How do you stop your dog from barking while driving your RV? This easy DIY hack might just be the solution for you.
Dogs barking in RVs
Some dogs just can’t help but get excited when you take them for a walk. Our dog Buster was one of them.
From the day we found Buster straying, he’s been barking in moving vehicles. And not just little woofs. I mean, he barked…loudly.
REALLY LOUD.
It usually only lasted about a minute when we started or stopped. But still, this boy had a pair of whistles. At one point I actually wondered if we would lose our hearing if we tried to seat him.
Why is your dog barking?
Over time, we found out that one of Buster’s triggers was being able to see through the windshield or windows while driving. To accommodate him in the car, we removed the back seats and placed his and Ty’s bed on the floor, lowering Buster’s field of vision.
We also taught him to lie down while driving. Looking out the windows was just too temptin even if it upset him.
A solution to prevent dogs from barking in the motorhome on the go
Our creativity worked well in the car. But we also traveled a lot with the dogs in our mobile home.
The first motorhome we had featured a curtain separating the driver’s compartment from the living area. Since Buster was driving on the back sofa, we just hung the curtains and lowered the blinds on the windows so he couldn’t see out while driving. It was child’s play!
But then we got another mobile home. And Buster’s barking habit returned.
The new car was designed differently than the old one. And as soon as we hit the road, we realized that Buster could see straight through the windshield from his seat on the sofa!
With no curtain separating front and back…the barking began. Loud.
Suddenly, finding a solution to deal with Buster’s reaction was our top priority. So Rod and I put our heads together and came up with a simple DIY hack to block Buster’s view.
In the photo above, both of the RV’s slides are extended, so it appears there are gaps on either side of the curtain that Buster could have seen. But as we drove, the slides retracted and the sofas were pushed closer together, so the dogs rode just behind the driver and passenger seats. And with the curtain in place, Buster’s view of the windshield was completely blocked.
It was a simple and inexpensive solution! Read on to learn how we did it.
DIY steps for a bark protection curtain
The most time-consuming part of the project was reviewing our options. Hope you can learn from our experience and get your project done in no time!
Step 1: Measure twice, cut once
We were really lucky as our RV had cupboards on opposite walls, just behind the cab. And there was just enough room above the cabinets for a 3/4″ copper pipe.
Any piece of pipe would have worked, but I loved the way the copper color matched the woodwork in the RV. And we chose the slightly more expensive 3/4″ tube over the 1/2″ option because it was a bit more stable and gave us less flex across the span.
Attaching the tube to the top was easy with a strip of mounting tape at each end. The scissors were the only “tool” I needed to complete the project.
If you’re wondering why we didn’t just buy a curtain rod, there are a couple of reasons. First, we didn’t want to have to screw anything in the face of our new cabinets. And most curtain rods of this length are telescopic, which means there is a seam in the middle where the curtain would have caught.
Step 2: Choosing the right curtain
The choice of curtains available is almost endless. So finding something that suits your style and suits your decor shouldn’t be a problem.
What was most important to us was the length of the curtain – it had to be long enough to block Buster’s view, but not so long that it dragged on the floor and provided furry bunnies with cover.
Our ceiling height was seven feet, and when we looked through the curtains available at the local hardware store, it didn’t take long to realize that whatever they stocked was too short.
Then it occurred to us… a shower curtain would be just the right length! Not only that, they are also washable. And they are designed to be used with decorative rings that would easily slide on the pipe.
It took about half an hour to assemble and cost about $50 for the pipe, mounting tape, curtain and rings. It was a small investment to save our hearing… and our sanity.
And once we were parked in the RV, the curtain slid slightly to the side and out of the way.
Barking Problem Solved
With his vision blocked, Buster was able to relax in the RV. And without all that barking, so were we!
I hope this hack will help you stop your dog from barking while driving your RV. Let us know in the comments if it worked for you.
