Dogs unrestrained in cars!

This morning an elderly woman drove towards me, as she did so her dog jumped onto her lap. In order to push it back onto the front seat she took her eye off the road! I am not sure what the law is regarding dogs in cars, but surely it should be illegal to have one unrestrained? Our daughter and family are responsible dog owners and always ensure their animal is in a restraint in the back seat. If a child has to be restrained so much more so should an animal!

Re: Dogs unrestrained in cars!

I am in full agreement Willow, our dogs travel in a dog crate which is secured in the back of our 4x4 so that they are always confined and safe. When you are driving the last thing that you need is a loose animal jumping all over you...

Re: Dogs unrestrained in cars!

Last year I saw a woman driving along in our busy local town with her dog on her lap with its head out of the window. I am sure she would have been booked for that is the police had seen the incident!

Re: Dogs unrestrained in cars!

There are dog harnesses that clip to the seat belts, but I've never know anyone to use one. Besides being a boon to the driver it could help prevent a dog from serious injury in case of an accident - or so I've heard.

"Driving distracted" is an offense in my part of Canada and that includes texting, talking on a cell phone. I'd be happy to see it include driving with an unrestrained pet as well as driving while eating a bowl of cereal - the lady in the grey Honda behind me this morning!

Re: Dogs unrestrained in cars!

Being distracted at the wheel is an offence over here too, but I think having a dog unrestrained should be a specific offence. After all it is illegal for passengers not to wear seat belts, and children have to be in car seats or on booster cushions until they are 12 or reach 4' 5" in height, whichever is the soonest.

Re: Dogs unrestrained in cars!

We had harnesses for our two dogs which clipped to the seat belt, but they were not really very satisfactory and I would sit in the back with them because on one occasion one of the dogs almost strangled when twisting around. Then the law here changed and all dogs must be secured in the back of a vehicle, either by the use of the partition type thing (I don't know what you call them) or in a travelling crate. We purchased a double size cage for our two, they were not too thrilled at first but now are well used to it and more than happy to get in.

If you are stopped by the police and have an unrestrained dog in the car then you are fined on the spot, around 160 euros. It is illegal here to have a dog, or other animal, in the front of the car.

Re: Dogs unrestrained in cars!

I have harnesses for my two which I use for long trips in the car like my recent weekend in Norfolk. I don't use them for short journeys though.

Re: Dogs unrestrained in cars!

Good! Let's hope that catches on. I also hope there are safer harness designs on the market - scary to think a dog could be strangled while you're trying to keep them safe.

My sister has a wire divider to keep her dog in the back and he is quite comfy stretched out on a blanket, but it's good she didn't have him in the van when she was hit from behind on the weekend as there was serious damage done.

Re: Dogs unrestrained in cars!

I'm afraid it's not just dogs that are sometimes free to roam around a moving car, it's also known that some cats have the same freedom as many dislike being shut in a cat carrier A cat can squeeze into the smallest of places and could cause a hazard if it ventures under the brake pedal or jumps on the dashboard...

Re: Dogs unrestrained in cars!

Any owner who permits their dogs/cats or whatever, to roam around the car unrestrained is a bad owner and should be done by the RSPCA for potential cruelty. An animal could jump out of the window and cause harm to itself and possibly an accident too as cars swerve to avoid hitting it. A caring owner would always ensure their animal was safely restrained. If they don't like a harness use a dog crate instead.