Adorable Luca & MaryNury

If you follow politics of watch the news, then you have probably already heard about Mitt Romney and the trip he took with his pet dog. It was reported in newspapers nationwide, that in 1983, Mitt Romney took a 12-hour road trip from Massachusetts to Canada with his family and their pet dog Seamus. Since the car was crammed full of luggage, Romney decided to put Seamus in a carrying crate and strap him to the roof. During the drive, Romney noticed that the dog had a messy accident as a result of the ride. Since then, the dog ride story has added fuel to the fire. As everyone from Barack Obama to Ellen Degeneres have criticized Romney over his perceived lack of empathy. So, let the story of Seamus and Mitt Romney teach you that how you treat your pet matters. Here are a few ways to transport a pet that do not involve strapping them to a roof and scaring the poop out of them.

One option is to hire a pet transportation service. These services typically only ship one animal at a time as a way to ensure that they meet all of your animal’s needs during the process. For an animal, like a cat or dog, transportation can be a very stressful situation. Dogs usually do okay if they are traveling in a car, although seem get very hyper-active. That is why it is always a good idea to stop every couple hours to take the dog out and let him run around for a while and relax. Cats, on the other hand, are not travel-friendly in almost any situation. Cats are animals of habit, and once they are taken out of their environment it takes them awhile to adjust.

Animal shipping services tend to have employees that are highly trained in grooming and obedience training. The shipping services will also usually have a veterinarian on the staff to do health checks before and after- and sometimes during- transportation. The services usually offer options that the pet can be shipped through the air or on the ground, but usually it all depends on the length of the traveling that needs to be done.

If you do not have the cash for a pet shipping service, there are other options. If you would like to take a pet with you in a car, a kennel or crate of some kind usually comes in handy- especially if the space is tight. There are some medications that can be given to animals that will make them sleep for a longer than usual period of time. If you are traveling through the air, it will be important to check the airlines regulations- as they vary from line to line. Pets are usually kept in the cargo area, unless the weather is either extremely hot or extremely cold. But, most airlines do have rules that allow small pets to be kept with their owner during travel.

Jason writes for a variety of sites, including one about truck dealers and other service vehicles.