They are not restrained. There is a guard attached to the front head rests, not between the front seats. They have the same amount of room in the back as a Ford Focus Estate (probably less actually) and a damn site less than those with Mondeo size cars who keep their dogs contained by a dog guard.

Precisely, you could go on forever and a day trying to second guess the dangers posed by this, that and the other, you'd waste your life trying to decide which thing is statistically safer! The thing some people on here seem to be forgetting is that it's a free country and if people choose to do things a certain way, it is their choice. It is, after all, a free country. I'm perfectly capable of making my own decisions, if others don't like it then fair enough, but why people insist on trying to ram their own opinions down others' throat is beyond me. If people don't agree with what I do then that's their problem, that's the way I see it anyway. People can call me all the names under the sun, I really couldn't give a crap!

What about if the dog is restrained by a harness/seatbelt and the side windows smash as the car rolls, the dog's head slips out of the window and gets crushed by the car? One dead dog I'm afraid.

Really? Cos my dogs have been restrained by a harness and have still been able to stick their heads out of the window! Let me guess, you expect me to super glue my dogs backside to the seat?!

Having no car insurance is illegal so that's a moot point.

That's what I do, yet I'm still getting the 3rd degree from some! Seems you can't please everyone!

Not me, that's for certain. Being spoken to in such a patronising tone as some have on this thread will be enough to turn people away from the thread on it's own, let alone the links! It wasn't so long ago that people were judging you for your handling of the adolescent Woody, you didn't like it, yet here you are doing the exact same thing to people in this thread?

I think that a lot too, mist the time I get bored and end up deleting the dogsey bit of the url as soon as it cmoes into another window, it goes a lot quicker then

You can get these plastic things (Have'nt a clue what their called) that fit into the windows of cars for dogs safety, means you can have the window open, yet the dog can not get its head out.
There are things in place .... for a reason!!!

Of course we wouldnt all sit there day in day out working out what risks there are, but when you know of dangers, I just dont see why you wouldnt do all you can not to stop yourself adding to the statics? Really I cant get my head around it, does the dog feel less loved, or hard done by for being in a cage, or other safety measured taken I think not.

Haha, I wondered how long it would be before someone brought this up again I could feel it coming. As a new owner I struggled with my first ever puppy and now I have no right to an opinion on anything to do with dogs? Come on, you can do better than that!

Irrespective of how patronising you think I and others have been, the links prove that what we are saying is true. But if you and others are arrogant enough to think you know better than the police on vehicle safety then off you go.

Slightly but i'd still like to know how many accidents a year involve an unrestrained dog or the percentage of all reported accidents that involve and unrestrained dog.

Also, to be honest looking at some of the pictures on the second link it makes me really not want to keep my dog in the boot.

That guy in the top picture had a crate and reckons that is what saved his dog and he spent £640 on it. Nice if you can afford it. I can't afford a £640 crate, my car probably isn't big enough to get one that would be comfortable for Monty and i don't want to put Monty in one because it would stress him.

So if that crate is what saved the dog and i restrained Monty in the boot with a dog guard and i had a similar accident then Monty would be dead and i'd be wishing I did what I always did and let him sit on the folded down back seats.

Me too, why does it take so long

i have no problem with dogs loose behind dog guards. I do have a intense dislike about dogs heads out of windows.

But tbh rips you are a experinced owner & im sure you have considered it fully.

Just out of curiosity how much of their heads can they stick out? (youve probaley said somewhere)

I dont know why you dont all just get a van!

There is a difference between a dog and a human sitting in the back seat of a car (or the boot).

on a head-on impact a human will move up and forward i unrestrained because of the weight distribution of the human body (top heavy) and the fact that we sit upright.

If a dog is lying down either in the boot or on the back seat, their movement in a head on crash will be forward only, i.e. not up and over the seats.

My dogs travel in my car unrestrained. They both lie down. I don't think a crate would be any more affective in a crash. Yes, it may stop them escaping if doors fling open, but equally it could stop you getting them out quickly if needed (e.g. if the car sets on fire)
Harnesses may be better, but unless on a very short lead they are not going to make any difference if the dog is still able to hit whatever is in front of it (e.g. the back of the rear seats or the back of the front seats). Again, you might be in the position of having to get them out quickly and the harness may hamper this.

having been in two cars which have set fire - (though luckily no dogs with us either time) I'm more scared of this than I am of them flying forward if unrestrained.

I don't think it is (a moot point) are you saying that you only get insurance on your car because it is illegal not to have it (which I think that having any live animal in any vechile not restrained should be, and before anythings said that is not meant to you) not becuase of the risk of being hit by another vechile (can't spell tonight) and having to fork out on repairs etc?

I'm finding it hard to find any published stats online but I have looked. I might give my local police station a call for advice as irrespective of all the bickering, it is important to know as much as possible.

I know what you mean about the picture, I feel the same, but I also know that the percentages of fatality are significantly lower than they would be if he was loose. Don't forget I asked the traffic cop at my training last week about the safest place and he said categorically the boot, behind a dog guard or rear seat with harness.