Car Safety

[Stacy]

I know we've talked about this before, but I'm trying to figure out how to restrain the dogs for the car ride on vacation. I've read too many horror stories on facebook recently about dogs being ejected from the car, or getting loose during crashes. 

I've been using the Kurgo car harness. It has the attachment that buckles into the seat belt. It seems to work well for Katie. But Maggie is so tall, it doesn't extend long enough for her to sit up well. And then she stepped on the seat belt release and free'd herself. 

More recently I laid the seats down in the Forester and let them have the whole back. The latch system attaches to the back of the seat - let me know if it doesn't make sense, I can take pictures. So when I lay the seats down the latch system is on the floor. I can attach a carabiner to that and then attach them with a leash to the car. But they have a lot of slack to move around back there. I feel like we're okay when we're just in town, but it makes me a little nervous when we're planning to spend 3 -4 hours on the highway. 

The Sleepypod clickit is supposed to be the safest harness (but they're kind of expensive, and that's why I'm asking before I buy.) From what I can tell the seatbelt goes through the loops on the back of the harness and then buckles normally. But they will be very limited in movement. There is this attachment called the Sleepypod s clip that locks the seatbelt out so they would have more slack. But they would have to sit next to each other for the whole trip, and wouldn't have as much room to spread out. Has anyone used this system?

I don't think there is any way to get a Maggie-sized and a Katie-sized crate in the back at the same time. And Maggie hates her crate anyway, so that's kind of out. 

I know, I'm a worrier! I would love your thoughts.

Thanks! Stacy

[Stella]

This is aimed more at people in dog sports, but there is a really good FB group aimed at safe car travel for dogs. You can search your particular vehicle to see other people's set ups, or for a particular brand of crate / restraint system. 

https://www.facebook.com/groups/DogSportVehicleIdeas/

[Stacy]

I forgot to say, thank you for telling me about this facebook group. I joined and have learned a lot from them. I'm not quite ready to spend thousands of dollars on a setup, I just don't travel that much. But I did learn that there are other brands of crates that are much more secure than the $60 wire crate that doesn't keep Maggie in. I had been looking at the impact crates but again, I'm not quite ready to spend 1200 on a crate knowing that even if I can keep her in it I won't leave her there if she is going to be in distress the whole time. I wish I could just borrow a crate that she couldn't get out of for a while to see if we could work things out. But I don't think Impact Crates have a rental program. But it looks like there are some slightly less expensive brands that would probably also keep her inside.

Edit: The crates I'm seeing a lot on that site are from L.L. Bean. I never would have thought to shop L.L Bean for dog crates.

[Stella]

Glad you found it helpful. I do agility with my Doodles and travel a lot with them, including a lot in the Canadian winter. So, I invested in a Variocage - very expensive but worth it to me for the amount of travelling we do. Ruff Tuff are another good crate - they sell them at LLBean and also Cabelas - both of these often have good sales or floor models available. One of my friends got two Ruff Tuffs at Cabelas for less than the usual cost of one because they were both floor models with minor damage.  So, that is also an idea for places to look. 

[Stacy]

Funny you should mention that. I went to Cabela's earlier today and got the x-large RTK crate. I didn't get a great deal on it, I found them a little cheaper online, but if this doesn't work out I'm taking that 350 dollar crate back to the store! My spare bedroom looks like where crates go to die. There are 4 of them in there. Olivia's too small crate. Ava's too big crate. Maggies first too small crate and the right size crate that she escapes from. The RTK fits in the car, which is handy. And it looks sturdy. I really like that the door opens from either side. Maggie has checked it out, but looks kind of skeptical. I am hopeful.

[Stella]

Awesome!!!  Have you tried getting a copy of Susan Garrett's Crate Games DVD?  I found it helpful  with my younger doodle who was a crate escape artist!

[Stacy]

I hadn't ever heard of this until last night when I was browsing reddit and I came across a link to you tube referencing this. I was watching some of it. it was interesting. I only got as far as teaching the dog not to break the plane of the crate when she opened the door. I think you tube might be a resource I haven't tapped as far as dog training. I also think it's funny when I've never heard of something and then it pops up everywhere I go!

Maggie is really smart, and she's an enthusiastic learner. You should have seen how happy she was to be back at training class last night. Beyond the basics of sit, down, come etc. I don't even know what all I can teach her. She's starting to ask for attention from strangers. She will even take treats from them (if they have something worthy of her highness.) I'm so impressed by her resilience. She's letting go of her past and embracing the life she has now. We could all take a lesson from that, I think. 

[Stella]

Have you thought about doing any kind of Dog Sports with her?  There are so many to chose from - agility, rally, nosework, barn hunt etc etc. If there aren't any classes local to you there are some great online classes through Fenzi Dog Sports Academy - bronze level is $65 for a six week class that you follow along to at your own pace, even fter the six weeks you still have access to the lectures. 

Keep your eye on Kijiji or FB Dog Buy and Sell Groups, I expect you could get a used copy of the Crate Games DVD there. I think it retails at $35 CDN, or that's what it was when I bought it anyway!!

[Stacy]

The people at dog training class have encouraged me to work toward some obedience or rally titles. I would like to try some agility or maybe nosework. I finally found a training facility that teaches more than basic house manners. We just have to learn the basic stuff first and then we can do the fun stuff!

[Stella]

Awesome!!!!

[Christine]

This is a great topic and one that I am interested in.  We put Nala in her crate and use a seat belt to kind of secure it down.  The seats fold in the minivan and she is on the floor of the van next to one of my son’s seats.  Is this bad having her in her regular crate?

I thought I was doing the right thing until I saw the car crate on this post and there is no way I can buy that thing!  I was shocked at the price tag. 

Chris & Nala 

[Amy and Annabelle]

Yeah, there is no way this retired person can afford it either. It's just always been on my dream list. I did the same as you Annabelle's first year. I just seatbelted her crate in the backseat. Then I changed to the harness with a tether latch when she was full grown.

[Stacy]

Christine - I think you're doing fine. There's nothing wrong with just a regular crate in the car, and seat belting it in is even better. Maggie's crate is enormous though, she's really tall. And she hates it. I don't think I could get both crates in the back together. 

I don't pretend to be a safety expert. But I see a fair number of people after car crashes. And it seems to me that overwhelmingly, the most important thing is to stay inside the car. Crating or belting, either way. You want to keep your dog from becoming a flying projectile and going out the window.