Pet Auto Safety

Eureka! I think I’ve found a great and relatively nearby pet travel destination. I love nature, I love history, and I love a little fantasy. And Eureka Springs, Arkansas has it all!

For fantasy, check out Castle Rogue’s Manor. I called them yesterday and confirmed that friendly pets on leashes are allowed. This is a scenic castle built from the native trees of the Ozarks, including black walnut and Arkansas red cedar. The following photos were taken by our friend Flea at the Jones Natural Chews blog.

For history, check out the following two videos of pet friendly places.

Pea Ridge National Military Park

Eureka Springs and North Arkansas Railway

For nature… Well, Eureka Springs is situated in the Ozarks. There are nature trails galore! Hike to some interesting rock formations - Pivot Rock and Natural Bridge. Or go check out the Beaver Dam just west of town.

This pet travel destination is only four-and-a-half hours from where I live. Hmmm. Perhaps I should put the dog car harnesses on Maya and Pierson, hop in the car, and go to Eureka Springs, Arkansas. What do you think?

These aren’t very good photos but it was the best I could do on Tuesday evening. We are leaving at about 5:30am tomorrow so tomorow would not be a good time to post pictures. These two photos are of our rental car. My dogs Maya and Pierson will be riding in the cargo area since there will be four people-passengers in the seats. Since we are renting a vehicle, I have lined the cargo area with a sheet and a car seat cover. I have also put Maya & Pierson’s bed in the back. And I have attached the tethers of their seat belts to the cargo area. Their dog seat belts are lying on the dog bed so that all I have to do in the morning is get them in the back and put the dog car harnesses on.

Our rental SUV since we can’t get four people and two big dogs in our cars.

I made the back nice and comfortable for my pups. And also tried to protect the cargo area of our rental vehicle from dog hair. Otherwise, the cleanup fee would be an additional $50 or more.

I will try to post more pictures of our trip along the way. If I don’t add more by Thanksgiving day, check us out on Saturday! Happy Wordless Wednesday!

Cathy from Michigan shares a photo of her two Golden Retrievers wearing their dog car harnesses. Gunner is the one wearing the black one and he is almost 4 years old. Honey is wearing the pink one. Her previous owner recently died and so has become a new member of Cathy’s family. Honey is 17 months old. So sweet!!!

Thank you Cathy for sharing this with us! ♥ ♥ ♥

A few years ago, I got into a car accident.  It was Thursday afternoon, the day before Good Friday.  My boss let us off early for the upcoming holiday.  Little good did that do since everyone else’s boss did the same thing.  Traffic was a mess.

While traveling about 30mph on the highway, an SUV suddenly decided to come into my lane right where my car was.  I didn’t have time to stop and he hit my car.  Thankfully, it wasn’t a bad accident.  My airbags didn’t deploy, my car wasn’t forced off the road or into another car, and no one was hurt.  We were even able to move our vehicles off the roadway.

But what if my dogs had been in the car?  What if they weren’t wearing their dog car harnesses?  The accident was not that bad for me, but I had been wearing my seat belt.  At 30mph without a seat belt, I would have been tossed a bit.  Sephi and Maya standing up in the seat without wearing dog car harnesses would have been tossed a bit more.  They could have been tossed into the back of the seat.  If they went face first, they would have ended up with a serious and painful injury to their noses.  If they went sideways, they could have gotten tossed onto the floor and broken a leg.  If they had their heads out the window at the time, they could have gotten a serious throat injury.  If there were smaller dogs and had their heads out the window, they could have been thrown out onto the street and run over.

Needless to say, when we left for Texas on Good Friday morning, Sephi and Maya wore their dog car harnesses.  And they wear them every time they ride in the car.  I am not taking any chances with my girls.

(Photo above is of Sephi and Maya in the car.  They have their heads in the middle of the seats because I use the Guardian Gear dog car harnesses which have an adjustable length tether.  For long trips, I keep the tether long so they can move around and I cover the floor with the Extend-A-Seat.)

Sandy from Colorado wrote to us about her dog’s experience with the Lookout Perch pet car seat:

“My dog loves the lookout perch car seat!  Bessie is too big for most car seats but since she has short legs I really wanted to find something for her.  I am so glad I found your website!  The lookout perch is perfect for her.  And I feel better knowing she is secure in the car.  I will send you a picture of Bessie in her seat soon.  For now, here is one of her at home.”

Our reply:

“Thank you Sandy and Bessie.  We are really glad you both like the Lookout Perch pet car seat!  Don’t forget that if you have passenger-side air bags to turn them off if Bessie is sitting in the front.  Happy New Year!”

The Lookout Perch pet car seat is strapped in and secured with the seat belt of the car.  There is an attaching strap which can clip onto the back of the dog’s harness.  Don’t clip it to the dog’s collar.  Purchase one of our dog car harnesses or get a regular walking harness from the pet store.

We went to visit our family in Texas for Thanksgiving.  It is a twelve hour drive from Lawrence, Kansas to Kyle, Texas.  We could have flown but it would have been more expensive and we would have had to find someone to take care of our dogs while we were gone.  So, my husband and I put the dog car harnesses on the dogs and hopped in the car.

The drive from Kansas to Texas was rather uneventful.  We got stuck in traffic a few times while driving through Wichita, Oklahoma City, Fort Worth, and other towns where everyone was one the road trying traveling for the holidays.  We made lots of pit stops for gas, food, potty breaks, and just to stretch our legs.  Oh, we did have w few times where we had to stop suddenly.  Traffic was truely aweful!

Even though we took a relatively small car, the dogs had more room than we did.  The back seat floor was covered with the Extend-A-Seat so they had the seats and the Extend-A-Seat to stretch out on.  With the floor covered, Maya lay right in the center and had her head resting on the center console.  Sephi mostly lay off to the side and put her head near the window for fresh air.  Both had their dog car harnesses on, but they have the dog car harnesses with an adjustable strap so that they can sit, stand, and laydown without getting tangled in the dog car harness mechanism.

I’m glad it wasn’t so bad for the dogs.  Although I enjoyed the time with my family, I am not looking forward to the long twelve hour trip back home.  But, it was all worth it.  I bet Sephi and Maya would say the same.  We love the holidays!

We love the new Cruising Companion™ Houndstooth Dog Car Seat Covers. Not only are they durable, but they are also fashionable. The Cruising Companion™ Houndstooth Dog Car Seat Covers come in houndstooth patterns of black & white, brown & white, or pink & white. It has two seat belt slots for use with the matching Cruising Companion™ Houndstooth Dog Car Harnesses or any of our other dog car harnesses. The Cruising Companion™ Houndstooth Dog Car Seat Covers are also machine washable should you take you dog to the dog park where the ground happened to be muddy. My dogs go to the dog park all the time and it is often wet and muddy. But the upholstery of my car stays nice and clean.

Pet Auto Safety.com is proud to introduce several new dog car safety products from Cruising Companion™. For those of you concerned about the comfort of the dog car harnesses around the dog’s neck, check out the Cruising Companion™ Houndstooth Dog Car Harnesses. The Cruising Companion™ Houndstooth Dog Car Harnesses comes in three color patterns: black & white houndstooth pattern, brown & white houndstooth pattern, and pink & white houndstooth pattern. And just for fun, Cruising Companion™ has made matching houndstooth Car Seat Covers!

Also check out the Cruising Companion™ Camouflage Dog Car Harnesses. Why get just plain solid colored dog car harnesses when you can keep your dog both safe AND in fashion?

And last but not least, check out the Cruising Companion™ Quilted Car Seat Covers for both the front and back seats. The Cruising Companion™ Quilted Car Seat Covers come in both blue and black.