How We Deal with Having a Puppy in the Van

We were doing van life for 8 months before we got Chief (at 7 weeks old) so we had a good grasp on living in the van and we felt ready to take on a new challenge. We spent our days off on the boat. And the days we had to work in the van. 

To keep Chief potty training consistent we kept the same crate and a puppy grass pad in the van (double bag the pad in the van) as the boat. He was too young to walk around in public areas because he wasn’t old enough to receive all of his vaccines. We spent most of our free time playing fetch and training him. Once Chief was vaccinated fully he was able to go outside everywhere, quality of life improved.

Being that San Diego is so dog friendly we were able to take Chief everywhere with us. Anywhere the van could go, Chief could go and he would be in his crate enjoying life with all his toys. Because of his breed he outgrew his crates quickly and the crates were straight “space-eaters” in the van. So we took out his crate and gave him his own bed underneath our bed. We tied a leash to the frame of the bed, called it a day! Now with our new build he sleeps in between the driver and passenger seats.

Luckily for us Chief is not a barker surprisingly. He usually only barks on command or if he’s really excited/playing with other dogs. When he hears other people walk past the van he says nothing.

Chief has been in the van for 10 months and we’ve only had 1 “accidental fecal release” and he was sick. Now that chief is almost a year old puppy and full of energy he needs a full workout. Chris ties a leash around his waist and connects another leash to chief then proceeds to ride a bike around. Chief gets so excited when he pulls the bike out that he just barks at the bike until Chris is pedaling full speed. After about 30 mins on the bike ride Chief is good for the rest of the day!

For the most part we take chief everywhere with us, but if we have to leave him in the van alone we make sure he doesn’t over heat. We cover the van with all of the reflectix, turn on as many fans as necessary, and we will park in the shade if need be. For cold weather we put a jacket on him however, because our van is insulated well the van holds heat well.

Now that Chief is and turn 1 in a few weeks and we’ve just recently finished the rebuild we’re in cruise control. We decided to service the van and finished up last minute business in the US. We packed up the van and headed south to celebrate Chiefs 1st birthday in Baja, California! Stay tuned for details about life in Baja in our next blog. ¡Hasta luego!