Buckle up -Your Dog too

What’s better than driving around with man’s best friend on a beautiful spring day? If this is your vision of the perfect way to spend a lazy Sunday afternoon, then it’s time you start thinking about the safety aspects of driving around with your pooch.

Buckle Up

What’s the first thing you do when you get in your car? Personally, I buckle up. Any passenger in your car that does not have safety restraints secured is at risk for injury. This includes your dog!

For arguments sake, imagine getting into an accident where your dog was not properly restrained. Having emergency medical personnel trying to properly administer first aid to a scared animal can be time consuming. And who know how much time will be on your side.

According to research, when traveling at speeds greater than 35 MPH, a 60lb dog can cause the impact of a 2700lb animal slamming into the back of a car seat, windshield or passenger.

Whether or not your dog is injured in accident, it’s mere panicked presence can impede rescue workers and the precious time they might have to save other accident victims.

Unrestrained pets can distract the driver leading to accidents. Even normally calm and well-behaved animals can get distracted and frightened of a noise and crawl underneath the driver’s legs. I know my sheltie Shelby has done this very thing more than once.

Pet Safe Vehicles

While most auto makers are not taking into account the safety of our furry friends, some are actually incorporating options for pet safety into their offerings. From dog beds to water bowls and partitions, auto makers are starting to cater to the animal lovers.

Every year, Bark Buckle UP evaluates current car models to determine whether they are truly “pet-safe,” not merely “pet-friendly.”

• The Volvo CX90 was named Pet-Safe Vehicle of Choice since it can come equipped with special barrier attached to the actual structure of the car.

• The GMC Acadia was named Pet-Safe Vehicle of Choice due to several special safety features. Among them:1) the tri-climate control that keeps your pet as cool in the back area as you are in the front seat; and 2) An OnStar security system function that can connect you to poison control during emergencies involving pets and children.

And while these two vehicles are the only that Bark Buckle Up deemed truly pet-safe, other auto makers are trying to appeal to animal lovers with options that they hope will have people salivating.

• The 2009 Honda Element offers a travel bowl, easy-cleaning seat covers, and a dog bed for the backend, but can’t really be considered pet-safe, as the bed does not attach securely to the vehicle and there is no air vent in the back area.

• Jeep sells lots of pet travel gear online, but they are aimed more at driver convenience than dog safety. However, Jeep recently added a pet kennel accessory that can be tethered into any of the Jeep vehicles, including the Wrangler or Cherokee.

Hopefully this is a trend that will continue and other auto makers will soon include pet related options to their line up as well. And while convenience is helpful, safety is a necessity. Make it the most important factor in your decision making when buying a new car.