On the other hand, for the amount of money you would have to pay a house/pet sitter...you may be able to convince a homeowner to rent to you by offering them a higher than asked for pet deposit and rental fee. Especially if you were willing to visit during the off-season. It wouldn't hurt to make some inquiries.

My sister and her friend traveled from PA to FL with a lab and golder retreiver and didn't have a problem finding hotels that would allow them for a fee. Of course they had a place to stay once they arrived. I drove for many years with my two pomeranians and never had a problem with hotels. You just have to do research before you leave and plan ahead.

My husband and I traveled several times from PA to New Orleans (1250 miles) with a Great Pyrenees !130 lbs) 2 borzoi (Russian Wolfhounds) and greyhounds in the back of a Saturn Wagon. The only antsy one was me. We got out for the dogs to stretch their legs frequently and to potty and once, in Mississippi I think, when we piled out of the car someone asked us if we were on tv. It can be done and we did just fine. I took my dogs for short drives to get them used to the car and then off we went.
I am sure you can find someone to rent to you here in TV. I have a home I rent and if it were not rented already I would rent to you. You can at least try. There are many hotels that take dogs. DogFriendly.com® - Pet Travel Guides and City Guides for Dog/Pet Owners this website will tell you dog friendly places to stop, hotels/motels and dog parks near where you will be staying. We always plan our travels around what works for our dogs. Check out the website and see if you can make it work. I think if you are going to be gone a while you will have more peace of mind knwing your dogs are with you, at least I would.

Thanks for the offer to rent your home to us. :ho: Maybe when we are ready to come down and stay for those few months it will be available. Not planning to do these for at least 2 more years when I am retired. My dogs are not distructive, but the Labs do shed, especailly this time of year. Can I look you back up when we're ready?

I think I've finally found someone that's as nutty about dogs as I am!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

LABSX2 ... We're going to be in the same situation as you. Previously we've always travelled with our dogs. However now that my husband has retired, we're planning to take a Mediterrean cruise, drive around Italy, etc. It's a dilemma indeed.

So our solution is to find a live-in pet sitter because we feel our dogs are least anxious left in their own home. In a small town, that can be difficult. Our back-up plan is to place the dogs in the home of a care giver. We don't want to use a kennel or boarding facility, we want them to have lots of love and attention. All solutions will be very expensive, but we figure, that's the price you pay for having furry friends.

Bring them with you! I couldn't bear to leave mine for any extended period of time :-(. Last winter I drove from Chicago to Fla with my two dogs, plus my friends in the back seat of a Tribeca. I have a Jack Russell and a ShihTzu, my friend a small rescue. They travel in "doggy seats" which get seat belted in, and then a harness for the dog. Plenty of room to lay down, and they were all just fine. We stopped about every 3-4 hrs for a potty break and tried not to have more than an 8 or 9 hr day. LaQuinta hotels do not charge a fee for your
pets and were most accommodating! Can't wait for my Lifestyle visit in 2 weeks, and hopefully I will have some idea of where I would like to settle!

Dogs in The Villages :)
 

We never travel w/out our 23# dog. We stay at Pet Friendly Hotels and rent homes in TV that accept dogs. There are a couple dog boarding, daycare places around TV but not many. This is only good if you plan to leave them for a few hours now-and-then. We've been able to leave our fur child in the homes we've rented as he is not a "destroyer" and he's a non-shedding dog. Perhaps your home town has some dog boarding facilities but do check them out thoroughly before you leave your fur child at any of them.