Whether it is because of a joint excursion or an upcoming visit to the vet - car journeys with dogs are sometimes unavoidable. The safety of humans and animals must be guaranteed.
We explain below how to transport a dog safely in your car and which legal framework conditions you have to observe.
Anyone who drives a motor vehicle is of course responsible for safety. This of course also includes adequate securing of the load, with which dogs are equated in the road traffic regulations when transported by car.
If you do not secure your dog properly while driving, you can expect a fine of 35 to 75 euros. If you endanger your dog or cause damage to property, you will also receive a point in your driving record in Flensburg.
Irrespective of possible fines, most owners are probably primarily concerned with protecting their dog from injury when travelling by car. After all, this does not even require an accident.
If the four-legged friend is travelling unsecured, sudden braking is sometimes enough to hurl the animal through the vehicle and thus endanger the health of the two- and four-legged passengers. To avoid this, you should therefore only transport your dog in your car with suitable protection.
There are special safety harnesses for dogs that you can use for your joint journeys by car. To use them, you need a suitable dog harness that has sufficient padding.
One side of the harness is connected to the four-legged friend's harness, while the other side can either be inserted into the seat belt buckle or attached to the car's normal seat belt, depending on the model.
In this way, you can transport your dog relatively safely in the back seat of your car without overly restricting the four-legged friend's range of movement. When using a dog safety belt, however, please note that you must never attach it to a collar due to the associated risk of injury.
A transport box is also a way to transport your dog as safely as possible in the car. Transport boxes are available in numerous designs and sizes, so they are by no means only suitable for particularly small dog breeds.
When buying, make sure that the box is sufficiently stable and that your four-legged friend has enough space in it. To prevent your dog from being flung through the car together with its transport box when braking, you must secure it additionally, for example by fastening the safety belt to it.
In addition to a safety belt or a transport box, you can also get a special car seat for your dog. Such a seat, which is available in many different versions for dogs of different sizes, is basically a kind of dog basket for the car.
The car seat can be fixed to the seat bench with the help of the safety belt and the dog is secured with a belt attached to the chest harness. In this way, you can transport the dog quite safely in your car and also have a cosy place for the four-legged friend to sleep at the same time.
If you own a van or an estate car, it is a good idea to transport the dog in the boot. For this purpose, some suitable grids and nets can be mounted as a partition between the passenger compartment and the luggage compartment.
If you decide to use this option, however, it is advisable to additionally secure your dog while driving and, if necessary, also attach padding to the partition. After all, you do not only want to protect yourself but also your dog from possible injuries.
Dogs can often be transported by car without any problems. However, experience has shown that not every dog is enthusiastic about travelling in a car.
Especially the accommodation in a transport box does not go down well with many four-legged friends. Therefore, try to get your dog used to everything as early as possible.
If you want to use a transport box, it can help for this purpose, for example, not to get it out every time you have to transport the dog by car. Instead, place it in the flat from time to time.
With a comfortable blanket and some tasty dog snacks from Bellfor, you can make the box appealing to your four-legged friend so that he might even use it for sleeping once in a while.
Even being in the car itself can sometimes unsettle dogs at the beginning. In this case, you should try to accustom your four-legged friend to the vehicle slowly. At first, only sit in the car with the engine switched off. A small treat and their favourite toy as a reward will show your dog that there is no reason to worry.
After you have repeated this exercise a few times, you can start the engine for the first time and maybe even go for a short drive. After a while, even fearful dogs usually get used to driving a car and see it as something quite common.
As you can see, you have several options to ensure the safety of your four-legged friend when travelling together in the car. If you want to transport your dog in the car, we strongly recommend that you use one of them. After all, an inadequately secured dog can not only cost you a fine. It also poses a danger to all occupants of the vehicle.
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