When the two of us headed west in our VW bus, we brought along our dog, Sunday. We knew she would love to be part of our cross country adventure, but we had no idea what we were in for. At destination 2, we crossed paths with a tiny stray kitten, who wouldn’t have survived for very long on the streets. The little kitty made it clear to us that he was on board to join our family and from that day forward, we managed to travel with two pets in a 80 square foot VW bus.

Sunday, our pup, usually sat on the bench seat in the back of our VW, but she also loved sitting on the cabinets, where she could enjoy a window view and get some good sniffs. Squishy, our cat, mostly sat on the front dash, where he got a front and center view of the road and the surroundings. They were pretty easy when it came to traveling, but we were always having to find spots to pull over throughout each day, so that they could do their business and stretch their legs.

We had equipped our VW bus with solar panels, a deep cycle battery and an inverter, which allowed us to run fans and an evaporative air cooler. Temperature really wasn’t an issue, until we began traveling through hotter climates. It then became clear to us that we’d need to drive at night, when it was cooler. During the day, we found places with shade to park out and explore.

By destination 4, we had gotten into a routine with our animals. We traveled in the early mornings and at nighttime and when we didn’t have a roof to sleep under, we’d park our bus and situate ourselves, so that our pets were safe and comfy. When we slept in our bus, Sunday took the bench seat in the back and Squishy usually snoozed with us in our upper level bed. Squishy was usually our alarm clock and we would normally head out early to our next destination, to make some distance before the sun began to heat things up.

Each day, it was our top priority to make sure our pets were happy and well taken care of. They needed food, water, exercise and they determined a lot of what we could and couldn’t do on the road. Most of the time, we were able to bring them to wonderful attractions and sites, but some places prohibited pets. On cooler days, our furbabies could stay in our bus, while we explored places they weren’t allowed. When it came to hotter days, we couldn’t risk it, so we passed up a few intriguing spots to ensure our pets safety.

We tried not to stay in many hotels, but when temperatures ran high, they were a safe bet to cool down and get some rest. Many hotels didn’t allow our furry friends, but we could always count on Motel 6. They allow pets at all of their locations and can be found almost everywhere. We had no problem finding vacation rental owners across the U.S. that let our dog and cat stay with us, many of whom were open to bartering videos of their rentals for several nights stay.

Sunday and Squishy required an incredible amount of attention, but we were grateful to share every moment with them on our 2 year adventure. We experienced so many beautiful parts of the country together and bonded so tightly as a team and as a family.

For anyone thinking about traveling with their pets, we’d definitely recommend thinking it through. If it is feasible, having them along can be a wonderful experience. We cherish our memories on the road with our dog and cat and look forward to our next adventures together!