Like every other aspect of traveling with your boxer, you will need to find which hotels take dogs in the areas you wish to visit. Hotels don't require health certificates, but they may require a pet deposit that you can get back upon checking out if nothing has been destroyed, or they may simply charge you more for the privilege of staying in a hotel with your dog.

The good-manners approach to traveling with your boxer is best. It requires that you take your crate into your room when your boxer is with you and that you never leave your boxer in a strange hotel room, loose and unattended. The risk of his chewing something or barking is too great. And every time a guest dog damages a hotel room, dog lovers everywhere lose a place where they can stay with their dogs. Remember, in a hotel room, you can order in, so there really is no need to leave your boxer alone in the room.

Room Location

It is a good idea to get a room on the ground floor of a hotel or motel you are staying in with your boxer. If you can, get a far corner of the building or complex. That way, if your boxer needs to go out at night to potty, you don't have far to go, and you will disturb fewer people — always a good thing as a dog owner.

If you must leave your boxer for any length of time, leave him in his crate with the television or a radio on (at modest decibels!) as a distraction for him. This is also a good time to provide him with his favorite type of chew toy to reduce his level of stress and boredom.

If you can't get a ground-floor room, and must take an elevator, try to take your boxer up on the elevator with just him and his family on his firs televator trip. That will make it seem less odd and scary to him. Put him in a sit/stay at your side in heel position. If you act as if you and he do this all the time, he'll likely be fine with the new experience.

Know Your Boxer

The biggest key to staying in a hotel room with your boxer is to know him and his stressors and to be a savvy and compassionate boxer owner. Make sure he has all his comforts of home with him in his crate, and don't expect him to be the perfectly calm dog the very first time in a hotel. Make sure he doesn't mess anything up — feeding him in his crate or outside in the car in his crate if he's a messy eater will help ensure that you get your pet deposit back if you've been sensible and not let him get nervous enough to chew anything else. If he has damaged anything, however, expect to lose your pet deposit and some other cash as well.