Found Great Info for new women & men/wannabees etc. who want to know where to start!

DO A SEARCH FOR " DOG IN TRUCK" here on TTR. Lotsa info. Gonna get crowded in there with 2 people and a big dog 24/7. The usual problem is how distracting a dog in a truck can be, safetywise. Thought about taking my 60lb lab/pointer but after 2 mos OTR training with another person in there I knew it wouldn't work, for us. Figured I'd just get a year in then get something local. My little girl didn't make it that far. Got a brain tumor about 4 mos in. Took some time off before send her to the great puppy dog playground. Just got a local job a month ago and looking for a new best friend.
OTR is a tough lifestyle, something like 10% make it past the first year. Teaming with a significant other tougher yet. Throw ina big dog and the odds are long. Do as much research as you can before making any commitments in this endeavor. Most trucking pooch's parents are O/Os which you are a long way from. O/Os have a lot more freedom as far as riders, loads and hometime. Maybe a way to go is have your SO get soloed out and and ride with him and poochie for a couple of weeks and see how it goes. Werner and May have company driver and pet policies. Don't recall the particulars. Research is your best way to go.
My $.02

 

I am with you on the dog thing. I am a blue heeler kind of guy myself and don't see a thing wrong with taking the dog along as long as you pay attention and make sure he/she is ok with it. As for Prime, I went to their school and didn't make it due to some issues in my past but I talked to several drivers and a few mentors their and not a bad word was spoken about the company from any of them and even though they dropped me from the program, the guy in charge let me know how to keep that from occuring at the next company I went to and gave me all the time I needed to arrange to get home and let me retain my free meal card in the mean time. Personally I think they are a pretty straight forward company and I am sorry I had to leave.

 

There are several companies that run teams and have a pet policy. Start making a list, then when you are qualified, you and hubby and pup will be ready to roll.

Here's a few to start your list:

Holland Enterprises
Melton Truck Lines
Watkins & Shepard
Central Refrigerated
Prime
USX

Another good team company is System Transport, but not sure about pet policy.

 

Good morning all, I am a newbie starting CDL training in 10 days.... excited and nervous all at the same time. But here is the thing about this topic. I also have a dog that will be traveling with me. As of now, we have been together 24/7 for the last 3 years. She has traveled with me everywhere I have gone and plan on taking her with me as a solo driver. Now please now that I have been been an Animal Control Officer, shelter manager and rescue person for 20+ years so my experience with animals is much. Deciding to change my lifestyle to trucking has been a huge decission and it has mostly included how my girl would handle it. I still have nightmares about what could happen specifically with and to her while on the road. Trust me when I say her safety is the most important thing I take into consideration when making this decission. I would die if anything happened to her and have done some research pertaining to this. Now, she is a 4 year old Boxer/Spaniel X and weights 60lbs. My first major concern is jumping in and out of the truck. This can do long term damage to legs as well as sprains and fractures, not to mention what it would do to my back trying to lift and lower her everytime in and out. So I have determined that I will have a portable set of steps made specifically for getting dogs in and out of trucks. Now the other aspect is what this would do to her being closed up for a long period of time in such a small space. I can guarentee that she would adjust as long as she is with me but yes, it would mean that we (her and I) would have to have a schedule that works for both of us. Now please understand, that being new to this industry means I do not know if I am dreaming about being able to make this work. I just know that I will be extremly picky about where and what company I work for. But I also know that if I can't make it work, than I will move on to something else because I will not place my girl in danger in anyway and I feel sorry for the person who does. The problem is, that I would not nor could not leave with out her.

 

Do anyone know or have a list of who have a good reputation in company paid schooling. Cuz I can't afford going to some college and I tried TWC hear in Dallas, Tx and still haven't hear anything from them. Now, Prime would like for me to drive for them, but I heard bad things about them and also I heard that they don't give you home time alot just maybe one day off and on the road for three to four weeks. I heard Millis Transport is good, but then they won't 500 up front something that I don't have at this time. So if anyone know any good ones please let me know. Thanks

 

If you will be soloing for a while without your hubby, but with your dog...I met a female driver at one of our yards who had a MASSIVE Sheperd on the truck with her, I swear he had to have weighed more than she did...anyway, she had gotten the shop to remove the jump seat and had either built or had someone build a set of stairs/wide planked ladder type contraption for her buddy to get up and down from the top bunk easily and had a set of those doggy stairs they sell for high beds in order to make getting him in and out of the truck easier. Since the seat was gone there was room for it to sit right there by the door when not in use. He was simply too heavy for her to "help" him in and out. A lot of extra work, true...but it depends on how badly you want your furry buddy out with you. She said during the day he would just lie on her bunk or on the floor by her seat while she drove, and at night he went "upstairs" because he was too much of a bed hog to sleep in hers.

While I will neither agree nor disagree with the quality of life issue for a big dog in a big truck...the part I will second is that a lot of days you barely have time to attend to your own needs during that 11/14. You may want to spend some time out, without your pup first, just to make sure that you will have whatever amount of time you deem necessary for taking care of him.

Good luck!

 

Ther: I am going to a local NETTS (New England Tractor Trailor Training) paid for by workers comp so there is no financial strain on my end. I do not think I would go through a company due to the agreement of having to stay with them for a year or so. I do not want to be locked in if the company is not worth it. But you have to do the research cause it really does seem like things change quickly in this industry. If company training works for you than go for it, but do the time researching.

Mills: I totally get what you are saying, my concern is time restraints also. First off, Hubby not going at all . I figure if I have to stop to let her out for 15 mins now and then to do her business (and trust me, she has a better blatter than I do lol) than that is how it goes. I did a 5k cross country trip in an RV (I know more room) and found truck stops scarry. Will do everything I can to avoid them outside of fuel needs. There are so many places to stop on the side of many roads to stretch legs and take her out for a bit. I believe I will be stopping more for my needs than hers. I am also researching camping supplies to make those stops more humane for both of us. Things like solar showers and uv burners for cooking and portable toilets. Seriously I do not know if all this is doable but I figure I really do not have much to loose taking this step and so much to gain being able to see the county. So for now this is the direction and door that the man upstairs has pointed me and opened. I love to drive and she loves to ride so only time will tell if it is a good match. Thanks for the heads up.

 

alright, Im gonna toss my .02 in... First, yes I have canine family members .
Also, while I am technically a newbie, I have experienced being out on the road pulling flatbed for for several months.
Here is the deal, it doesn't take long to learn enough about driving a truck to be able to pass your test and get your CDL, having taken the test and easlily passing and then being out on the road, I can tell the skills required to pas the test are very minimal compared to the actual skills needed out on the road in real life trucking...
Besides the training companies, the others want experienced drivandby experienced they mean a couple years or more out on the road why,because it takes that long to learn most of what you need to and be able to perform the job

Most new drivers do not last, maybe 10%... And one reason many don't, is they were seriously unprepared for the stress and demands of the job..The CDL schools nor the trainingi period prepares New driver's foit issink or swim in an ocean of sharks... So, as a newbie, the stress of learning and performing. Our jo. Duties is stressful enough, without the added stress of taking proper care of a loved pet..
I can think of a few real life situations out on the road where having my pet with me would of put me in the position of keeping my job or caring for my pet... For example, under a load, needing to deliver on time and being stuck in a traffic jam due to an accident.. inching along for an hour.. a much needed hour to be on time.. Now, what if my beloved pet was sick or hurt and needed to get to a vet.. I would have to find a vet, how to get there and with the truck or do I need a cab or rental car...
I love my dogs... But I also want to be a successful truck driver... Knowing that maybe only 10% of us newbies will succeed... Why would I make my chances less by adding the stress of bringing my dog along... and why won'tuld I do that to my dog.. obviously until I really have experience I would not be able to care and provide for her at ghe level she deserves... And, her like all dogs would be not only going through her own stress, but picking up on mine as well.. and I love her too much to put her through that... Although having her would help comfort me..