Because she is terrible in the car. If she would just stay in the back seat like the old dog, it would be much better, but she likes to stand on the armrests and gets too far forward and makes it hard for the driver to see and to concentrate. Plus, she sometimes likes to come all the way into the front seat and then I stress out about the airbag (besides distracting the driver. It's a harness that fastens around her chest and then a strap that you put the seatbelt through. We gave her a trial run tonight and she wasn't the least bit freaked out about the whole thing. It is nice to keep her in the backseat and she will be safer in the event of a sudden stop. Also, much better to keep her from distracting the driver, since Jasmine loves riding in the car as much as Honey did.

By Trina~moderator on Saturday, June 19, 2004 - 07:32 am:

GOOD for you! There was talk about dog restraints on the Child Passenger Safety listserve I'm on. Very important to keep dogs restrained in a vehicle as well. If not, not only could they be injured or killed but as a projectile during a crash they also pose dangers to other passengers. One of the techs was asking for reviews about a dog restraint from Ruff Rider. I did't pay much attention because we don't have a dog, but would you like me to ask about it?

While we're on the topic, during my CPS Tech course the topic of dog barriers/guards in vehicles came up. Many families install aftermarket metal dog barriers in their vehicles. Although this works well to keep the dog(s) in the cargo area away from passengers I've read there have been instances where the metal barrier has broken and impaled passengers during a crash causing serious injury. Unless a barrier is factory installed they are not recommended by safety experts.

By Colette on Saturday, June 19, 2004 - 09:48 am:

Great idea! I cannot stand it when people have their dogs sitting in their laps while they are driving the car.

By Dawnk777 on Saturday, June 19, 2004 - 09:56 am:

I personally didn't like it either when she would creep into the front seat. I kept worrying about the airbag or her going through the windshield. Not to mention, me dying because she was in front of me and the airbag and all that.

A few times, just driving in town, I pulled over to the side to get her back in the back seat when I was driving. It is much better to have her fastened back there.

Since she knows the "paw/other paw" trick, it is easy enough to get the harness on. The package implied that your dog might be a little freaked out by the whole thing, but Jasmine was her normal self, except for trying to get to the armrest and realizing she couldn't. She was okay with it, though.

By Cat on Saturday, June 19, 2004 - 10:16 am:

Where did you buy it? I usually put our animals (we have two cats and a dog) in the carrier and then buckle the carrier in with the seat belt. Our carrier is rather large though (made for a medium size dog--which is what size our one cat is!) and takes up about 1 1/2 seats so the seatbelt doesn't fit very well (doesn't work at all in dh's car). This morning both the puppy and one cat have vet appointments and the cat has to go in the carrier, so Randy's coming with me to hold the puppy. The vet said this was perfectly fine, otherwise I would have made the appointments at different times/days. Maybe I'll check out PetSmart this afternoon.

By Karen~moderator on Saturday, June 19, 2004 - 10:58 am:

My sister has those for both dogs. One of her dogs gets car sick, so she gets to ride in the front. The other one is always in the back, and they are both restrained. It's necessary with her two dogs because they are soooooo hyper.

My dog usually settles down in the back seat for a nap, so we've never bought restraints for her.

By Dawnk777 on Saturday, June 19, 2004 - 11:57 am:

I got it at a local pet store not petsmart.