Carseat for dog!

AdventureMom · Feb 12, 2007

I've been trying to find something for our dog to ride in - she's quite small and would just go flying through the air if something happened (when I slam on the brakes now, she ends up in the floorboard

). We have a harness that hooks to the seatbelt but I haven't seen it around in awhile...

So I went searching on the internet and found this - isn't it cool?!? I havent read that much to see about crashtests, etc, or if they've even done any (BTW, these are store photos - NOT our dog

):

bbartlettnfld · Feb 12, 2007

Looks cute but if they are just connected to the platform by their leash they would surly impact the windsheild or another occupant before they reached the emd of the leash!

You can still find the car harness for dogs. We had one called the Safe T rider or something like that. But for a big dog.. Not sure about a small dog.

AdventureMom · Feb 12, 2007

Yeah, I was thinking of getting the heavier-weight harness like we have somewhere around here to add to this. I did find another seat - almost like a bucket - that the dog sits in but it's just soft foam sides...

ETA: I couldn't resist - since the dogs in the above seats got their pictures on here, then I just have to post a picture or two of Mimi

mominabigtruck · Feb 12, 2007

The last time I was at big lots they had dog carseats. They looked like a small canvas box with a built in harness. I think it was made by graco?? I saw a doggy stroller at the pet store made by kolcraft

thepeach80 · Feb 12, 2007

I think I have 2 saved in my links. What is the link to the pics above?
http://www.ruffrider.com/
http://www.immioutdoors.com/petbuckle/products_harness.htm
That last one is from Immi and it even has crash test videos! Now that I've seen those, I get SOOOO mad when I see people w/ unrestrained animals in the car.

AdventureMom · Feb 12, 2007

Jennifer,

Thanks so much for those links! I think maybe we have/had the RuffRider...? I'm thinking of getting the IMMI one b/c of the LATCH. That's awesome!

LOL - I was watching the crashtest video and thought the dogs were real...

It took me a few seconds to realize that they wouldn't use real dogs in crash tests and that those were crashtest dogs (or large stuffed ones)...

ETA: I'm not sure I'd want our dog in something in which she wasn't strapped in so as to be "one" with it, unless she were in a kennel that was buckled down. As I've seen from the crash test videos, if she moves separately from the "dog car seat" then she could get hurt by it. I think a harness alone is better, unless we then put her in one of the dog foam car beds that strap down.

Splash · Feb 12, 2007

Our dogs are unrestrained in the car. I realize that this is not a good thing, but it's our only real option. I don't take them many places, just to the vet for the most part.
I couldn't restrain them anyway, there is no real way. Unless i could attach that harness to a cargo tie down in the back of the car.

Wait! Maybe I could attach it to the anchor for the tether? It's in the roof.

Hmmmm.... I might have to look into that. IF I could find one to fit them. I never thought of attaching it to the top tether.

steph · Feb 12, 2007

Splash said:
Our dogs are unrestrained in the car. I realize that this is not a good thing, but it's our only real option. I don't take them many places, just to the vet for the most part.
I couldn't restrain them anyway, there is no real way. Unless i could attach that harness to a cargo tie down in the back of the car.

Wait! Maybe I could attach it to the anchor for the tether? It's in the roof.

Hmmmm.... I might have to look into that. IF I could find one to fit them. I never thought of attaching it to the top tether.

I was wondering the same thing. Amadeus only goes to the vet and with riding in the back part of our SUV I wouldn't know where to secure the vest/harness. I know you could use a crate but doesn't that become a projectile too??? Also a crate to fit Amadeus wouldn't fit in our Pilot he is big boy

.

becca011906 · Feb 12, 2007

My instructors passion as she called it is pet restraints.... she said the best made ones are by the same maker as the safegaurd seats... check out thier site, she also said think in the same terms as when you are looking for carseats look at the buckle park and think about crash dynamics... plastic buckles aren't going to hold very well at all...
but she said for smaller dogs (less then 15-20lbs) the best is a crate and you can by straps for the crate that are a lot like latch/tether tighteners that hold the crate to seatbelt and she said it was best for dogs little... HTH

Splash · Feb 12, 2007

If I had a small animal, I would definitely use a crate. I have a Great Dane and a Saint Bernard(ish), though!

For my cats, they always ride in crates and I buckle the crate in (seatbelt through the handle, not that secure, but better than nothing). I think a small animal is far far safer in a crate than a harness. The harnesses are not for the pet's safety, they're to keep the animal from becoming a projectile. They're not really "safe" for the dog, but a small, secure crate is.

JaRylan · Feb 12, 2007

Splash said:
If I had a small animal, I would definitely use a crate. I have a Great Dane and a Saint Bernard(ish), though!

For my cats, they always ride in crates and I buckle the crate in (seatbelt through the handle, not that secure, but better than nothing). I think a small animal is far far safer in a crate than a harness. The harnesses are not for the pet's safety, they're to keep the animal from becoming a projectile. They're not really "safe" for the dog, but a small, secure crate is.

Splash have you considered installing a hitch and pulling a small trailer behind your vehicle?

I used to work for a lady who raised Newfoundlands so I know the large dog problems. The Newfs were always crated in the cargo van and that is generally the only vehicle they rode in. I shudder at the thought of everything that was piled on top of the crates (extra folded crate, grooming table, suitcases) when I traveled with them to Wisconsin for a dog show.

For a medium to large dog in any kind of a wagon/van/SUV I would think that a barrier for the back would be best with the dog tethered to something or in a crate. If the dog had to ride in the back seat could you tether them with a d-ring to the floor? They wouldn't be able to see out the window if that matters.

A pet peeve of mine is the people who drive around with their little dog in the driver's seat...even though it's a live animal, it is still a projectile. In the event of an accident and if the animal survives you would then have a hurt and confused animal on the loose (they could be hurt in a crate as well but at least they might not be able to run off and emergency personnel can attend to you without risk of your dog trying to protect you).

Splash · Feb 12, 2007

The animal wouldn't survive. He'd be squished by the airbag. He probably would have caused the wreck, too.

DOGS DON'T DRIVE! Gosh I wish people would realize that.

steph · Feb 12, 2007

I don't know how I feel about barriers - they seem kind of dangerous too! And they interfere with ff tether (not that I have to worry about that right now but for the future.

I have a very larger Rottweiler (he is tall) and there just isn't a way to fit a crate (if I even had one) that was big enough for him in the back of our Pilot. When we did have a crate (it was an X-large) and it barely fit in the he back of an Explorer and it was too small for Amadeus.

Anyway, I just wonder if I could get him one of those harness and attach it to the tether for the 3rd row seats (they are always down but the tether spots are still there)?

MMMM....I'll have to think about this. I wouldn't mind something as a barrier too, I don't like the idea of a metal barrier right behind Ryan no matter how secure it is suppose to be (unless is was part of the car) KWIM???

Amaris · Feb 12, 2007

We had a harness for our dog that he wore and then we threaded the seatbelt through. It made a great walking harness too as it went over the chest and stomach. It was made of nylon just like our seatbelts and had a large metal D-ring attached for a leash. The seatbelt ran through 2 of the nylon straps that were basically one on top of the other. Cosmo is a black lab/newfoundland mix though so he's a big dog. I think I saw at petco or petsmart (don't remember where we got it) that they made them for pretty much all size dogs. We had to stop using ours when he chewed through several seatbelts trying to get out of it. Seems he prefers to be in a crate on the floor, he's much less nervous there (and having to pay for 4 seatbelts in an odyssey wasn't my idea of a good thing)!!

Victorious4 · Feb 12, 2007

I have both the RuffRider & IMMI PetBuckle -- I trust the IMMI more (since they make carseat tethers, etc!) ... plus it's easier to use than RuffRider

Both can be hooked to LATCH/tether anchors, cargo hooks & seatbelts: I prefered to keep the dogs either in the cargo area or in the front seat. In the cargo area they could toss around chew toys & in the front they were happy just to be close so they were calmer up front. I put a seat cover on & gave them a chew toy & never had any issues with messing my vehicle interior (this from the same puppies who demolished ALL of my buckle stalk within minutes without the harness! Pitbulls -- sooooo affectionate & passive with the kids, but still adept with those jaws @@)

mamato2 · Feb 12, 2007

I bought that car seat for my dog!!

I was SO excited to find something that was belted to the car, but then I realized that it probably wasn't all that great. It elevated him (sort of like a booster) but wouldn't contain him, the harness would have to. I couldn't find a harness that I felt would do the job right (he could have slipped out of all of them in an impact like rf baby with loose straps and belly clip!).

I use a crate (belted in) for anything longer than a 5 minute trip and for those short (to pick up dd from school or drop off at gymnastics) trips I harness him to the seat belt in the back. I don't do the front seat due to the air bag.
C.

Victorious4 · Feb 12, 2007

My dogs were more emotionally comfortable in the crates, but the crates can shatter in a crash, becomming bits of broken pieces (projectiles) that can injure human occupants -- I loved my pets, but when it comes down to choosing, my kid always wins

The IMMI Petbuckle is much safer than either a crate or the image in the OP ... it's really the safest thing for transporting pets!

AdventureMom · Feb 12, 2007

Wow, thanks for all the responses/suggestions...

I think we're going to use a crate - we have a soft-sided one that you can use on airplanes, the Sherpa carrier. I think I'll find a way to attach that to the car somehow. We'll also get the IMMI harness and use that on occasion as well. She's small enough that I'd rather have her in a carrier, so I think the soft-sided one might work well...

Victorious4 · Feb 12, 2007

Heh, I call those doggy bags

Yeah, they shouldn't shatter into a bunch of mini projectiles like the hard ones

But, I'd still bunjee it down or at least get it as low & tucked under a seat as possible

(10# pet slamming into your face at 30 MPH = 300 pounds of force ... 30# @ 45 MPH is ~1350!)

AdventureMom · Feb 12, 2007

I found this on IMMI's site - cool stuff

http://www.immioutdoors.com/petbuckle/shop.htm

I think I might order some of this and try to attach the LATCH to the Sherpa bag... It's hard to tell from the pics, but it looks like there may be a lower anchor that loops around and through a d-ring, so that you can attach it to things like crates.

Carseat for dog!

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