Howdy Doody From Nampa, ID! I Have A Couple Of Questions About Dogs.

I have been told some drivers keep dogs during runs for companionship and security.

Do most firms allow their drivers to take "Rover" along on the road?

I can see how "Rover" might be problematic on the road. He has to be fed, watered and exercised regularly. he may have to be leashed outside the cab. Where does he sleep at night? Where do you keep his dog food and his supplies? Does he every get in the way of your job?

I would appreciate some tips on taking Rover on the road so he is a great asset and not a liability over the Great American Road.

Are there any good readings or recommendations for drivers who have Rover on the road and how they deal with taking care of him?

Please, drivers, share some of your experiences with these animals in the cab with us and how you manage to have a dog factored in in this trucking whole thing like Jerry Reed's (Snowman's) basset hound in "Smokey and the Bandit".

This varies greatly among companies. Using the search box above for "pets" gets you this List Of Trucking Companies That Allow Pets

my original post re-edited for typos and additional input below

I've been told some drivers keep dogs during runs for companionship and security.

Do most firms allow their drivers to take "Rover" along on the road?

I can see how "Rover" might be problematic on the road. He has to be fed, watered, toileted and exercised regularly. He will mostly be walked whenever the driver takes time to do his own walk to stretch his own legs. I walk a lot daily for exercise myself. Rover (Spot or Fido??) will probably go potty whenever the driver stops to use the can. Rover will probably eat, sleep and drink whenever his master does the same, I think. He may have to be leashed outside the cab. Where does he sleep at night? Where do you keep his dog food and his supplies? Does he ever get in the way of your job? Does he ever get cab sickness and throw up? Dramamine (over the counter medicine) can well prevent motion sickness in animals a vet once told me.

Should a professionally-trained dog be highly recommended for the trucking-driving bit here? I feel the ideal trucker's dog should be one that will reliably heel on command and won't run out in front of vehicles like a nit-wit and get killed. He should also make one he!! of a watch dog, to quote Jerry Reed. I can see trucks stops being like a minefield of trouble for an undisciplined dog running around loosely.

I would appreciate some tips on taking Rover on the road so he is a great asset and not a liability over the Great American Road.

Are there any good readings or recommendations for drivers who have Rover on the road and how they deal with taking care of him?

Please, drivers, share some of your experiences with these animals in the cab with us and how you manage to have a dog factored in this whole d@m trucking thing like Jerry Reed's (Snowman's) basset hound in "Smokey and the Bandit".

This varies greatly among companies. Using the search box above for "pets" gets you this List Of Trucking Companies That Allow Pets

Certainly. I will look up pets. But for security duty I would consider him to be more of a "service animal" or a "working dog" but I cold be mistaken.

We also have this:

Tips For Trucking With Your Pets

One suggestion is buy gallons of water for rover to drink. Just filling up his water bowl wherever may end up being problematic. Remember every region has different minerals and bacteria. Every place treats there water a little different. Your intestinal track along with all animals have a natural bacterial community that lives within it. It aids in digestion. Constantly changing treatment levels of water, foreign bacteria levels, etc... upsets the natural balance. That causes wonderful diarrhea. i imagine you rather not be having to spend time cleaning up Rover's accident from an upset tummy.

I prefer the German Shepherd Dog and some companies listed seem to prohibit "aggressive breeds" or "vicious breeds". I don't know if professionally-trained Shepherds as security dogs count there. Some dog-allowing companies also put weight/size restrictions on the dog. I feel a smaller dog might not be as good a deterrent to would-be thugs on the road as a larger breed. So for the driver preferring a Shepherd in the companion seat might have a limit for outfits to choose to work for. Jim Palmer seems to be a "fresh" up-and-coming company headquartered in Missoula, MT about 579 miles from my home in Nampa, ID (about 15 miles west of Boise) that is highly dog-friendly and hardly ever runs freight farther east than Ohio . A biggie firm like J.B. Hunt will not allow Shepherd-size breeds apparently and the biggest outfits, Swift and Schneider, have an all-out pet ban. I love the look of those bold black and yellow Palmer trucks and they are fairly close to my home town in the Pacific Northwest. I love the beauty of the western American scenery anyway without so much of those concrete jungle metro areas and that seems to be where Palmer hauls mainly. A Jim Palmer OTR driver may usually have to drive as far northeast as Cleveland, OH and as far southwest as LaLaLand, California.

One suggestion is buy gallons of water for rover to drink. Just filling up his water bowl wherever may end up being problematic. Remember every region has different minerals and bacteria. Every place treats there water a little different. Your intestinal track along with all animals have a natural bacterial community that lives within it. It aids in digestion. Constantly changing treatment levels of water, foreign bacteria levels, etc... upsets the natural balance. That causes wonderful diarrhea. i imagine you rather not be having to spend time cleaning up Rover's accident from an upset tummy.

Buying water in jugs for a large dog might be expensive but vet bills and dealing with the runs for an animal might be super nasty as you said.

I usually just pour water out of my own water bottles into my dog's dish. I just make sure not to fill it to high when the truck is in motion. I was lucky with my dog, she pretty much trained herself for the truck. When I put the truck in gear, she goes into the back and lays on the bunk while I drive. She also became protective of the truck right away.

Piece of advice, always make sure you carry a spare key with you. My dog locked me out of my truck while I was fueling. She also has a tendency to roll down the windows if I'm gone from the truck for more than 5 minutes lol

So basically after she locks you out of the truck, go hide in the store for 5 mins and wait for her to roll the windows down so you can get back in.