The short ride route is the best plan of action. Take short rides, as many as you can with her. Go to a place she likes, a park?, anywhere she can get out and feel happy. Bring some biscuits and give her some when she gets out. Be sure to take her for a little walk and then get back into the car. Just drives are not as much fun for them. At first she will shake all over and foam at the mouth. Over a few weeks she should get OK with the rides. That is what we did with our dog when she was a pup and after about three or four fun rides, she was OK. Still gets restless when we slow down and get off the highway but otherwise is a great traveler and has gone thousands of miles with us.

We also put a soft bath mat on the back seat for her to lay on and we take a bottle of water and a rubbermaid container to put the water in and than we can cover it for later in the trip.

You really need to practice this a lot. No there isn't anything that will stop the throwing up as it's related to anxiety and not upset stomach. I've tried everything under the sun for one of mine, even vet prescribed sedatives and ginger snaps and nothing worked.

Practicing the short rides and feeding your dog in the car may or may not work. One thing I highly suggest is that about 10-15 minutes into the ride, stop and let the dog out to poop. Yes, even if he just went before you left. This will buy you about another hour. Hopefully during that hour, if it is interstate driving and smooth with no stopping and go-ing then hopefully the dog will fall asleep.

Depending on how far you are going, bring a big supply of water, paper towels or wipes for cleanup.

While the soft blanket may look comfortable, you may come to discover your dog prefers a cozy, confined kennel during times of anxiety. And of course also for safety reasons. Mine does better in a somewhat confined space and tends to settle down and sleep sooner as long as we're on the interstate.

I agree, first just put her in the car and feed her some treats, no driving anywhere, next time take her around the block. Make your voice high pitched and tell her what a good dog she is. If she is a puppy she might get car sick no matter what, my dog did until his skull sutured completely at a little over 6 months, He threw up every time we went out no matter how far we went until at 6 months then magically he stopped throwing up he hasnt done it since. Always park in the deep shade when it is over 78 degrees, have food and water available and stop every couple of hours or when you see a place to go walkies and be sure the motel you go to accepts dogs, check ahead. Happy trails

thank you all so much for the suggestions. i will try just taking her to the truck and letting her get comfy with that, then small rides with treats, and then to the park. she really loves the outside and running with my kids, so hopefully in about a month from now, she'll be ready to hit the road. thanks again for your help. :)

Sounds like a good plan, hippiechick! Sometimes a little positive association will go a long way. Hope it works out for you!

One of our dogs has travel anxiety and used to throw up and occasionally poop in the car before we began doing a couple of things for him.

He now travels in a small soft-sided foldable kennel, which really seems to help him feel safe, and he's never messed it up yet.

We don't give the dogs their morning meal before we leave on a trip, just bits of their normal food as treats during the day after they've done their business and had a drink of water at a rest stop. We give the usual evening meal once we've stopped for the day.

Since we started doing these things, no problem at all with our little scared dog. I've noticed that once we get going, all three dogs become quiet and still as little mice until we stop. Such good travelers!