Anonymous
Post 09/01/2025 09:21     Subject: Driving with dogs in front seat
Anonymous wrote:In my compact car, the only place my dog is comfortable is the front seat. We try to use the larger car when he joins us, so that he can be in the back. But he still doesn't have a proper seatbelt. He's very restless and moves about constantly. Not sure it's particularly safer, to be honest.

Oh, and dogs are not children. I love him, but I'm not treating him with the care I reserve for my kids. Too bad if you don't like it.


Yeah come on OP. Think of the car seats we have for kids. Is anyone doing that for their dog?
Anonymous
Post 09/01/2025 09:18     Subject: Driving with dogs in front seat
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:It confounds me when I see so many people driving cars with a dog in the front passenger seat (or even on the driver’s lap!). We don’t let our children sit in the front passenger seat without a seatbelt because we know that any accident, even small, could seriously injure or kill an unrestrained passenger. I assume most people dearly love their dogs so why are many so relaxed about dogs in the front seat?


Maybe MYOB?


Yeah, because it's no one else's business when you drive unsafely?
Anonymous
Post 09/01/2025 09:16     Subject: Driving with dogs in front seat
Anonymous wrote:It confounds me when I see so many people driving cars with a dog in the front passenger seat (or even on the driver’s lap!). We don’t let our children sit in the front passenger seat without a seatbelt because we know that any accident, even small, could seriously injure or kill an unrestrained passenger. I assume most people dearly love their dogs so why are many so relaxed about dogs in the front seat?


Sorry - I couldn't care less about the safety of the dog, but I can't understand why people aren't cited for this. It is a big risk for accidents because you can not predict the behavior of the dog.
Anonymous
Post 09/01/2025 09:14     Subject: Driving with dogs in front seat
My co-pilot is restrained in the front seat using the seatbelt latch. Perhaps you should keep your eyes on the road.
Anonymous
Post 09/01/2025 07:50     Subject: Re:Driving with dogs in front seat
I could not agree more.

Everytime I see a vehicle where a dog is in the front driver or passenger seat I want to yell out “Do you know how unsafe that is…..??!” 😲

Shaking my head.
Anonymous
Post 09/01/2025 07:45     Subject: Driving with dogs in front seat
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:When I see the person driving with the tiny dog on their lap I always imagine the scene after the airbag deploys bag deploys and crushes that dog into the drivers chest and face. I also think about this when I see people in the passenger seat with their feet on the dash. It makes me queasy to even imagine it.


I've read stuff by doctors about what happens when air bags deploy and your feet are on the dash. It's really horrifying.


This X ray of a young teenager post crash is just terrible.

https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/x-ray-shows-injuries-from-crash-feet-on-dash/275-b8b18577-041c-4b35-b9f5-6d068bbec529

Anonymous
Post 09/01/2025 07:32     Subject: Driving with dogs in front seat
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I see it's open season to criticize ANYTHING that dog-owners do. They care too much, or too little, but they cannot win.


If we could ban dog ownership, we could collect all the money spent on dogs to provide healthcare for the needy.


Ha! How exactly would you do that?
Anonymous
Post 09/01/2025 07:16     Subject: Driving with dogs in front seat
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I see it's open season to criticize ANYTHING that dog-owners do. They care too much, or too little, but they cannot win.


If we could ban dog ownership, we could collect all the money spent on dogs to provide healthcare for the needy.


We can already afford to provide healthcare for the needy, but we choose not to spend tax money on that. There's no way that private "money spent on dogs" would somehow be collected and spent on healthcare.

And even if it could be done, who would prioritize money spent on dogs before money spent on things like cigarettes?


Cigarettes, like alcohol, are necessary to fund the government. We should prioritize spending on cigarettes to improve public services.

Lol, smokers got scapegoated into funneling more money to the federal government, meanwhile, billionaires (and tobacco executives) get tax cuts. We don’t need to use taxes on cigarettes and alcohol to fund the government. We choose to.


Smokers are a benefit to the health system since they tend to die younger and more quickly than non smokers thus saving the govt millions in Medicare costs.


It's the smokers that quit who hurt the system.
Anonymous
Post 09/01/2025 07:15     Subject: Re:Driving with dogs in front seat
Anonymous wrote:Our seventy pound pup wears a harness that clips into the female seatbelt clasp. She’d fair significantly better than most of the women here in a crash.

Many times humans are injured by the thin seatbelts we wear.


Try not wearing your seat belt next time you are in an accident while your head bounces off the windshield.
Anonymous
Post 08/31/2025 23:56     Subject: Driving with dogs in front seat
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I see it's open season to criticize ANYTHING that dog-owners do. They care too much, or too little, but they cannot win.


If we could ban dog ownership, we could collect all the money spent on dogs to provide healthcare for the needy.


We can already afford to provide healthcare for the needy, but we choose not to spend tax money on that. There's no way that private "money spent on dogs" would somehow be collected and spent on healthcare.

And even if it could be done, who would prioritize money spent on dogs before money spent on things like cigarettes?


Cigarettes, like alcohol, are necessary to fund the government. We should prioritize spending on cigarettes to improve public services.

Lol, smokers got scapegoated into funneling more money to the federal government, meanwhile, billionaires (and tobacco executives) get tax cuts. We don’t need to use taxes on cigarettes and alcohol to fund the government. We choose to.


Smokers are a benefit to the health system since they tend to die younger and more quickly than non smokers thus saving the govt millions in Medicare costs.
Anonymous
Post 08/31/2025 23:44     Subject: Driving with dogs in front seat
While we're on this subject, can anyone recommend a restraint system for a small dog? Something you've used and your dog tolerates well? I've seen the buckets but don't know how well or poorly they work.
Anonymous
Post 08/31/2025 23:24     Subject: Driving with dogs in front seat
Anonymous wrote:When I see the person driving with the tiny dog on their lap I always imagine the scene after the airbag deploys bag deploys and crushes that dog into the drivers chest and face. I also think about this when I see people in the passenger seat with their feet on the dash. It makes me queasy to even imagine it.


I've read stuff by doctors about what happens when air bags deploy and your feet are on the dash. It's really horrifying.
Anonymous
Post 08/31/2025 23:22     Subject: Re:Driving with dogs in front seat
I heard years ago NJ requires dogs to be secured. Not for their safety, it's to keep them from becoming a projectile injuring humans.
Safest to have a restraint.

Anonymous
Post 08/31/2025 21:16     Subject: Driving with dogs in front seat
Here’s a good one - next time you are driving and opposing traffic is stopped at a light, look at the drivers. At least 50% are looking down at their phones. Don’t worry about the dogs, worry about drivers distracted by their phones.
Anonymous
Post 08/31/2025 21:01     Subject: Re:Driving with dogs in front seat
Our seventy pound pup wears a harness that clips into the female seatbelt clasp. She’d fair significantly better than most of the women here in a crash.

Many times humans are injured by the thin seatbelts we wear.