6 Tips for Traveling With Your Pet

MT. PLEASANT, Mich. – The holidays are always a busy time, especially on the road. While it’s important to keep your family safe, remember it’s important to keep your furry friends safe, too. If you’re taking your pet with you to the festivities this holiday, follow these 6 tips for traveling with your pet.

6 Tips for Traveling With Your Pet

1. Pets should not roam. Any animal roaming around the car can be a distraction to the driver. The safest way for your pet to travel is in a proper sized carrier that is anchored to the vehicle using a seatbelt or some other secure means. You don’t want the carriers to bounce around in the car.
2. Leave the front seat for humans. We know your pet might be more comfortable sitting in the front with you, but if an airbag deploys your pet could get injured, even in a crate.
3. Keep pets’ heads inside. If you choose not to have your pet in a crate make sure they’re not sticking their head out the window. While it may be funny to watch their tongues flap in the wind, it's unsafe. Animals can be injured by debris, especially in their eyes, and can get sick from having cold air forced into their lungs.
4. Rest stop, rest stop, rest stop. Key to road trips with pets is stopping at plenty of rest stops. Let your pet go to the bathroom and stretch out. Always make sure you have a collar, ID tag, and leash on your pet when making a stop.
5. Give your animal comfort. Some pets don’t like traveling. It’s important to give your animal comfort throughout the ride whether it’s by petting them, giving them a treat, or letting them take their favorite toy. Switch off duties, too; not just one person should care for the pet the entire time.
6. Never leave your pet alone in a car. While stops may seem short to you, they don’t feel that way to your animal. Your furry friend could get too cold or lonely. Either way it can cause a frenzy.

Follow these 6 tips for traveling with your pet and your trip will be much easier. Remember your pet is part of the family too, so keeping them safe is just as important. For future reference, keep these summer road trip tips in mind when you're traveling with your furry friends as well. 

If you’re looking for a good family vehicle that will fit everyone and the pets check out one of our SUVS. We have plenty to offer at Graff Mt Pleasant, your Buick dealer serving Isabella County. At Hank Graff Mt. Pleasant we strive to provide our customers with a car buying experience that is accommodating, stress-free and fun! Visit us at our Chevrolet dealership located at 4580 E Pickard Rd in Mount Pleasant, Michigan 48858 or our Buick GMC Cadillac dealership located at 116 N. Mission St in Mount Pleasant, MI 48858.

Websites: Chevrolet: HankGraffMtPleasant.com and Buick GMC Cadillac: GraffBGC.com

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The Best Thanksgiving Travel Times According to Google

MT. PLEASANT, Mich. – Have you started considering a plan for your Thanksgiving travels next week? By now it is well known that Thanksgiving is one of the busiest travel times of the year with major back ups and headaches, but that's no way to start a holiday! Of course the roads are going to be more congested than normal with millions of people heading to and from their turkey day gatherings, but you can make things a little easier on yourself by considering the Best Thanksgiving Travel Times according to Google Data!

The gurus at Google have just examined traffic conditions from the past two Thanksgivings to help us decipher a method to the madness that is turkey day travel. And, there are a few ways you can avoid some of the congestion!

The Best Thanksgiving Travel Times According to Google

• If possible, avoid making your travel plans for Wednesday! It's the worst day of the week to travel before Thanksgiving and according to Google's data, the worst of it is between 3-5pm on that day! If that's your only day to get to your destination, try to leave earlier or later!
• If you can, schedule your travels for Thursday since the holiDAY is usually the day with the least amount of traffic all week! And if you hit the road between 12-2pm, you likely won't hit any traffic since that's when most people are indulging.
• When the feasting ends, don't get the wrong idea that you'll beat traffic by heading home on Saturday, because everyone else has the same idea. In fact, traffic can be up to 40% worse on Saturday, so relax a little longer and head home on Sunday.

In addition to the road, congestion at the grocery store and any other errands you need to run can be a big contributor to holiday stress. Stay relaxed this Thanksgiving by staying organized and getting your errands done this weekend rather than next week when most people will be rushing around at the last minute!

Most importantly, make sure you stay safe this Thanksgiving in a vehicle that is equipped to protect you, which can be a simple as staying on top of your vehicle's routine maintenance. If it's time to upgrade, come into our Buick, GMC, Cadillac, or Chevy dealer serving Isabella County! At Hank Graff Mt. Pleasant we strive to provide our customers with a car buying experience that is accommodating, stress-free and fun! Visit us at our Chevrolet dealership located at 4580 E Pickard Rd in Mount Pleasant, Michigan 48858 or our Buick GMC Cadillac dealership located at 116 N. Mission St in Mount Pleasant, MI 48858.

Websites: Chevrolet: HankGraffMtPleasant.com and Buick GMC Cadillac: GraffBGC.com
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