Here in Spain it is the law that all Dogs must have a Dog Car Harness, a Dog Seat Belt or be caged in the boot (trunk?) when travelling in vehicles.
I was reminded of the importance of this the other day when we were on an infrequent outing. A car passed us with two fairly large Dogs jumping all over the place in the back of the car, and the front passenger was shouting like mad at them to calm down!
The dangers of this are all too apparent but it is one of those small, inexpensive things that anyone who takes their Dog in the car should own.
I did write about Dog Seat Belts a few months ago, but the site was very new and I know there are lots of new readers since then. This is one topic all Dog and Car owners should be aware of.
I used to be guilty of not using Dog Seat Belts before we moved to Spain. I used to love having our old boy Sam in the car with me. I would open the windows wide and I would smile all the way as his face was pulled back by the power of the wind as he stuck his head further and further out of the window.
If I had an accident?
I never thought about it. The reality was though that without a Dog Car Harness of some description he would have been dead for sure and may well have taken me or a passenger with him.
If you only spend a few Dollars on your Dog this year make sure it is for a Dog Seat Belt.
You can get a Dog Harness for minimal cost and it may well ave your Dogs life if you ever (God forbid) have an accident. We have all seen the crash test dummies come flying through the windscreen in commercials. How much worse do you think it will be for a Dog. They are more delicate than us and it will take a much lower speed accident to send them flying.
Which Dog Seat Belt To Buy?
This is entirely dependent on personal preference and the size of your Dog. We use a simple clip on Seat Belt that attaches to the bone munchers collar and clips in to the seat belt holder. It is very short and constricts their movements considerably. There is no way they can get in to the front and cause disruption to the driver. They would not be perfect in an accident but they will stop any harm coming to those in the front of the car.
Some of the Dog harnesses available are much better at protecting the Dog in case of an accident but these are what suited our budget and the fact that there is not room for anything bigger when we have two or three Dogs with us.
You can also get Dog Crates or Cages to put in the boot but it is not something we have ever done and the boot is always full of junk anyway.
So, do yourself and the Dogs a favour and get an inexpensive Car Safety Harness for your Dog before you take them in the Car again.
If you already use one or have any recommendations let us all know. This is one of those issues where it is good for everyone to have a bit of feedback.
May the Doggie Force be with you all.
Great point! I never thought about this at all – I will have to look into the dog seatbelt too
Taris Janitens’s last blog post..LOL Pranks
Taris, Glad it made you think about it. It is very effective and only costs a few bucks. (wish I could say pounds) 🙂
We’ve talked about this and thought about it and have never done anything about it. *sigh* We really should…and since we’re going to have a baby a seat belt would be really good to have to keep the monsters from crawling on the baby in the car seat. Although really, the two big monsters go in the back of the truck (we have a canopy) and the old man and old lady stay up front with us (in the back seats … we have a King Cab). It might be a tight squeeze with a car seat though. LOL
megscole64’s last blog post..Kiss Mine
Megscole, sounds like you have a Monster Truck 😉
When we had our dear GSD she never traveled outside of her crate which we kept in the back of the station wagon. In fact Princess was quite adept at jumping straight into it from the ground.
Now that we have a smaller model puppy – to go with the smaller model car (SmartCar…) Fergus also never travels anywhere outside of his crate. We put it down in the living room, put on our coats and he’s at the crate door pawing to get in – he knows it means a car ride and is just as thrilled as any dog at the prospect of going somewhere, anywhere as long as it’s with mommy…The crate has a holder on the top so a lap belt can go around it with the should strap threading through the top to stabilize it.
My manager always belts in her pug – a friend of hers was killed when her dog became airborne in an vehicle accident (don’t have to draw you a picture, do I?). A doggie belt would have saved two lives that day.
Thanks for the posts, they’re great.
Moe
“The most affectionate creature in the world is a wet dog”
Ambrose Bierce
Imoe, that is some fantastic training you have done. I have never crate trained but it sounds like it can be a very good solution to the dangers of Dogs in cars. Especially if you don’t wish to use a Dog Seat Belt.
Thank you for highlighting the dangers of un-harnessed Dogs in cars. That sounds awful about your managers friend and should be a lesson to us all.
I look forward to more great comments from you.
You’re absolutely right TDB when you say that we don’t realize how vulnerable our pals are when traveling with us. Here in our city is a required safety mechanism ordered by law and there’s a feeling of satisfaction when you look at your dog wearing their seat belt, knowing that he’s also safe and secure in case of an accident. What about them humans that place their friends on open flatbeds of their trucks? We need to behave like humans and responsible parents… they’re counting on us to take care of them!
Karina A.’s last blog post..Animal Welfare: Home vs Abroad
I’m guilty! I never thought of this. I never thought that it could happen. I’m getting my dog his seat belt. thanks for this post. its an eye opener.
Hey Three Dog Blogger – just popped over from Lucy @ smallest Smallholdings! I am the proud owner of 3 beagles – Nelly since a puppy (8), Bella (4) since 18 months (had grown out of being a puppy and they didn’t want her) and Poppy (2) since 16 months (because she barked too much!!!! Shes a beagle and a dog!? Its what they do..)
Nelly the eldest is car sick beyond belief and she normally sits on my dads lap in the front, as its where she is not sick. we had a near escape with a cyclist pulling out in front of me a while ago, and she hit the dashboard – not hard, but enough for me to really take the travelling in the car seriously. We now make sure that she sits on my dads knee WITH the harness on – its just not worth it.
I’ll pop over again! We’ve had a few problems with our 3 since poppy arrived in July, and we had a Jan Fennell trainer in, (only for 4 hours)and we’ve got 3 different dogs, so much calmer, so if you’re interested, I’ll comment on some other posts and let you know how they did it! May be useful if others are struggling?
Nice blog!
Cat x
Cat’s last blog post..Sowing the seeds…
Karina A, great point.They don’t know the rules! It is down to us to keep them safe.
Minnesota Lawyer, glad the post was of use.
Hi Cat and welcome. I am so glad you have now got a harness and happy that Nelly didn’t come to any harm.
That sounds very interesting about the training. 4 hours and the training changed them? That is fantastic. I would be interested to hear more. Feel more than free to comment whenever you wish. Any help for other readers is always appreciated.
Well, it sounds like I can learn a thing or two as well:)
Hi 3Dog. We both have car harnesses and although we didn’t like them at first me and Spit now understand how important they are – Imoe is right, do you know how many times your weight is multiplied when you fly through the air at speed? Well to be honest, we don’t either excepting it’s lots! Lady Alf lost one of our harnesses and has fashioned a duplicate from old collars and bag handles and it works fine and cost us nothing. Happy Motoring.
Hey Gnasher, well now you are just getting to scientific on me 😉 Sounds like you are a bit of a whizz with the old salvaged goodies. Your Dog Car Seat Belt sounds great you clever Girl.
I live in Washington state ( USA ). I purchased harnesses for my dogs 3 years ago. I was driving in a residential area at 25 miles per hour when I had to come to a sudden stop. My German Shepherd who has alway been a good car dog was sitting in the back seat ( he is trained to either sit or lie down ) behind me when I stopped he got his chest and shoulder wedged between the drivers seat and door ( If you know what the inside of a Scion Xb is like then you know how bad that was ) I had to get out and use both hands to push him back if he had been sitting in the middle of the back seat he would have gone through the windshield. We are very lucky that he did not break anything or develop a shoulder problem. I went home that day and did a very extensive search for canine seat belts even though I really could not afford it I purchased a high quality canine seat harness. When I got my second German Shepherd I bought the same one before she even came home. These harnesses have proven their worth many times over and I am very glad for my decision to get them. I am trying to find people ( preferably in my area ) who are interested in working at making it a law that animals in vehicles need to be secured in one way or another. Even if people are not in this area I would like to talk to them and get stories and facts. If we buckle ourselves and children why would we not secure our animals ( do people think that their pet is invincible )? Thank you for your time.
Doreen,
I just wish that more Dog owners would follow your advice. In an accident a Dog car seatbelt could just save both the life of the Dog and anyone else in the car.
I am glad it is the law to have your Dog secured here in Spain. I hope you can get more people to take up the very important points you raised. I think it maybe time to make another post about this serious issue.
Thanks for your comment.
Attach it to his harness instead, please. It should NOT be connected to his collar. Think about it.
Purina Roadie has been crash tested and comes in sizes xs to xl.