RV Crash Pet Safety: The Goods

RV Crash Pet Safety: it is something that few nomads actually ever talk about, so we will discuss it today.

There are no national or international safety standards for dog harnesses for crash safety in your car or RV. Why is that? Most of the dog seat belt safety harnesses that have been tested worldwide are actually unsafe.

Fido needs to be safe.

This is something that needs to be improved.

What are your thoughts on this?

Keep your wheels on the ground!

[TheGlampingGuys]

Great topic! We always try to make sure our fur baby Ziggy is safe while driving. We also really appreciate the shout out to our Youtube channel in your video description. You are so kind. We do appreciate it.
THANK YOU x Infinity!
Peace, Love, & Happy Holidays!
👍❤️🎅🎄🌈🌈

[thetravelingwisewoman]

Great video. I'm not a traveling nomad but do take my cat to the vet. I put him in the back seat in a big plastic tub. The thick green ones, with the heavy lid that snaps and cut holes in the top for air. I pad it with foam and a small blanket. Idk if that will save his life but figure he has a better chance. He likes it too as he can't see out and keeps him calm. I also think it makes it safe for others because I'm not distracted by him moving around.

[icemanst]

Excellent topic for discussion and consideration. My mother in law hated seatbelts because one of her nieces was trapped in her car after a rollover and if the ditch had been full of water, like the 3 weeks of year in the spring, she would have drowned.

[RozyInRialto]

Very great topic...my dogs travel in heavy duty dog crates bolted down cause I do dog transport and for myself and rescue partners our dogs safety is just as important then ours

[CITAP]

Our cat rides in his medium size dog carrier, Charlie's a big cat, which is bungee corded down to the rear seat then has other stuff packed around it. He spends most, not all travel time in the crate. The other times, he's running free so we need to address that time. We could lock him in the carrier. Then we'd have to pull over for cat potty breaks. His litterbox is similarly immobilized but in a wreck, kittyrocca could be distributed throughout the truck cab via the open front. Just need to be careful and aware on the road. Take care.

[rmcnasty]

Good point Linescrew, Great Video. For Turtles and small dogs, I recommend having them ride inside a motorcycle helmet, strapped to the seatbelt. Face hole up. And For Larger Dogs & Cats I suggest having them wear Small kid's helmets on their heads. And a full body harness, with a short Leed connected to the seat belt
And be sure to disable the airbags on the dashboard top and bottom and inside door on the passenger side.

[Old-Dog-Max]

I thought about having him ride in the glove compartment... he's small enough, but maybe turning the passenger seat around In my Van would be a better solution. Max usually curls up and sleeps on the passenger seat. Plus it would make a nice recliner when I am parked. Good you brought up the subject, Something to work on.

[ScubaSteveCanada]

Yesterday, travelling an Interstate at 75 mph, the car ahead of me had a medium sized dog jumping from side to side and from back to front. Clearly an owner that doesn't care about his dog. And, that dog would be a major distraction for the driver. Cheers, Steve

[sactopyrshep]

This is one of the most needed and ignored subjects I have come across since exploring in the nomad world.

The conclusion drawn by those of us who travel with our dogs to competitions in our vehicles is that a crash-tested crate that is tied down with weight-rated straps fastened to the floor solidly is the safest current alternative. There is at least one website that discusses this topic.

No dog should be loose in any moving vehicle. In a crash they become rocket propelled missiles. A 40# dog flying from the back to the front of a vehicle that just went from even 35 MPH to 0 MPH certainly could be killed and do major damage to the front seat occupants.

Carrying an untethered or contained dog in a moving vehicle is no different than doing so with a child. We recognize this with children and accept the laws that prohibit this behavior. I hope the same attitude can be shared with animals who are also members of our family.

Thank-you Linescrew for this important public service discussion.

[KCautodoctor]

I had a family member that was involved in the crash testing of car seats for kids. The amount of engineering & testing that goes into those is mind boggling - not only to meet federal crash testing requirements but also to fight lawsuits from any crashes their car seats maybe involved in. Your video clips showed what happens to the pet when the vehicle suddenly stops in a perfectly straight head-on crash situation. What about all the off-center frontal crashes, the side-impact crashes, the read-end center & off-center crashes, and then finally the roll-over crashes. The recommendation for traveling with a pet from most veterinarians & animal safety organizations is to place your pet in a very sturdy crate and then secure the crate to the floor of the vehicle. The best thing you can do is keep them from flying around inside the vehicle during a crash and to minimize the chances that their crate with you pet in it is going to also become a flying projectile in a crash.

[jeannette]

I have been traveling in various motor homes with dogs for over twenty years as I used to go to dog shows all over the country. I know....I know....I have had a serious mind shift and now only rescue. To your point, unfortunately I know from experiences of others who were in accidents in their motor homes with loose dogs in the cabin never ends well. Any crash in a motor home is serious. Most times the dogs perished or ran in fear from the accident scene and were either never found or hit on the highway after surviving. I always carry my dogs in crates when I am traveling. I put the dinette down in the bed position and would put two roomy crates side by side that were attached very tightly and ratcheted down to bolts where the seat belts went. I always felt they were safer this way and at least might have a chance of not being a flying projectile or being ejected out a window. I also drive a vehicle that accommodates dog crates for the same reason. I agree that seriously proven tested methods of restraint seem to be non-existent and more in-depth research needs to be done.

[dixierose]

Thank you for talking about this!
Maybe you can make a difference🐕. Bringing some attention to this subject. I'll b watching the comments. Hoping to see what answers might be out there. Good Job👍🏻. My Mother was in a bad accident (she got t-boned) she and her dog survived ( dog wasn't belted in or anything.... but would never get in a car again! (Her dog). Can't blame her.😞❤️🐕
Loved the tour of the Biltmore Estate Glamping Guys did! They do a really Interesting adventures.❤️👍🏻

[TexCynRVLife]

This is a subject that I ponder & cringe over. When I see the dogs sitting on top of pillows, right at windshield height, I cringe. All it takes is to hit the brakes & well, dog gone it! I always use crates. I can't tell you how much I have had to smash my brakes on my travels! In fact, I had a little dog, put her in one of my big dog crates. Big mistake! A young college girl whipped in front of me in the rain. She had a small car, I had a full sized large van. I hit her bumper, she gave me no stopping room. My dog got tossed in that big crate. She was never the same after that...I am very sorry that your parents lost their little dog. It doesn't take much & is so heart breaking.

[StaticCamperVan]

Good talk and all but what about Tribbles?

[lakelizard]

Sounds like you know how to drive defensively - good - we don't want anything bad to happen to either one of you. This video is food for thought on how to best protect pets. Very glad your "near" was a "miss". I had one today too. I'm just driving down the street minding my own business and a guy pulled right out on front of me. Fortunately for both of us, I have pretty damn good reflexes for an old lady. It was so close I didn't have time to lay on my horn. Paperwork and purse on the front passenger seat ended up on the floor board. And he hightailed it out of there before I could flip him off! There is no justice. LOL

[katcankan]

That was really informative. I didn't know that no industry standard hadn't been established. I don't know where you got the crash footage from but it does bring the point home. Good video 👍😊.

[kt]

I mostly drive like an old lady and hope for the best

[aldente]

I have a 100 pound Weimeraner and I worry about her too. For longer trips, I have her crate with her bed strapped down in the back of my SUV. For shorter trips around town or to the beach, I confess that she rides either on the front seat or in the wheel well. We can't mitigate every threat and there really is no good solution that I have found. Strapped down crate is best but both she and I like her riding up with me. I have considered rigging up some cargo netting but have not noodles out a workable solution. Safe travels.

[simplymeconnie]

LMAO! Love the Carolyn Caravan reference to Service Geezer! I 100% agree with this. I bought harnesses and seat belts for our dogs. They're a 135 pound Rottweiler and a 50 pound pitbull mix puppy!

[tmsmith]

I can’t remember which TV show (Marketplace ???) did test various harnesses and found only 1 or 2 that worked which were available on Amazon.