When moving, canine passengers are secured in crates where the couch used to be located. (Photo by J. Breinholt)
This RVer Travels In A Modified Class C With Her Show Dogs
Jessica Breinholt will admit that the dog show world is an interesting subculture all on its own, filled with characters and situations that you need a quirky sense of humor to fully appreciate.
She should know—Jessica has been involved with showing her Siberian Huskies for over 30 years since her childhood. She now shares her life with a happy kennel of working Siberian Huskies that she enjoys traveling across trails with through the winter, and attending dog shows in the non-snowy months.
Since she often travels across the country to various dog shows, Jessica has modified a 2003 Forest River Sunseeker RV to accommodate traveling with multiple dogs to different shows. She calls her rig the Showbeast.
The Showbeast is truly all about the comfort of the dogs. Jessica did a lot of research to find a rig that had the features that would best accommodate travel with the dogs: a slide-out to add space, a functional floor plan, a good air conditioning system, minimal carpeting, and a big bathroom for pre-show preparations.
The RV has been further modified to its function as a dog show rig. The couch was removed to add space for a bank of dog crates, which are secured for travel with cargo straps. Eventually, Jessica would like to install a built-in kennel bank. Once parked, portable exercise pens allow the dogs to be safely confined while they have some outside time.
When it all comes together. Jessica and Shazam (GCh. Kaylenberg’s Bring on the Night) Best in Veteran Sweepstakes at the Rocky Mountain Siberian Husky Club. (Photo by J. Breinholt)
RVing with show dogs
Jessica says traveling by RV helps her with shows because her dogs can travel in more of a camping-style comfort and not have to stay confined in crates in a hotel room. You don’t have to worry as much about meals (you cook right there in your RV), you can usually stay at the show site (avoiding traffic and parking issues), and the overall event is more relaxed for the dogs.
Jessica estimates that at any given show, 30-50% of the participants RV at the show site, so there is a friendly social atmosphere with people hanging out during the evenings, walking their dogs, and enjoying the downtime during the event.
During spontaneous dog show tailgate parties, the evening beverage of choice for the Showbeast is vodka and tonic (with a good book), but the bar is always well-stocked!
One of the most memorable trips in the Showbeast was to a dog show in Washington state, near Mount Rainier National Park. Jessica and her mom traveled with eight dogs for a week as they journeyed through the western US together.
Jessica laughs and says that when they stopped at rest stops, they felt like they were deploying a clown car with dogs and gear spilling out. But she loved traveling and truly living in the RV with her dogs, seeing the country and enjoying time together.
Jessica’s love of her dogs is quite apparent, and her dedication to sharing her life with them is striking. Having a dog-show-dedicated RV setup allows her to travel safely and comfortably with her dogs, ensuring that their needs and well-being are met. The Showbeast functions as a cozy home away from home for canine and human travelers.
See also: How To Add A Dog Kennel Under Your RV Bed
I loke how the dogs are safely confined while driving, and then have free run of the rv with the owners for the rest of the trip. What a great way to travel with numerous pets at once.
Who ever she parks beside should be a trailer so no exhaust going into those dogs outside cages. Something she should keep in mind.
At dog show sites, when and where necessary, everyone uses their long exhaust tubes. Spaces are reserved several weeks ahead of time so unless you special request being with your friends and you all send in your forms together, you have no control over who you are set up near. But again, it’s a dog show so everyone is mindful of exhaust.
I’ d hate to smell the inside of that rig! Did she ever think about pulling a temperature controlled trailer for her dogs? I’d hate to beside this traveling dog pound at a camp site!
You would be surprised. Most people who travel to and from dog shows in an RV are experts in the art of doggy cleanup. More so even than the average pet owner since show dogs must stay well groomed, clean, smelling nice while they are showing. I have been inside many show rigs and none have had more than a normal odor.
I love dogs, but I camped next to someone taking 5 boxers to a dog show for a couple of days. I never saw the inside of their travel trailer, but they had a similar XPen setup outside. The smell was unreal, especially as the owners were very slow to pick up poop. Campgrounds are putting sites so close together these days that this can rapidly become a nuisance. And again, I love dogs and have traveled with as many as 3 at a time.
Unfortunate since this is not true of most dog show people. However, just like with anything to humans caring for animals, there are exceptions.
This article is over a year old by a few days. Many dog shows (+10,000, I understand) have been canceled because of the pandemic, but that also makes arriving at the remaining shows (often held outdoors) in a self-contained RV even more attractive.
People who show in conformation are more likely to travel with multiple dogs, especially if they are professional handlers of other people’s dogs. I travel with only one or two dogs because I compete in performance events where almost everyone is competing with a dog they personally own.
We are celebrating 30 years of dog showing using an RV. When we are traveling all of the dogs are crated. We started with 1 dog and expanded to 7 Newfoundland dogs. Some carry more, some less. No, we seldom carry more than 5 dogs. Our experience is people that exhibit animals tend to be considerate of others.