Re: Car travel Crickey I am not at all sure what to do as we have 4 children (well teenagers/adults) and 2 dogs so not much room for any crates :-\ I am frightened now just using the luggage net after Heidruns nasty accident.
Re: Car travel Heidrun, some of us might have cause to thank you for the info we've looked at since your accident. I will be buying a cage for the defender. But it's also worth checking with the maker of your car as the best solution no doubt varies - I found a handy guide published by the makers of OH's car about what will fit, what's available and what is the safest. This is the recommended solution for that particular car: harness by JulieTandCharlie, on Flickr So that's my friends and family travelling in the boot then. Edited to remove reference to cage in defender - OH's research suggests that a specially installed strong point and safety harness at the back is better for a single dog than a cage.
Re: Car travel I had a Volvo estate many years ago - my first dog crate was a Lintran Transit box bought to fit it. They come in sizes and shapes to fit just about any car on the market. They are expensive to buy, but I am still using the same crate now, twenty years later. They are made from some kind of fibreglass I think, indestructible, reasonably non-slip, cool in summer, warm in winter, never go rusty and can be hosed out and scrubbed.
Re: Car travel Thanks Pippa, just had a look, very expensive like you said nothing under £300.00, won't be doing that as we only take our dogs to the vets and occasionally on a school run, I walk every where, so can't really justify it and nearly always need my boot space. Will take a look at the proper dog guard though better than nothing.
Re: Car travel Does anyone use the boot (aka cargo area) attachment points? Realistically that would seem like the best option for me size wise, but as Lilly is not used to seated travel, I'm not quite sure how this would work. She doesn't just get in and lie down - how long is the attachment, how much movement does the dog have, etc? Any experience would be helpful. I know safety is important, but I would struggle to justify the expense of a fixed crate I think........OH : But I am thinking of changing my car early next year, so this gives me extra foot for thought.
Re: Car travel My manufacturers dog guard was about 90 quid but the thought of Riley travelling through the passenger compartment wasn't acceptable for us. The thing I'm looking forward to is having all the general detritus in the back behind the dog guard and riley safe in the crate. So no loose stuff crashing around Lizzie and I and Riley safe as he can be too
Re: Car travel [quote author=drjs@5 link=topic=3132.msg33626#msg33626 date=1383569230] Does anyone use the boot (aka cargo area) attachment points? [/quote] It just depends on the car, I think. In one car, we've decided that folding the back seats and using a strong point in the boot is the best option because there is no way we can arrange a harness to stop him from smashing into the front seats in a collision. In the other car, there is enough distance between the rear seat belts used as an attachment point and the first thing he would hit (but for a restraint) and using the boot would be worse.
Re: Car travel Re. car seat belts - it is important to read up on actual crash test results as many manufacturers make claims about car harnesses that are not substantiated by independent tests. An attachment point that is too high up on the dog's body will just lead to the dog's butt flinging forward and the whole dog submarining out of the harness. I know that what we use wouldn't pass muster! It's just to keep the dog in the seat while driving and would be hopeless in a crash.... Now to convince hubby to sell his car so we can buy a Subaru!!!!
Re: Car travel [quote author=Oberon link=topic=3132.msg33735#msg33735 date=1383599214] Re. car seat belts - it is important to read up on actual crash test results as many manufacturers make claims about car harnesses that are not substantiated by independent tests. An attachment point that is too high up on the dog's body will just lead to the dog's butt flinging forward and the whole dog submarining out of the harness. I know that what we use wouldn't pass muster! It's just to keep the dog in the seat while driving and would be hopeless in a crash.... Now to convince hubby to sell his car so we can buy a Subaru!!!! [/quote] Maybe I should show you some pictures of my crumpled Defender, it might convince your hubby. I wouldn't have stood a chance in my Golf. ???
Re: Car travel [quote author=Oberon link=topic=3132.msg33735#msg33735 date=1383599214] Re. car seat belts - it is important to read up on actual crash test results as many manufacturers make claims about car harnesses that are not substantiated by independent tests. [/quote] Absolutely - here is a link to a good looking site for those interested: http://centerforpetsafety.org/
Re: Car travel [quote author=heidrun link=topic=3132.msg33740#msg33740 date=1383601068] [quote author=Oberon link=topic=3132.msg33735#msg33735 date=1383599214] Re. car seat belts - it is important to read up on actual crash test results as many manufacturers make claims about car harnesses that are not substantiated by independent tests. An attachment point that is too high up on the dog's body will just lead to the dog's butt flinging forward and the whole dog submarining out of the harness. I know that what we use wouldn't pass muster! It's just to keep the dog in the seat while driving and would be hopeless in a crash.... Now to convince hubby to sell his car so we can buy a Subaru!!!! [/quote] Maybe I should show you some pictures of my crumpled Defender, it might convince your hubby. I wouldn't have stood a chance in my Golf. ??? [/quote] A good idea. I'm certainly convinced.
Re: Car travel [quote author=JulieT link=topic=3132.msg33741#msg33741 date=1383601639] [quote author=Oberon link=topic=3132.msg33735#msg33735 date=1383599214] Re. car seat belts - it is important to read up on actual crash test results as many manufacturers make claims about car harnesses that are not substantiated by independent tests. [/quote] Absolutely - here is a link to a good looking site for those interested: http://centerforpetsafety.org/ [/quote] That's the site I was looking at too Really helpful info.
Re: Car travel Thank you all for the feedback. Heidrun, I'm really sorry to hear of your accident. Thank you for taking the time to make something good out of the situation by posting advice for others. 8)
Re: Car travel Since Heidruns accident I have been really worried and have managed to buy a Volvo metal dog guard for £65.00 on Ebay from an owner that is selling his car, so I will feel a lot safer when that is fitted. On the subject of cages, at Discover Dogs there was a stand selling made to measure dog cages and they said that there are very few cages that are crash tested and their worry was dog owners using cages for indoors use to carry their dogs in their vehicles. If they were to have an accident the damage done to their dog could be far worse then not caging them at all. Just a thought
Re: Car travel We have a guard for the back of the van. It's better than nothing, but don't think he harness will work for us....Simba tends to eat through the seat belts....
Re: Car travel Well, I have just ordered a SleepyPod Clickit car harness (independently safety tested) and we are exploring the options for selling hubby's MX5 and buying a car with a back seat. Hubby wouldn't come at something we could put a cage/crate in but he has agreed that a back seat and proper harness will be a huge improvement on current arrangements.
Re: Car travel My back seat car seat belt harness efforts are not going so great . Having sort of pushed Charlie into wearing them (after much, much, much coaxing and rewarding and clicking with roast chicken) his aversion to them is growing...starting not being able to get him out the house again if he sees a harness around. What is it with this dog and harnesses? He has had no bad experiences with them! Apart from that they are harnesses and he doesn't like them. : It's not like a harness jumped out on him one night and gave him a fright! So we are thinking about crates. : And the lack of crash test results are alarming. As is the impact of crate on humans in a crash...
Re: Car travel You probably have attachment points on the floor of your wagon?.... The crate we get will be fixed to the car boot floor attachment points by a webbing strap that will take the appropriate loading. I haven't looked into the crash tests yet. Does anyone know which brands definitely have been tested? (other than by Heidrun! )
Re: Car travel Yes, and that does help. It's not just about securing the crate though, but also how the crate matches, works with or against, (or not) the crumple zones of the car. Right now, we're looking at this company (but are a long way off making a decision). http://www.safedog.co.uk/
Re: Car travel [quote author=JulieT link=topic=3132.msg35056#msg35056 date=1384254321] Yes, and that does help. It's not just about securing the crate though, but also how the crate matches, works with or against, (or not) the crumple zones of the car. Right now, we're looking at this company (but are a long way off making a decision). http://www.safedog.co.uk/ [/quote] This company was at Discover Dogs and they told us that very few dog crates are crash tested and the crates designed for in house use should not be used in cars as they are not tested and the damage to you, your passengers and your dog in the event of an accident with crushed, sharp metal parts is a horrible thought
