Dogs flying

Hi, all,

Does anyone have any suggestions for cutting down noise for the dogs?
We have 2 toy poodles who we love to take with us on plane trips.
Unfortunately, they don't enjoy it and I think it's because of the
noise. I don't think there are any "doggie" headsets available. Any
suggestions?

TIA, Chuck

"Chuck" wrote in message

We have 2 toy poodles who we love to take with us on plane trips.
Unfortunately, they don't enjoy it and I think it's because of the
noise.

Chuck... It may well be the motion -- we've had that reaction to auto travel
with some pets, albeit no experience with pets flying. Do the poodles
protest car travel?

In any event, if they clearly do not enjoy the trips, you must leave them
behind. Forced travel would be abusive, imo.

Dogs are more of a noise hazard than something that should be bothered by
noise. :-)

Anything that can stand their barking is not likely to suffer hearing loss
from a mere airplane. If you are still concerned about it, you can clamp
blocks of high density foam over their ears using a strap of some kind. I
don't think our Scottie would tolerate this for a minute, but, well, she's a
Scottie. She normally just sleeps and passes gas during a flight.

Dogs' heads vary in shape so much that it would be almost impossible to
produce commercially viable hearing protection. The biggest market would be
hunting dogs, since only a few kinds of dogs are used and there are a lot of
hunters. Lots of hunting and gun dog shops carry hearing protection for dog
owners, but none for the dogs.

Chuck chuck_a_no_dirt wrote:

Does anyone have any suggestions for cutting
down noise for the dogs?
[snip] I don't think there are any "doggie" headsets
available. Any suggestions?

I did some extensive searching on this very subject several months ago. Some
people insisted that there *is* a company that makes doggie headsets, but
despite my diligent digging (no pun), I never found it/them. Someone posted a
picture of a labrador with a homemade headset consisting of skateboarder
kneepads (purchased at K-mart) with 1" foam attached to the underside attached
to two 1"-thick straps that wrap around the dog's head and fasten with Velcro.
The dog looked perfectly content wearing it, but of course, it *was* a lab --
unlike poodles, they're happy in just about any situation!

Of course, that contraption wouldn't work for a toy poodle or for my dog, a
Jack Russell Terrier -- those kneepads would cover her entire head!! Some
people take their dogs in airplanes with no ear protection whatsoever. I
discussed this with my veterinarian, and she assured me that she too had
friends who take their *two* labs between Phoenix and Tucson all the time with
no ear protection, and the dogs love it. Neither of the dogs come anymore when
they call them, but they insist there have been no ill effects!

I haven't tried taking my JRT with me yet but probably will at some point, in a
small crate in the back of a 152. If she appears to show discomfort or fear of
the noise, I won't continue, but it would be fun and convenient if she enjoyed
it ... could stay away longer!!

Please post if you are more successful than I was at finding those doggie
headsets that supposedly *do* exist.

--Shirley

"C J Campbell" wrote:

Anything that can stand their barking is not
likely to suffer hearing loss from a mere airplane.

That's debatable. You likely wouldn't suffer hearing loss from your own yelling
either! But as a teenager, I remember reading about studies showing how
listening to our music at the volume and for the duration we listened to it
would eventually cause hearing loss, so doesn't it follow that prolonged
exposure to the noise of an airplane engine from inside the cockpit could do
the same? ... and God knows dog's ears are more sensitive than human ears. Some
veterinarians say it wouldn't be a problem; others say they should have
protection just like we do. Guess it boils down to what you and your dog are
comfortable with.

--Shirley

"Shirley" wrote in message
...
"C J Campbell" wrote:

Anything that can stand their barking is not
likely to suffer hearing loss from a mere airplane.

That's debatable. You likely wouldn't suffer hearing loss from your own
yelling
either! But as a teenager, I remember reading about studies showing how
listening to our music at the volume and for the duration we listened to
it
would eventually cause hearing loss, so doesn't it follow that prolonged
exposure to the noise of an airplane engine from inside the cockpit could
do
the same? ... and God knows dog's ears are more sensitive than human ears.
Some
veterinarians say it wouldn't be a problem; others say they should have
protection just like we do. Guess it boils down to what you and your dog
are
comfortable with.

Exposure to prolonged engine and propeller noise definitely will cause
hearing loss in humans, just as prolonged exposure to rock and roll will.
Dogs, however, can and do create noise that is just as loud and prolonged
without any apparent hearing loss on their part, despite the fact that
humans exposed to dogs' barking can lose their hearing.

Dogs can hear higher frequencies than we do, but it is doubtful that their
hearing is more sensitive than that of humans. Most dogs, in fact, do not
appear to hear all that well. It is too easy to sneak up on them, for
example, if you do it from downwind. They will not respond to whispered
commands. Dogs rely on their sense of smell more than anything else.

Unfortunately, there don't appear to be any serious studies measuring
hearing loss in dogs due to noise hazards. Anything veterinarians have to
say in this regard may be no better informed than what any dog owner would
say. It is all based on speculation and anecdotal experience.

Chuck writes:

Any
suggestions?

Look for all of the other times it's been discussed.

--kyler

"C J Campbell" writes:

Dogs' heads vary in shape so much that it would be almost impossible to
produce commercially viable hearing protection.

http://www.fortunecity.com/victorian...213/id23_m.htm

--kyler

unicate (Shirley) writes:

That's debatable. You likely wouldn't suffer hearing loss from your own yelling
either! But as a teenager, I remember reading about studies showing how
listening to our music at the volume and for the duration we listened to it
would eventually cause hearing loss, so doesn't it follow that prolonged
exposure to the noise of an airplane engine from inside the cockpit could do
the same?

Yes, dogs who ride in airplanes during their teens will almost certainly have
hearing loss in their twenties. It is likely to be so bad that they will be
unable to get even a Third Class Airman Medical.

--kyler

"Kyler Laird" wrote in message
...
"C J Campbell" writes:

Dogs' heads vary in shape so much that it would be almost impossible to
produce commercially viable hearing protection.


Just put the dogs in the kennels. No noise either way.