking.

• When travelling do take a break often, just because you don’t need fuel doesn’t mean that you should always carry on driving. Stop regularly, give sufficient water to your dog, let it stretch its legs and relieve itself.

• Don’t leave your pet in the motorhome unattended, it’s quite easy for temperatures in the more southerly parts of Europe to get up to around 40 C which is no good for anybody trapped in a vehicle. In motorhomes with no ventilation the temperature can rise to a lot more than the outside temperature. In a campervan with less insulation than a motorhome, indoor temperatures can become unbearable and even deadly.

• Make sure your pet has a collar and tag, the last thing you want is for him to wander off in the middle of the night and get lost. Make sure you put your mobile number on the tag and make sure your mobile phone works in the country you are travelling in. If you are particularly worried about losing your pet during motorhome travel you should consider microchipping your pet.

• Bring your pet’s food with you especially if you are travelling abroad. The last thing you want is a dog with an upset stomach on a long hot trip across Europe! There are specific legal requirements for taking your pet abroad that can be found here.

• Finally, being in a motorhome is not the same as being at home, make sure that you have some cleaning spray and kitchen towel to hand should your pet have an accident.

If you were thinking of taking a cat with you, you might like to watch this video by our friend Vanessa who is cat fanatic. There are some good recommendations here which are cat specific.

Most motorhome hire companies who have a pet friendly option tend to reserve a few motorhomes specifically for this purpose and keep the rest of the fleet pet free. This is why it is very important to specify that you want one of the pet friendly motorhomes.