# Camping with the Pups



## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

We're off on our first camping weekend with both Kodi AND Pixel. Kodi, of course, is an old hand at camping, but not Pixel! She is SUCH a little star. She learned how to go in and out of the camper in one try, has been using her litter box totally reliably without reminders from us, and settled down to sleep in her crate tonight without a wimper. 

We did decide that with two dogs, especially with one being a small puppy, that the tie-out we use for Kodi while camping just wasn't a great option. So Dave cut plastic lattice to go around the steps, and we used ex-pens to make a nice, big area where they can roam around without us worrying about them. We have the oicnic table, our chairs and their beds inside the pen too, so we can all ahng out together!


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## Molly120213 (Jan 22, 2014)

Nice set up. Have fun!


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## Freckles (Feb 2, 2015)

That looks like a nice set-up. Enjoy!


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## Ollie"s Mom (May 23, 2014)

You have it down to a science Karen. Good job. The pups look like happy campers.


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## Wags Mom (Dec 15, 2013)

What a perfect setup. Looks like Kodi has already claimed the bed!


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Wags Mom said:


> What a perfect setup. Looks like Kodi has already claimed the bed!


Well, that IS his bed... It's the one he sits on when in his car harness in the teuck, and we also call it his "camping chair" since it matches ours in color. He's had it since he was a puppy, and it was made for him by his "Grandma Pam".  we got out a nice plush folded up blanket for her so they both have separate spots if they want them, but a lot of the time, Kodi lets her curl up against him.


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## Ditto's Mom (Apr 29, 2007)

Great setup. Aww- love the pic of Kodi sharing his bed with his little sis, sweet.


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## midwifeheather (Jan 30, 2015)

Nice!!! Thanks for the idea, we have 2 xpens we can do a similar setup when we go camping in a few weeks.


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## Ollie"s Mom (May 23, 2014)

How cute is that curled up together. They are going to be great buddies.


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## davetgabby (Dec 29, 2007)

glad you're Havin fun; yeah I miss our camping.


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## Sheri (Oct 11, 2008)

What a nice set-up, Karen. And the photo of Kodi sharing his bed with his sister is sweet.

Have a great time!


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## Napria (May 17, 2015)

Thank you so much for sharing! We have a fifth wheel and I'm still trying to figure out the best way to camp with Baci. When we had our corgi, she was old enough that we didn't need to crate her and we would just bring her bed and put it in the living room of the rv. But our first trip out this season (I cancelled our summer trip) is November. I'm not sure I'd trust a 5 month old puppy without his crate, but where will we put it?


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## lfung5 (Jun 30, 2007)

What a blast! It looks like great fun. I love how sweet Kodi is to her


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Napria said:


> Thank you so much for sharing! We have a fifth wheel and I'm still trying to figure out the best way to camp with Baci. When we had our corgi, she was old enough that we didn't need to crate her and we would just bring her bed and put it in the living room of the rv. But our first trip out this season (I cancelled our summer trip) is November. I'm not sure I'd trust a 5 month old puppy without his crate, but where will we put it?


Kodi always sleeps in his crate, even at home, so we just do the same with Pixel. He's also happier either crated or gated in my office when we're not home. (At this point, Pixel goes in her Ex-pen when we're not home) so it just makes sense to bring crates with us whe we travel. A Corgi crate would be tough... They are much bigger dogs, but the crates we use for the Havanese are quite small. We stack them on too of each other by the back door, which is in our bed room. If they didn't fit there, we could either put them under the back bench in the dinette (tough it would be hard to reach them ther) or we could remove the occasional table between the two easy chairs in the living room, and stack them there. I don't know how big your RV is, but it would seem to me that a Havanese-size crate would fit anywhere a Corgi-sized dog bed would.

I'll try to post a photo of the "condo" later.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

lfung5 said:


> What a blast! It looks like great fun. I love how sweet Kodi is to her


You have NO idea... She is CONSTANTLY tormenting her. We've now instituted a "three strikes and you're out" rule. If we have to tell her to stop 3 times, she goes in her crate for 5 minutes. We've been telling her, "Do you want to go to jail?" Now the minute we say that, she lets go of Kodi's ear, (or whatever other part of him she's hanging from) and flops on her side with a sigh.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Napria, here are a few more photos of how we set things up. First are a couple of views of the "condos" in the corner of the bed room. It may look tight in the phots, but there is actually plenty of room to walk past them. Then their litter box in the kitchen area. (We have a mid kitchen, LR front, BR rear). 

When Kodi was a puppy, he wasn't quite as reliable as Pixel in terms of potty training. (in fairness, he started camping even younger... Only 10 weeks old!). So with him, we actually set up a SMALL ex-pen in the kitchen for him, to keep him off the carpets. It was kind of a pain, but I didn't want ANY chance of him soiling carpet that is hard to replace. Pixel has been so easy to potty train that we didn't need to do that. She walking into the Trailer, saw her litter box, and that was it. No mistakes at all.

Oh, and we store my portable grooming table behind the couch. On a short trip like this, I can just comb them out sitting on the couch. But if we're away long enough that baths are needed, (we often go for 3 weeks at a time) the table is a big help. I bathe them in the shower, then set up the table with its grooming arm to dry them. After some muddy experiences (especially the thick, red, mud from PEI!!!) i wouldn't be without a plan for bathing!


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Another view (from the bedroom) sorry they are sideways... IPad again!


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Litter box... Photos separate because of iPad too!


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## Napria (May 17, 2015)

Thanks for the pictures, Karen. We have that same red clay here in Georgia as PEI, so I know what you mean.

Now that I see the pics, I think we'll be fine. I guess I need a smaller crate for travel. Right now we've got the Richell ex pen, which is much bigger. Do you think I should get Baci used to sleeping in the smaller crate?

Here's the end of our bed in the rv. We also have a front LR, mid kit and BR in the back.

By the way, do you ever come south? There's a great campground on Hilton Head Island that I'm trying to convince my husband we need to return to in October.


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## Atticus (May 17, 2011)

Ahhh Camping !!! Can't wait to get to the Adirondacks in July
So great to see the dogs sharing a bed!
Fantastic!


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Napria said:


> Thanks for the pictures, Karen. We have that same red clay here in Georgia as PEI, so I know what you mean.
> 
> Now that I see the pics, I think we'll be fine. I guess I need a smaller crate for travel. Right now we've got the Richell ex pen, which is much bigger. Do you think I should get Baci used to sleeping in the smaller crate?
> 
> ...


Kodi is a pretty large Hav... 11 1/2", which is the top of the standard. If he fits in that size crate, most will. His crate in our bedroom at home is larger, so he can really stretch out, but this is the size we use for trials and traveling. He likes it! This size is actually too big for Pixel right now, and will be roomy for her, even after she is full grown. They just need to be able to stand up and turn around. It looks to me like you'll have PLENTY of room!

Yes, we stayed at Hilton Head Harbor RV Resort about a year ago! It was beautiful down there! That's the farthest south we've gone with the RV, (we were visiting our son, who was working there at the time) but we've been to NC several times, and love it there.


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## Napria (May 17, 2015)

We were at HH Harbor RV Resort last April. Absolutely loved it and are considering buying a lot there, but we want to go a few more times before making a decision.

It's silly but I have a wire crate that my corgi used, and I *think* I still have a hard sided crate that my cat used somewhere, but I want Baci to have all new things that aren't ten or more years old. I'm thinking of buying a new hard sided crate. I can just hear my dad saying, "Our name isn't Rockefeller and money doesn't grow on trees!" So I think I'll hold off on buying a new travel crate till we get closer to going out in the RV.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Napria said:


> We were at HH Harbor RV Resort last April. Absolutely loved it and are considering buying a lot there, but we want to go a few more times before making a decision.
> 
> It's silly but I have a wire crate that my corgi used, and I *think* I still have a hard sided crate that my cat used somewhere, but I want Baci to have all new things that aren't ten or more years old. I'm thinking of buying a new hard sided crate. I can just hear my dad saying, "Our name isn't Rockefeller and money doesn't grow on trees!" So I think I'll hold off on buying a new travel crate till we get closer to going out in the RV.


If it weren't so darned far away for us, we might consider it too! (though we DO like to travel to different places!) I see it's much closer for you! We actually liked the town of Bluffton, where my son was living, even better than the island, itself.


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## whimsy (Apr 3, 2010)

looks wonderful!! She really is a little trooper and doesn't let any change bother her. Love the pic with Kody.


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## MWilson (May 22, 2015)

Makes me want to go camping. That set-up is perfect for the pups!


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## FancyNancy (Oct 7, 2009)

i really think that the dogs of the Havanese Forum are the best cared for and luckiest dogs on the planet! This thread is proof of it.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

FancyNancy said:


> i really think that the dogs of the Havanese Forum are the best cared for and luckiest dogs on the planet! This thread is proof of it.


Ha! Or maybe the most spoiled?


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## FancyNancy (Oct 7, 2009)

Both!


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

FancyNancy said:


> Both!


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## HavGracie (Feb 27, 2012)

I agree! Right on both parts!!l


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## Ollie"s Mom (May 23, 2014)

I just said to my husband last night as I held Ollie cuddled into my neck, this pup has it better than a lot of children and he said oh yeah, definitely. I'm guessing Hav owners were pretty good mums and dads to their human children also.


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## krandall (Jun 11, 2009)

Ollie"s Mom said:


> I just said to my husband last night as I held Ollie cuddled into my neck, this pup has it better than a lot of children and he said oh yeah, definitely. I'm guessing Hav owners were pretty good mums and dads to their human children also.


Ha! We actually STARTED RV camping because my (now grown) younger son was a very "rigid" child. ANY changes to his routine were difficult for him, and therefore difficult for us! We found that the best way to enjoy a vacation with him was to have our "home away from home", where we could keep meals and bedtime as predictable as possible and still enjoy the places that the rest of the family wanted to visit.


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## Napria (May 17, 2015)

krandall said:


> Ha! We actually STARTED RV camping because my (now grown) younger son was a very "rigid" child. ANY changes to his routine were difficult for him, and therefore difficult for us! We found that the best way to enjoy a vacation with him was to have our "home away from home", where we could keep meals and bedtime as predictable as possible and still enjoy the places that the rest of the family wanted to visit.


I wrote an article about this for an Atlanta-Metro Special Needs Non-profit group's Newsletter a few years back because our son is more than "rigid"; he's full-blown autistic, and later developed epilepsy. Having a place to come back to that's HOME, no matter where we are, is priceless. It also is helpful when Chris has a Grand Mal seizure in the middle of the night that we are not stumbling about in an unfamiliar place to get to both him and his meds.

Our son was the excuse to get the RV, but the whole family loves it. There's just something nice about having one's own familiar surroundings no matter where you go.


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