Hi
Please could anyone tell me if they have ever used a harness on a German  Shepherd in a car
I don,t own a car myself but occasionally travel to shows.
The  people I normally travel with have dog cages in the car so thats fine but there is a chance I may need to get a lift to crufts with someone else and I will not set of with an unrestrained dog in the car so I,m wondering if anyone has experience of a dog harness and looking for recomendations please

I use one for my Rottie x GSD, she is a very big girl and I find it fantastic.  It is a Hi-Craft one that I bought from PAH.

Bev

Is it true that it's going to become the law soon that a dog has to be fitted with a harness to travel in the car? The women from my local pet shop said that it was.

Googling about a bit the only thing I can find is that the Government has given it's backing to a PDSA campaign but that was back in 2004 however it does say in the highway code:

>43: When in a vehicle make sure dogs or other animals are suitably restrained so they cannot distract you while you are driving or injure you if you stop quickly.

Thanks I'll just wait & see then. He's got a dog guard @ the moment so I'm sure thats will be ok for now.

34-44: Rules about animals

43: When in a vehicle make sure dogs or other animals are suitably restrained so they cannot distract you while you are driving or injure you if you stop quickly.

This is what the Highway code states as advice <a class='url' href='http://www.highwaycode.gov.uk/02.htm'>http://www.highwaycode.gov.uk/02.htm</a> & this is where any rules regrading the transport of pets would be if they were to be changed

My dogs are safer in their transit box than on harnesses on the back seat. I reckon the pet shop person was misinformed

Edited to add I know of dogs that have died in car accidents despite wearing harnesses One dog was crushed to death in a side impact The dog in a crate next to it survived unscathed

A friend of mine was cautioned by the police after he stopped her for a faulty brake light and found her Staffie sitting in the back seat un-restrained!  She bought him a harness sharpish - don't think it has to be a harness necessarily, a dog guard is ok, just so they are not rattling around the vehicle unrestrained.

If you are talking about safety for the driver from distraction or driver and passenger from dog "missiles" in an accident a harness would be just as good as a crate or box and better than an unrestrained crate.  In terms of safeguarding the dog itself there are no boxes covered by a British Standard so I don't think any can be relying upon to give much protection in the case of serious impact.  The issue of safety would be more related to where in the car the dog is restrained not so much how.  My dogs travel in the boot space in a Lintran but I am concious that they are outwith the body of the car that forms the safety area for passengers and in fact are actually in the crumple zone that forms part of that protection.  Restrained by any means within the body would be better.

I also use a Hi-Craft car harness, for my Dobe. We also have a dog guard behind the back seats and a smaller one inbetween the two front seats as he soon figured out that if he moved slowly enough he wouldn't activate the "brakes" on the seatbelt and so could move around the car Before we got the guard inbetween the front seats he used to attempt to sneak through whilst we were driving and would then open his mouth and try to catch this little dangly doll we have hanging off the rear-view mirror!

We used to use one for Abby(dobe) but stopped when I had to brake suddenly and even though she was wearing a harness she was thrown forward and her back end ended up in the footwell. Skye has a crate and is happy being in it.
Mary

we have harnesses for our two labs, and also one of those dog hammock affairs which means they can't fall off the seat anyway. I feel much happier having them on the back seat than with our previous dog who was in the back of an estate behind the dog guard - I always worried about a rear end shunt..:-(