Restraining your pet in the car

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The teacher in a class I was taking recently made a point about restraining your dog properly in the car.

-Your dog can get thrown around and hurt very badly

-They can be thrown from the car altogether and run away in fear

-They can become a projectile and injure passengers when they are thrown

She gave us this link, which is hard to watch:

There arer plenty of videos on YouTube on this subject, some from other countries.

I thought I was doing a good think by keeping my dog in a crate, but crates only "contain", and they can easily be collapsed in a crash. So now I am looking for a different system.

How do you keep your dog safe in the car?

[KarenS]

1. our small doggie has a booster seat held by the standard seat belt,,,,

the booster seat has a tether to hook to her harness,,,, this is in the back seat,,,,

[MichMan]

2. Tether attached to the seat belt is the one I like to use

Other end attaches to dog harness

Not only does it keep the dog (and me) safe in a collision, it also a) keeps them from trying to climb up front when I am driving, and b) keeps them from escaping when I open the back door to get them out. One of mine keeps lunging to get out even with the tether, so keeping her inside while I get the leash attached is a challenge.

[milestogo]

3. good work

My last dog always tried to chew the seat belt. I think its better not to have them in front if you can.

[MichMan]

4. Look up a company named Kurgo for their products

Highly recommended

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5. Thanks, will do.

[SouthernIrish]

6. It makes me sad to see dogs on people's laps.

Especially the driver's. If they have to brake hard, the dog will be crushed by the steering wheel or the air bag. So damn dangerous for the dog. I buckle up to be safer. I do the same for my pets, both of which are over 100 lbs.

[Midnight Writer]

7. My neighbor took his dog for a ride in his Jeep, with no top and no doors.

Dog fell out on the highway and broke both hind legs and pelvis. One hind leg was eventually amputated.

Yes, neighbor is a MAGA.

By the way, after he tells me all this, he told me if I ever needed someone to watch my dog he'd be glad to do it.

[milestogo]

8. Lots of people think its cool to let your dog hang his head out the window.

But its really dangerous.

[Ka-Dinh Oy]

10. Bugs and debris can get into their eyes along with the other bad things that can happen.

[Ka-Dinh Oy]

9. Always have your pets retrained in some form or another.

Even quick stops can be bad. If you have a 20lb dog and are going 15mph if you come to a sudden stop you unrestrained pet will hit the object in front of it at 300lb. It does NOT matter if your pet has been so called really well trained it is still an animal and always has the chance to act like one. I use a crate for my cat and I always wedge it on the floor between the back seat and front seat. If the crate has to be on the seat I buckle it in. If you are in an accident and your pet will not let anyone near you and you need serious medical attention they will kill your pet to get to you.

[japple]

11. I live close to a town on I-75 in Georgia. There are always notices for people who have stopped

for gas, food or at a rest area nearby who have lost their pet while traveling through the area. Several times a year, there are posts from people who have been involved in accidents whose pet escaped during the confusion of an accident or, worse, were thrown from the vehicle in a crash. It is always heartbreaking to read or hear of these incidents. Please keep your pet safe.

ETA: Also, whenever you are walking your dog, always keep it leashed. Even the most experienced pet owner can quickly lose control of a situation. I have a dear friend who had a young female dalmation that she had spent a lot of time training. She took her for a walk one day on a college campus (it was during fall break, I think) at a time when there wasn't much traffic or activity. At some point, she decided it was safe to take the leash off because the dog always responded to verbal commands. Something must have distracted the dog and she ran into a 4 lane street and was struck/killed by a car. My friend was devastated. She had to go by herself to collect her dog's body out of the street and get it back home. It was a very sad, but totally avoidable, situation.

[intrepidity]

12. Very sturdy harness, with metal loop on chestside

connected to rear seat belt with 18" adaptor strap.

Just enough so he can just stick his nose out either side window.

More than anything I worry about him jumping out window--I once was driving with a friend when his highly-trained hunting dog did exactly that. Amazingly he was unhurt!

So my dog is *always* strapped in when in the car.

[Phentex]

13. I think we have something similar to this...

they wear a harness and then the harness attaches either to the car seat (with me) or these loops on the floor of my husband's car. Neither of them like to stick their faces out the windows so there's always plenty of drool. But I know they won't be thrown out in the event of a sudden stop.