Safely transporting a pet

[Jstpssng]

A couple of members touched base on this recently, but darned if I can remember in which of the many threads I've read in the past week. How do you control your pet (dog) when in the vehicle? The safest way of course is in a crate, except that was the worst thing I could do to each of my two previous dogs.
I tried the harness/seat belt way with my first dog... the first thing she did was get twisted up in it so that if I ever did stop quick it would do more harm than good. No doubt they need to be trained to use them.
Ruger had a platform on the back seat if each pickup, which acted somewhat like a crate except in the case of a rollover. I'm thinking about improving on this when I get my next pup, with some type of barrier so that they only occupy half of the seat.

 

[drssg]

We always just put them in the back seat. Maybe have a passenger in the car to manage any extreme behavior, until you know the dog is settled in. We never tried to come up with anything that would act as a seatbelt in an accident.

We always crate-trained a dog, especially when they are new, and we don't trust them to not get into things when unsupervised. They get a treat for going in, and they are not disciplined in the crate. Start with short periods of alone time. They can learn to view the crate as their comfortable safe place.

Good luck with your new pup search. IMO, it's not good to go without one.

 

[Rockbadchild]

I have done the harness and seat belt thing, until the clip got caught on my dog paw.. my wife has a dog barrier for her SUV (see picture below) she purchased that after my dog eat a seat belt when she left her unattended in the car lol ... I put them in the back seat and tell them to stay and they do, yes it can be a problem in a case of a accident but I do my best for that to not happen. Then there is the mats or cloth barrier but other then keeping the back seat clean they don't restrict access much.

 

[tacticalturnip]

Well, easy enough; crew cab truck, put the seats up. When I get out, put the windows down a little and make sure the 40/20/40 split bench is up, and they're confined to the back.

Of course this does nothing to contain hair, but it works otherwise.

 

[Fixastuff]

My dog goes to work with me everyday and helped me get 2 really good contracts. lol.

He rides in the back seat with his head out the window barking. As long as I keep the windows down he doesn’t come looking for attention while I’m driving.

 

[EddieWalker]

We show Akita's and bought a Chrysler mini van because it's has the most room for dog crates. If you go to a dog show, you'll see more Chrysler's then any other brand by a huge margin!!!

We keep two crates in the back, side by side. We can fit another large crate in the middle and still have room for crates that are folded up that will be brought into the hotel room.

Dogs naturally want to have a den. A place that they can go into and feel safe. If this doesn't happen naturally, start feeding them in their crate. We keep crates set up in our house with the doors wide open. It's more common to see them sleeping inside their crates, then out in the open.

It's dangerous for you, and for your dog, to not have it secure in a safe place when you are driving.

When our dogs see the van pull up to the gate, it takes everything we have to slow them down from wanting to get into that crate and go on a road trip!!!!

 

[civilian]

Our pups are crate trained from the first ride coming home from the breeder, 7 hours away. Just brought the latest one home this past Wednesday. Sleeping in his kennel right know. Gets fed in there also. Older two dogs have their own kennels. Older dogs travel so well, that they ride on the floor in second row of mini van, or the backseat floor of the truck. Best to be in a crate while driving, but... Did see a lady walking the side of the expressway yelling a dog's name(assumed) away from a bad car wreck. Definitely don't like seeing dogs heads out the windows while driving. Have been passed by too many vehicles with dogs barking out the windows when the vehicle was passing us while riding bicycles. Scared the crap out us every time. Jon

 

[MossRoad]

When I was a kid, we rode around with no seat belts. Dogs running all over the cars. Nothing ever happened. We were lucky.

Fast forward 30 years, and we strapped our own kids in like Hannibal Lecter on that dolly! If we had dogs, we'd belt them in. We have cats. We put them in carriers and strap those in.

Safest place is inside the cabin, strapped in, so you don't get tossed around or worse, ejected.

 

[MossRoad]

On that note, every evening around the same time, a guy that lives a few houses up the road from us takes his two dogs for a ride with the windows down. A pit bull-type dog sits in the back with his head hanging out the window, tongue hanging out of his mouth flapping in the breeze. In the front passenger seat sits a beagle. It doesn't stick its head out the window that's cracked open a few inches. It just sites there.... barking and howling like no tomorrow.

Tonight I was mowing the lawn kinda late, and I see and hear the mad barker coming down the road. I look in the car, and the guy is wearing ear muff hearing protection!

Now that's a dedicated dog owner.

 

[drssg]

I used to regularly pass a guy going the opposite direction on my way to work. He always had the passenger window rolled down enough for his dog to stick its head out the window.

Even in freezing cold weather, he was all bundled up, so the dog could be happy.