Pet Owners Unaware of Travel Dangers

Do you have your dog restrained in some way when driving the car like you would your children?

Because 33% of people don't leave their dogs behide as they take them every where. With 5.5 million of them quite happy to treat their pet as regular passengers, allowing them to sit unrestrained alongside them on the front or back seat, many are putting themselves and their pets in peril.

With so many pets travelling with their owners, it's thought some 1.35 million pets are involved in car accidents as passengers. Indeed, unrestrained cats and dogs who distract their owners by jumping, barking and looking for affection are a common cause of the car accidents that pet owners are involved in every year.

But pets are not just a cause of an accident; by not restraining their animal properly in the car, owners are putting themselves at risk of injury. The force of a 50lb dog such as a border collie, in a 30mph crash, would be equivalent to almost nine 12 stone man been thrown forward**

98% of pet owners think about their dog when buying a new car
so next time that you take your dog out make sure it's belted up like you would your children as i'm sure that you wouldn't want it hurt just because it wasn't wearing a harness in a create or in the boot behind a dog guard.

hmm... indie used to sit on my lap when she was a pup, and now she crushes me, so i have to sit in the back with her so she will sit next to me. I dont have a proper dog harness, but i used her normal walking harness and strap the lead to the middle seatbelt. dont know if thats safe

I must get Jas one of those car harness'

I'm so boring - it's one of the first things we bought for madam. Soon have to get a larger size too. Must admit it wasn't all altruistic - I'm very wary of the 'heavy things flying around in a smash will kill you ever so easily' scenario. Have you seen that awful road safety ad where the boy in the back seat shoots forward and does for his mum who's driving? Scarey

I check the car and put books in the glove compartment etc. too.


Perhaps this is all some sort of admission that I am a really bad driver.......................... (I am!)

Star usually is in the boot of the car with a dog guard up but this makes you think.

Must admit Rocky sits on the back seat..

At worst he'd kill ya or be killed himself, at best he's likely to be hurt if you're in a crash.
Plus, frightened/hurt dogs run - if they can.
Sorry - being boring but it makes you think.

I kno, but he wont sit in the boot cos he likes to be near-by He used to sit on the front seat til he got to big for it!

I'll have to see what I can find

Cool avatar Mr leo!

mine are in the back of my volvo behind a v strong dog guard!!the satffs are little angels in the car but the labs are a bl**dy screeching nightmare

mine are in trolly .....like a large crate with wheels...LOL