Pet Auto Safety

Summer turning to fall is a great time for a picnic. So fill up the picnic basket and head out for some fun! We had a great picnic this past week. It was my husband and I, our two dogs Maya & Pierson, and four friends. Check out these fun photos.

First, game time. We didn’t have a volleyball so we played badminton instead. This is our friend Sha Sha.

Eating was next. Maya & Pierson don’t usually beg, but we and our friends couldn’t help but to give them a few goodies.

Pierson sitting for some picnic treats. Maya using her trick of giving the big brown puppy eyes to get treats.

Then we go for a walk and do some exploring. Lots of interesting smells!

Then our friend Jinbo takes them for a run.

After such a workout, we all hung out at the watering hole.

We ended the afternoon with a little fun at the playground.

Don’t forget, if you travel anywhere in the car with your dog, be sure they are secured in a dog car seat belt or other pet travel safety device.

For more fun pet photos, check out the great blogs on the Wordless Wednesday blog hop below.

Keep Your Dog from being a Distraction to the Driver

The dog won’t be able to distract the person driving the car.  Distractions can be very dangerous to the driver.  Some dogs are naturally well-behaved in the vehicle but many dogs have to be trained car-riding decorum.  Why not train them in a dog car seat belt or other pet safety restraint instead?

Shelley with http://www.bednbiscuit.com/ has her dog wear a dog car seat belt.  Her dog, Kendra, is from a high kill shelter in Kentucky.  She wears the dog car seat belt in order to be safe.  Kendra does ride in the front seat because Shelley’s car does not have a back seat.  If your dog must ride in the front seat, make sure the passenger side airbags are disabled.

Thanks Shelley for sharing this great photo of Kendra.  She is beautiful!

Do you love the outdoors?  Are you considering traveling to Austin, Texas?  The Austin area is a great place for people who love the outdoors to visit.  In the city itself is Zilker Park and the Barton Creek Greenbelt.  North of Austin is Georgetown Lake.  (My dog, Smokey, and I went on a 3-day hike around the lake once.  It was awesome!)  East of Austin is Bastrop Lake.  (This place is great for taking the dogs swimming, hiking, or boating.)  These are just the places I am most familiar with.  There are many more outdoor places in the Austin area for you and your dog to visit.

Back when I used to live near Austin, Texas, I had Becky Ann, Achilles, and Smokey (pictured above left).  As you can imagine, traveling anywhere with all three of them in the car was a challenge.  That is when I first considered dog car seat belts.  I got one for each of them.  It took a little time, but Smokey, Becky Ann, and Achilles came to love their dog car seat belts and this meant that they got to travel to more places more often.

Our favorite place to go was Zilker Park.  It was nearby, it’s woodsy so there were lots of interesting smells for them to check out, it’s a beautiful place for anyone who loves the outdoors to visit, and it’s a great place for all of us to get exercise.  Zilker Park holds a lot of outdoor and dog-friendly attractions like the Zilker Botanical Gardens, the Zilker Park Boat Rentals, and my favorite, an entrance to the Barton Creek Greenbelt.

Dogs on a leash are allowed in the 31 acre Zilker Botanical Gardens.  Be sure to pick up after your dog, though!  We don’t want doggy smells overwhelming the beautiful smells of the garden.  The Zilker Botanical Gardens features several themed gardens such as the Fragrance Garden, Rose Garden, Japanese Garden, Prehistoric Garden, and more.  These gardens also feature tranquil streams, picturesque waterfalls, and exotic ponds filled with Koi fish.  If you have a chance to visit, make it around March when the annual Zilker Garden Festival takes place.

Zilker Park Boat Rentals allows well-mannered dogs on the boat rentals.  If your dog doesn’t mind riding in a boat, this is a great way to see the beautiful scenery which Austin, Texas has to offer.  I am all about safety so my dogs wore dog life jackets when we went on the boat – especially Becky Ann who was the only dog that I ever owned who didn’t know how to swim..

As mentioned before, the Barton Creek Greenbelt was my favorite place in Austin, Texas to visit.  The Barton Creek Greenbelt features a 7-mile-long trail perfect for walking, hiking, or biking.  Dogs are required to be on a leash.  This is especially important so that your dog doesn’t get in the way of the people biking along the trail.  The main trail follows Barton Creek.  There are a lot of great swimming holes along the way.  If you are a rock climber, there are some great cliffs to climb.  You may also see waterfalls, wildlife, and caves.  Once in a while, you will see a house on the other side of the creek, but most of the Barton Creek Greenbelt is all natural landscape.

If you ever get a chance to visit Austin, Texas, bring your dog.  There are plenty of dog-friendly hotels.  Even the airport is dog-friendly.  If you drive, be sure your dog wears a dog car seat belt.  If you fly, be sure it is when the weather is at its mildest because bigger dogs are not allowed to fly when the weather is too hot.  This is because bigger dogs have to travel in the cargo area of the plane which is only moderately temperature controlled.

If you are going on vacation with your dog sometime soon, give us a call.  Let us help you determine which dog car seat belt is best for your dog.  Then make a purchase.

Yes, you have to make a purchase before getting the discount.  After making your purchase, send us a photograph of your dog wearing the dog car seat belt and write a 2-3 paragraph testimonial about your experience.  Once received, we will give you a 50% refund.

We want to hear about your experience with the dog car seat belt, whether good or bad.  It is important to us that we get feedback on our products so we can properly provide the best products and services available on the market.  Tell us how the dog car seat belt worked for your dog and tell us about your vacation too!

Visit Pet Auto Safety.com for our contact information and make a purchase.  Don’t worry, if you have already purchased a dog car seat belt from us in the past, you can still qualify for this offer.  We just need your name so we can find your previous order in our records.  Although we don’t know how long we will keep this offer available, it won’t last long.

Maya, my yellow Labrador Retriever, just turned 3 years old today.  She is not just my dog, she is the model of one of the dog car seat belt brands.  She is also seen at the top of this blog page.  And she was used to design the Pet Auto Safety.com logo.  Maya is famous!

 In celebration of her 3rd birthday, we are sharing a 10% off discount code which can be used at any time on Pet Auto Safety.com.  The discount code is dogbirthday.  Enter it in all lower-case and as one word to get 10% off of anything at Pet Auto Safety.com.

Pet car seats helps to protect your pet by keeping them secure in a nice doggy bed. Most pet car seats should have a strap which will clip onto the back of your dog’s harness for added security. And most pet car seats should easily be able to be strapped into your car. Pet Auto Safety.com has numerous such pet car seats. The difference in them is in the way they strap into your car, how cushioned they are, and how much of a boost the seat gives your dog so he can look out the window.

Some pet car seats strap to the seat of your car. These have two sets of long straps – one which wraps around the headrest and one which wraps around the body of the seat. All these types of pet car seats give your dog a good boost so they can look out the window.  And all should have a shorter strap on the inside where your dog sits.  This short strap clips onto the back of your dog’s harness.

Some pet car seats are strapped into your car by using the seat belt of your car. The seat belt of your car loops within the pet car seats and buckles them safely in.  The seat belt also goes through a loop strap which will then clip onto the back of your dog’s harness.

And some pet car seats are strapped around the console of your car so that your dog can sit in the front with you. This is the safest way for your dog to sit in the front seat if you have passenger side airbags. Airbags are not safe for dogs so if you can’t disable your passenger side airbags, your dog should not be sitting in the front passenger seat of your car.  A strap is included on the inside of the seat where your dog sits.  This strap should be clipped on to the back of your dog’s harness.

A variation on pet car seats are pet hammocks. There are various brands and all of them work by hanging off the headrests of your front and back seats. If you don’t have both front and back headrests, then the pet hammocks won’t work.  Pet hammocks are more for preventing your dog from injury by keeping them from being thrown onto the floor of your car.  Most pet hammocks should have an opening to allow for seat belts so that your dog can also wear a dog car seat belt.

Visit Pet Auto Safety.com to see photos of the different pet car seats and to compare prices.

This is a photo of Maya in my car. Can anyone guess what is wrong with this picture? There are two things wrong:

1) Maya should not be in the front seat. My car has passenger side air bags and air bags are not safe for children or dogs. And since I can’t disable my passenger side airbags, Maya should always sit in the back seat.

2) Maya should not have her head out the window. Flying debris could hurt her sensitive nose or do damage to her eyes. I should put the window down a little for Maya to get a good sniff of the air, but not enough for her to stick her whole head out.

Just so you know, my car is parked in this photo. Maya is in the front seat with her head out the window but she is not really “riding” in the car. Nor was she left unattended in the car. I parked the car, let her in the front seat to look out the window, then took the picture. When I was done a minute later, I sent Maya to the backseat and put her back in her dog car seat belt. Then I got back into the car and drove her to the dog park for some fun and games.

Spring is almost here and it’s time to take our dogs to the park again. But don’t forget these very important pet car travel safety tips:

1) Don’t let your dog ride in the front seat unless your car doesn’t have passenger side airbags, or unless the passenger side airbags have been disabled.

2) It’s okay have the window partly down for your dog but don’t put it down enough for them to stick their head out. Not only can flying debris hurt your dog, but if you are in a car accident, a dog with his head out the window has the chance for more serious injuries such as choking or decapitation.

3) Restrain your dog with a dog car seat belt, pet car seat, or other pet car travel safety device. A restrained dog helps to prevent driver distraction and will help to protect your dog in the event of a car accident.

4) DON’T LEAVE YOUR DOG ALONE IN THE CAR – EVER!! It may be cool outside but a car tends to trap heat, even with the windows down. Not only do you have to worry about heat stroke in your dog, but you also have to worry about dog theft. Purebred dogs have more risk, but even our American mutts are in danger form unscrupulous individuals who will kidnap your dog and hold them for ransom. Yes, it happens even to dogs. Your dog is also prone to cruelty if left alone in the car. If your dog likes to bark at a passersby, some not-so-nice people may intentionally aggravate and tease your dog.

5) Be sure to carry everything your dog needs for the trip. Things like their leash and water. You may also want to carry their vet information and a dog first aid kit.

Your dog is your friend, right?  So wouldn’t you want them to be safe in the car, just like yourself, your chidren, and your friends?  A dog car seat belt is easy to use and relatively inexpensive.  And although there has not been much crash testing with a dog car seat belt, it only makes sense that your dog is better off being restrained in the event of a car crash, than they would if they weren’t restrained.  So please, make sure EVERYONE in your car is safely restrained, including man’s best friend.