We’ve been living in our van full-time for 6 months now with our dog, Bruce. Before we committed him to a life on the road, we’d been away in our campervan with him a number of times, the longest trip being for 6 weeks. It’s not a decision we have taken lightly with regards to full-time vanlife with a dog. We would never have considered it if we knew he didn’t love it as much as we do! So here’s what I’d keep in mind if you’re thinking of living in a van with a dog.

Injuries

As I write this, we are actually in a cottage as Bruce has broken his toe. Being on the move whist he needs time to recover wasn’t really an option so thankfully a beautiful cottage was available close by to the vets where we need to take him to get another x-ray in 10 days time. So having money available for emergencies is vital in taking a dog on the road. And being aware that your plans could divert at any time is important too. But I guess that’s not dependent on living in a van, he could just as easily have gotten an injury when we lived in our house too!

Dog food

Bruce eats Hownd (cruelty free dog food) and it’s a lot harder to get outside of the UK and Ireland. So we will always need to think ahead when heading to mainland Europe to make sure he has enough food to last the trip. But it’s absolutely worth the extra planning to have your furry companion come on an adventure of a lifetime with you!

Pet insurance

This involved a looootttt of research because not a lot of insurance companies offer 30+ days outside of the UK. So after a lot of digging I found one that was suitable and covered Bruce in the EU. At around £55 a month it’s not the cheapest but I’d much rather pay that for piece of mind for if he does do something crazy like… well I don’t know… break a toe!

EU pet passport

Lastly, there is a lot to research with regards to the legalities of getting your dog abroad if you want to take them out of the UK. Thankfully we have an EU pet passport which makes the process a lot cheaper. I’d highly recommend getting one if you are crossing the UK border a lot as Animal Health Certificates are both time intensive and costly. And as for the research with other things you have to do like rabies jabs and tapeworm pills, I always use the gov website to make sure I’m looking at the most up to date info.

So whilst there is a lot to think about and lots of research to be done when taking your dog abroad, in my opinion it is absolutely worth it. You just have to be willing to put that extra time in and be adaptable.

And lastly, a couple of pics of Bruce on the road!