I’m looking for a safety restraint for dogs to wear in the car. A few years ago I read about one that sounded good, seemed well recommended, and had a clever name that I have of course now forgotten. It was a body harness-type thing that fastens onto the seat belt, yet allows the dog freedom of movement without tangling. I think it cost about $100; we had a cheaper version once, but it was definitely not tangleproof.
Anybody using one of these things? FWIW, it would be for our springer spaniels, about 40 lbs. each, to ride in our minivan.
My dog Gizmo uses the Easy Rider harness. We’ve only had to “test it out” once, luckily, and he stayed on the seat. He’s a very quiet car rider, though, so tangling has never been a problem.
Yeah, that looks like the one we had for the late great Miss Emily. It has just a slot on the back part that you put the seat belt through, right? Miss Emily was very active in the car (as are our current two), and she was always getting twisted up. The one I saw apparently had some kind of swivel hardware or something.
I’m glad it worked for Gizmo, though! It’s so frightening to think that even a hard slam on the brakes could kill a furry one. We use crates whenever we can, but that still doesn’t seem too safe, and it requires taking out the seats, which isn’t always practical.
Wow! The name doesn’t sound familiar, but yes, that is the design! And it’s a lot cheaper than I remembered. I like the suggestion about how they also help with carsickness – Phyllis seems to have finally gotten over it, but we still watch her closely, and she still isn’t terribly thrilled about riding.
Spot the Wonderpup has an Easy Rider and seems quite comfortable in it. It is very easy and convenient to use as well. I can’t imagine how a dog would get tangled up while wearing it. Perhaps you could try threading the seatbelt through the opposite way?
Dolly has a Four Paws car safety harness, and it seems to work pretty well for her. The loop on the back is long enough to allow her to move around some but short enough to restrain her in the event of a wreck. I just wish I’d had it with us when I had that wreck in March. Then my poor girl wouldn’t have bounced off the dashboard.
We use the Easy Rider, also, and are quite pleased with it. I think we bought one at PetSmart for about $40.
Besides keeping your pooch safe, it is dangerous to the human occupants of the car to ride with an unrestrained animal. In the event of a sudden stop, I know I don’t want my 60 pound husky slamming into my head.
The one in *Porcupine’s link doesn’t look much different from the home made version we use for my cat. (He gets car sick and the “seat belt” works better than a kitty carrier in that respect.)
We used a doggy harness and some rock climbing gear. He can stand up and look out the window, but he can’t move off the one seat (if he is in the front passenger seat.) It doesn’t seem long enough for him to get tangled up at all.
Note: If doggy ever rides in front, make sure there’s no passenger-side airbag. Very dangerous for children and non-humans.
Green Bean, I don’t know about actual tangling, but I think it would be easy enough to twist up if the dog gets up and then walks around in circles before lying down again.