Petco Text Logo
Petco Pet Logo

  • Two Easy Ways to Start Earning Rewards!

Can I give my active dog Benadryl to calm him for his first flight?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Rat Terrier | Male | neutered | 3 years old | 18 lbs

You Im going to be flying for the first time with my dog. He’s very active. Is there anything I can give him to help settle him down for a 3.5 hour flight. A friend recommended Benadryl

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

Image profile

Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Veterinarian

Published on December 4th, 2019

No, no Benadryl. It's not used as a sedative and actually can have the opposite effect on dogs. It can make some dogs more hyper. Typically medication isn't needed for dogs when flying, even if they are very active. Usually the new sounds and smells keeps them quiet. You can speak with Rascal's vet to see if there are any medications that can be prescribed for him just in case.

Vote icon

1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

Related Questions

Petco Pet Education Center
Health & Wellbeing
The need has arisen to transport our dog on an airplane (will be in cabin), a first for our dog. He can get very anxious in new surroundings and doesn't have patience to sit still very long. Is there a safe OTC supplement or medication to give him
You can give Dramamine which would be better than Benadryl. Regular Dramamine, not non-drowsy. The active ingredient should be dimenhydrinate. Dogs take a higher dose than humans do so don't be alarmed. It is 4mg per pound of body weight so at about 30 pounds he needs 120mg. They come in 50mg tablets. So, I would give two tablets (100mg). Do a trial at home first with the medication to see how it affects him. When traveling it is recommended to give it at least one hour (90-120 minutes would be best) prior to leaving the HOUSE. You can re-dose it every 8 hours as needed. Again, please try it at home first to see how he does with it.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Petco Pet Education Center
Health & Wellbeing
My dog has anxiety seeing other dogs. He isn’t aggressive, he just wants to play. He whines, and sometimes barks but very rarely. We have a trip to fly to Vegas this summer. I heard Benadryl is safe for him for anxiety and motion sickness. Is this co
I find that for over the counter products, melatonin works much better than Benadryl for most dogs in my experience. The product I would recommend trying for Marco is NaturVet Quiet Moments Calm Chews with Melatonin, which can be found online or at your local PetCo quite easily. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Petco Pet Education Center
Health & Wellbeing
My dog has separation anxiety and gets anxiety in the car and in crates. I am taking a road trip with him from South Carolina (where I live) to visit my family back home in New York. I wanted to know if there was anything I can give him for the car r
Benadryl is generally quite safe for dogs so it's unlikely that this would cause any harm; however, it rarely does much to help with anxiety in my experience. A better option would be to talk to your veterinarian about prescription anti-anxiety medication such as alprazolam or trazodone - these medications are much more effective for anxious pets, and can be used as-needed for car rides or other situations that may cause stress :)
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Petco Pet Education Center
Health & Wellbeing
Are there any OTC sedatives that are safe for dogs to take prior to flying? I've noticed VetriScience makes "Composure Treats" for anxiety. Are these types of calming treats recommended? Our 9 month old Chihuahua mix will be flying with me across co
Hi there and thank you for using Pet Coach! I have had success using Benadryl as a light OTC sedative. Even though it is not marketed for use as a sedative, it is a safe alternative to the other options out there that are prescription. The dose that you will find is typically 1mg per 1lb of body weight every 12 hours. NaturVet makes a type of treat called Quiet Moments that contains melatonin and I've had multiple clients swear by these treats. I would try the Quiet Moments treats first and see if this is a good option for Scout. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns. I am also available for consultation if needed.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Petco Pet Education Center
Health & Wellbeing
What sedative is recommended for a 12 lb. terrier mix (very aggressive and a barker) to fly from CA to FL?
Several different drugs are available for this purpose. The drugs I use the most often for this sort of situation include trazodone, alprazolam (Xanax), and acepromazine. The last of these drugs will not provide any relief for anxiety for Muttley, instead it will simply tranquilize him. The other two will have both sedative and anti-anxiety activity. Discuss the situation with your veterinarian and determine which option you believe will be best. Hope this works out. If your pup is going to be travelling in the cabin, for the sake of the other passengers the use of the tranquilizer may be the best option.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Petco Pet Education Center
Health & Wellbeing
Hi, my husky has anxiety when it comes to loud noises and has developed a fear of the vet as well where she gets paranoid and a bit aggressive making it difficult to preform tests that she needs. We typically give her a benedryl before bad weather/fi
You can definitely try a Benadryl before the vet visit but if the problem is this pronounced, I would talk to your vet about stronger medication at home. They make several medicines such a trazadone, diazepam, or gabapentin that are now being used prior to anxiety such as vet visits and fireworks that can help. You can also use a white noise machine at home during storms and fireworks as this can help mask the noises to ease her
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Petco Pet Education Center
Health & Wellbeing
Please recommend a safe sedatibe for my dog. We need to transfer him via car but he's quite aggressive. Thanks.
Benadryl can work but for aggressive dogs most likely not. I would recommend contacting your veterinarian to see if you can get a one time dose of a sedative so that the veterinarian can safely examine him. We allow for a one time single dose of a sedative in order to facilitate examination of aggressive / fearful dogs. I hope this helps!
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Petco Pet Education Center
Health & Wellbeing
I just got my pup from the pound a week ago. We have a wellness check tomorrow. From what I can tell he will have a fear of the vet, bad anxiety and will most likely fight me on it. Is there anything I can give him to calm him down? Would something l
Hello. You would need to give a lot of Benadryl to calm a dog, & even then, it probably would not work. I would try to make sure that your appointment is at as quiet a time as possible. Call ahead to make sure there are no unexpected wait times & that you can get in & out as quickly as possible. Bring a highly valued treat, even if it is cooked chicken or a can of CheeseWhiz & give him plenty of treats going over. Make sure the technician takes a few minutes with Lance to get to know him & feed a few treats. The same goes with the veterinarian. Bring enough to share. If this is a pleasant experience, while it will not take away all anxiety, it will help in future visits. If Lance just goes ballistic, then reschedule the visit & ask your vet for some Trazodone that you can give 30 minutes before the visit. Hopefully, things will go smoothly. Thanks for using Boop by Petco.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Petco Pet Education Center
Health & Wellbeing
I’m going away for one night tomorrow and my dog suffers from separation anxiety. If I give her a little bit of Benadryl will that help her some?
There are a number of medications that can help with separation anxiety, but we never know how a dog is going to react to a medication until we try it. Sometimes we will use prescription anti-anxiety medications because an over the counter medication like Benadryl does not work. And some dogs get hyper on Benadryl instead of sedated, so you always need to try it first. Here is more information on using Benadryl. https://www.petcoach.co/canigive/dog/benadryl/ And here is more information on separation anxiety which also discusses medications. https://www.vin.com/apputil/project/defaultadv1.aspx?pId=19239&SAId=1&id=4952970 Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using Boop by Petco.
Updated on September 24th, 2025
Petco Pet Education Center
Health & Wellbeing
My dog has to fly on a float plane. Last time she was pretty stressed. I’m wondering if I can sedate her with Benadryl or gravel. But don’t know the dose. She weighs 17lbs
Benadryl will not likely work but you can try Dramamine (NOT the non-drowsy kind). Be sure to give it at least one hour prior to travel and give it when she is not excited or stressed. The dose for a 17# dog would be 1.5 of the 50mg tablets. If you have the chance give it to her a few days before to see how she reacts to it. If she is not quite drowsy enough your can go up to 2 full tablets. Here is an information sheet on the drug with side effects listed. Please read it. ( https://www.petplace.com/article/drug-library/drug-library/library/dimenhydrinate-dramamine-for-dogs-and-cats/ ) Hope this helps. If you have more questions you can always opt for a private consultation where we can chat back and forth. That way you can ask as many questions as you'd like. Best wishes.
Updated on September 24th, 2025

Related Searches

Dog Food Dog Anxiety Medication Prescription Allergy Medicine for Dogs Dog Blood Pressure Medication Dog Seizure Medication Dog Calming Aids and Supplements Dog Medicine and Prescriptions Calming Chews, Treats & Supplements for Dogs Dog Asthma Medication Calming Sprays & Diffusers for Dogs Reconcile Dog Anxiety Medication Hydroxyzine HCl Prescription Allergy Medicine for Dogs Hydroxyzine Pamoate Prescription Allergy Medicine for Dogs Hydroxyzine HCl Dog Medicine and Prescriptions Hydroxyzine HCl Dog Supplies Zenrelia Prescription Allergy Medicine for Dogs Cerenia Dog Anxiety Medication Benazepril Dog Blood Pressure Medication Hydroxyzine Pamoate Dog Medicine and Prescriptions Hydroxyzine HCl Dog Health & Wellness
image
Have A Vet Question?

Book an appointment with the pros – our expert vets are here to help.

Book Now

Sponsored