Another cautionary tale

[Karlin]

There has been an amber pet alert out on several of the cavalier lists for a cavalier that went missing in Missouri after a rollover accident in a car -- the dog apparently neither crated nor harnessed.

The dog took off in a rural remote area.

Fortunately the cavalier was eventually found.

But the posting is a timely reminder that a crate with a secure door, seatbelted into the back, really is probably the best option for transport. An improperly harnessed dog would likely have been injurd or killed. This dog was nearly lost or killed. A secure crate of the appropriate size would have protected the dog in a rollover and it could have been retrieved from the car. A harness though is a good option too -- as long as it fits properly and is secure. A lot of them have too much slack and would simply hang the dog or still allow it to slam into the seat in front. So be sure you have a proper car harness without lots of slack for the dog to roam around.

[AT]

one of our dogs breeders lost a couple of dogs on the moors after an accident & never got them back.

[Karlin]

They were very lucky to get the MO dog back -- no chip, only a collar with a rabies tag, not even ID tags.

[Lynn]

Karlin, on this topic....I use a soft sided crate that I secure with a seat belt into the backseat of my car. I put a 4" thick dog mattress in it for comfort then I put BOTH dogs into it and zip it shut. I've often wondered if it was unsafe having the two dogs in one crate in case of a crash. I wonder if they would hurt each other if thrown around in the crate? I don't have many options....two crates wouldn't fit in the car unless I bought much smaller crates. Do you think it's safe having both dogs in one crate?????

[Barbara Nixon]

Lynn, I wouldn't think so, as they would not be able to move far, within the crate.

There is no foolproof safety measure for all cases. Some will argue that a meatal crate is more protection than a seatbelt, while others will claim that a crate could be partially crushed, so the doors won't open.

Humans have lost their lives because they Hve been thrown from a vehicle, because they had no seat belt, while others were unable to escape because they were wearing one. There was a tragic tale of a small boy, who was actually killed by his lap belt, in a very minor crash.

Police in stab vests have been shot and those in bulletproof vests stabbed. There's always the exception, making people think 'what if...' but we have to take the best precautions we can and then trust in providence.

I use a harness when transporting one, or two dogs locally and a metal crate when taking two on a longer trip. Monty, has to go on a harness, as he doesn't like crates and would need a huge one anyway. The car has a split backseat, so all can be accommodated.

[Jen]

I think whatever is safest for your situation is the best bet. For us, Gus gets very bad motion sickness when crated in a car. We've tried numerous crates, but none worked. What does work for us is the LookOut http://www.snoozer-dog-beds.com/dogcarseats.htm
car seat (they sit higher up and can see more, which seems to help Gus) with the seatbelt attachment that we use with the Puppia harness.