By Rachel Puryear

If you’re on the road with pets, it’s wonderful to have them with you – and share the experience with them. At the same time, this also means taking proper precautions to protect their safety and well-being on the road; and in an RV, van, or trailer (travel vehicles).

One area of caution in traveling with pets is securing your travel vehicle. Travel vehicles are not always designed with security as a priority, and many people do not realize that they can be easier to break into than stick-and-brick homes – and maybe even easier than many passenger cars.

Many people, in spite of those risks, are prepared to handle their own personal safety on the road – and, as I detailed in a previous post, listening to your intuition is a key first step in personal safety and security. Listening to your intuition also extends to protecting your pets – as well as children, elderly, and other vulnerable people and other beings traveling with you.

However, there are a few extra steps that could greatly reduce the risk of a break-in of your travel vehicle, and they are easy.

Given the extra risk that a break-in could pose to a pet traveling with you, and the ease of helping prevent that; it’s worth it to consider these basic security measures to help give peace of mind, and protect your fur babies (as well as people who will also benefit).

Here are a few security tips to help prevent a travel vehicle break-in:

Take Advantage of Community Where Possible

If you’re staying in a campground, or traveling in a group, you’ve got other people around you who can help look after you – and be sure and look after them, too.

If you haven’t met your nearby neighbors, introduce yourself, and spend a few minutes striking up a rapport. You might even make new friends this way, and learn helpful information from your fellow travelers.

Once you’re friendly with those around you, ask them to look after your campsite or vehicle if you’re going to be away for a little while – and, of course, offer to return the favor if they need it. Just asking them makes them much more likely to keep an eye out for you.

Lights and Alarms Can Alert You

LED motion sensor lights are easy to use. These can alert you if someone is closely approaching your vehicle or campsite.

You can also install an alarm in your vehicle, that will go off if someone enters who isn’t supposed to.

There is, of course, no guarantee that a burglar could not get past your security measures. But at the same time, most would-be burglars are opportunists rather than professionals, and will usually be dissuaded by simple measures like this – deciding to instead move on to an easier target.

Here’s a motion sensor alarm you can use to alert you if a window or door is opened – and it can make a loud alarm sound to scare off an intruder, too.

Here’s a motion sensor LED light you can place on the exterior of your travel vehicle. As an added plus, this can help you see better if you’re approaching your door after dark.

Make Your Windows More Secure

Many travel vehicles have windows that can be easily opened from the outside, if someone wants to – after all, they’re most often made to be vehicles, rather than homes.

However, an easy solution is to place a bar in your window track, in order to prevent someone from being able to slide your window open. Just don’t forget to put it back after you remove it to open your windows from the inside.

Here’s a window bar you can use for this purpose.

You can also upgrade flimsy plastic window latches for metal ones – here’s an example of a sturdier window latch.

Check Your Locks

Many RV’s have only a few different kinds of keys that fit their locks, so someone else with the same model as you has a good chance of having a key that also fits your lock. Many consumers don’t realize this, but all it takes is one thief to know that for you to be at risk.

You can easily fix this security loophole, by changing the locks on your vehicle.

Here’s a much more secure lock and key set that’s easy to install, gives you unique keys, and fits most RV’s and trailers.

Use a Hitch Lock for a Travel Trailer

If you have a travel trailer attached to your vehicle, you don’t want someone to unhitch it and tow it away while you’re out of it – especially not if you have precious cargo inside.

Luckily, there’s an easy and inexpensive fix for this – get a hitch lock. This will help prevent someone from detaching your travel trailer.

Here’s a hitch lock that will fit for most travel trailers.

Don’t Draw Unnecessary Attention

You know better than to leave valuables in plain view from outside your travel vehicle – but people sometimes forget things, so this is just a friendly reminder.

Be Safe, But Don’t Forget to Have Fun

These tips are not meant to scare you – chances are, no one will bother you during your travels, and most other people are not out to get you.

Instead, they’re just meant to help give you peace of mind, and best protect you and the ones you love. Be safe out there.

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• Summer is here, and while that means adventure, there’s no reason you cannot also be comfortable. Here are a few things to keep you happier and enhance your enjoyment out there:
  • If you’re a large or plus-sized outdoor lover, think of the last time you sat in a camping chair. Was it made for your body type? Or did it pinch you, and make you worry that it wouldn’t hold your weight? Was it too low or too small for you? Give your luscious bottom the space and support it needs, with these extra-large, portable outdoor folding chairs that are lightweight to carry, but hold up to 500 lbs/227 kg. But if you need more capacity than that, they also make one that holds up to 1,000 lbs/454 kg. You’re much safer in a chair that’s meant to hold YOU.
  • For relaxing outdoors, you’ll need some shade from the sun. A shade tent is great for that – but of course, it needs to go up easily, you don’t want to screw around with it all day. Check out this easy-to-put-up, cute, portable folding shelter that gives 36 square feet of shade.
  • You’ll need a fan to keep you cool in bed on hot nights. However, while camping, electric ones are power-hungry – and loud. So try this battery-powered fan that’s lightweight and quiet, and rotates to cool off everyone. You can also plug it in if you’re hooked up to power. Rechargeable batteries can help with this, too.

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Thank you, dear readers, for reading, following, and sharing. Here’s to protecting our loved ones.

Check out my other blog, too – World Class Hugs, at https://worldclasshugs.com. It’s about celebrating empathic and HSP/HSS people, balanced versus toxic relationships, spirituality without religious dogma, and visiting gorgeous natural places.

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