It clarifies that dog seatbelts are useless... which I've always been inclined to agree with anyway... so good point there.
But they used a crappy airline crate knock-off? I don't get it? I want to see a Vari-Kennel in there. I've broken the crappy vari-kennel knock-offs numerous times in day-to-day kennel usage so it is of no surprise to me that it would give out in a car crash.
It's almost like expecting a halti to protect you from a dog bite.
It would've been one thing if they used various models (I did appreciate that they put the crate in two spots -- behind the front seats, and on the back seat) and did a comparison, but especially with the language barrier, I feel like this hasn't told us anything we don't already know...
...except maybe it will convince people to stop buying vari-kennel knock-offs?
Cat: I think about it this way, considering the amount of people who don't crate their dog in the car period, I *hope* it has shown them a lot. And look at me - I use soft crates in the car - I am definately planning an upgrade.
One of the woman on my Performance Schn. list said she uses these seat belts that are made with the same material as our human seatbelts and are an tested rigorously. I still don't think seat belts are a great idea, but if you don't have the space in your car for a crate they are probably worth checking out. Here's the link.
The other interesting thing that came up on list is the possibility in the wire kennel of the welds coming apart in a crash and impaling human or dog! Eeek.
What I think the flimsy crate really highlights is the positions in the car are which are best. It didn't break when it was behind a seat even though it was a weak crate, therefore that is a better place to have the crates overall.
I hope to never find out if my set-up is good enough!
I bought a good seat belt device for Rocket but he insisted on nearly strangling himself with it every time. He's clostrophobic of the crate so that's out. He resides in the back of my Equinox with a k-9 barier.
Rocket's Mom: That is absolutely better than loose. it is tough - you want to do what's best for them all but you hae to balance what is possible too. And if there is more anxiety in using the crate or seatbelt - is it worth it?
Ike is the first dog that is purely my own. We have overcome some big hurdles with his fear of people (how can you avoid them!) and continue to work on building our confidence in the sport of agility. Ike takes life at a much slower speed than I do, which is a challenge. My goal for our partnership is to figure out a sport or joint activity that Ike and I can enjoy equally and excel at together. This would be in addition to Ike's #1 sport, lounging on the couch; which I don't really enjoy or excel at.
Carmen
Silvermist Goes to the Opera NAC-V NCC OJC-V TN-O TG-N HP-N, CL1 CL2-H CL2-F
Carmen is a 9 yo salt-n-pepper Miniature Schnauzer from the same breeder as Ike. I started working with Carmen in the winter of '08 after my DH told me we could not get another dog until the end of 2008 (enter Bug 5/08). Little did I know how much joy she would take in agility and what a spitfire she would be. We are having a ton of fun working together. Unfortunately, Carmen was diagnosed with PRA (Progressive Retinal Atrophy) in 10/08 and has been retired as her vision continues to change.
Bug (Honor)
CH Visions Cornerstone Dream On (CGC) TN-N
Bug (fka Honor) is a 5 year old CWC. He is a blue merle with tan points, a LOVELY temperament and a great work ethic. He finished his AKC championship 7/3/2010. Bug is looking forward to playing in Rally Obedience and tracking/Noseworks.
6 comments:
Great post, I've linked to it because the message is so important!
I'm a little confused.
It clarifies that dog seatbelts are useless... which I've always been inclined to agree with anyway... so good point there.
But they used a crappy airline crate knock-off? I don't get it? I want to see a Vari-Kennel in there. I've broken the crappy vari-kennel knock-offs numerous times in day-to-day kennel usage so it is of no surprise to me that it would give out in a car crash.
It's almost like expecting a halti to protect you from a dog bite.
It would've been one thing if they used various models (I did appreciate that they put the crate in two spots -- behind the front seats, and on the back seat) and did a comparison, but especially with the language barrier, I feel like this hasn't told us anything we don't already know...
...except maybe it will convince people to stop buying vari-kennel knock-offs?
Thanks, Tracy!
Cat: I think about it this way, considering the amount of people who don't crate their dog in the car period, I *hope* it has shown them a lot. And look at me - I use soft crates in the car - I am definately planning an upgrade.
One of the woman on my Performance Schn. list said she uses these seat belts that are made with the same material as our human seatbelts and are an tested rigorously. I still don't think seat belts are a great idea, but if you don't have the space in your car for a crate they are probably worth checking out. Here's the link.
http://www.immioutdoors.com/petbuckle/products_harness.htm
The other interesting thing that came up on list is the possibility in the wire kennel of the welds coming apart in a crash and impaling human or dog! Eeek.
What I think the flimsy crate really highlights is the positions in the car are which are best. It didn't break when it was behind a seat even though it was a weak crate, therefore that is a better place to have the crates overall.
I hope to never find out if my set-up is good enough!
I bought a good seat belt device for Rocket but he insisted on nearly strangling himself with it every time. He's clostrophobic of the crate so that's out. He resides in the back of my Equinox with a k-9 barier.
Rocket's Mom: That is absolutely better than loose. it is tough - you want to do what's best for them all but you hae to balance what is possible too. And if there is more anxiety in using the crate or seatbelt - is it worth it?
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