There are dogs that are a natural when it comes to riding in cars for a long trip.  You can see enjoyment in their faces by the way they eagerly look out the window, most especially when the window is rolled down.  A dog enjoying his car ride will simply put his paws on the door, poke his head through the window, and jut out his tongue from his open mouth as he basks in the breeze of a fast-moving car.

If only your dog is the same car loving, speed seeking dog that you want him to be.  A dog usually develops car anxiety when he only rides in the car during trips to the vet to get a shot or be examined.  You have to do some behavioral modification to make him like car trips and eagerly look forward to them.

To get your dog to look forward to car rides, have him make his acquaintance with the car slowly.  Bring him close to the car on a leash and let him first smell the outside of the car.  If he pees on the wheel, take it as a good sign because that means he is marking the car as his territory.  Once he is used to the presence of the car, then you can start taking him inside the car.

Once inside the car, do not turn on the engine.  Just let your dog sit inside with a leash on and let him explore his surroundings.  He may start by smelling the interior, looking at the dials, and investigating what can be found beneath the seats.  Describe to him what he is seeing to further make him familiar with the car.  If he wants out, let him out and start again tomorrow.

Remember that the purpose of the exercise is to make him comfortable.  He would associate the car with an unpleasant experience if you force him to stay when he does not want to.  Bring him to another level by closing the doors, with the windows open, and then with the windows closed.

When your dog is now comfortable with the inside of the car, start up the engine without necessarily putting it in motion.  Observe how your dog reacts.  If he reacts unfavorably by barking, howling, and scratching the door or window to get out, stop the engine and wait for a couple of minutes.

Calm him down and tell him that what he just experienced is just the engine of the car and will not harm him.  Once he is calm, wait for a few minutes and tell him you will start the car again.  If he still freaks out, stop the engine, calm him down, and then leave the car.  Do the entire procedure again tomorrow.

Once your dog is comfortable with the vibration of the engine, you can actually put the car in motion.  Leave the windows barely down, with your dog on the leash.  Leave a gap that is enough to let the air circulate but not too much as to let your dog jump out of the window.  Drive around the block once and see how your dog will take it.

Praise him for being well behaved and describe to him the scenery that he is seeing.  If he is all shaken up throughout the ordeal, stop the car and calm him down inside the car.  Once he is calm, open the door and let him go back inside.

You can now slowly increase the length of car travel for your dog.  Take him when you go for a trip in a local drugstore or a nearby convenience store.   Always bring him along if you can whenever you have to go out.  Just remember not to leave him too long inside on his own or he will go back to being anxious.

Other dogs have been noted to perish inside a car that has been left running for too long due to carbon monoxide inhalation and or extreme temperatures. Sometimes the kinder thing is to leave your companion safe and comfortable at home while you run errands.