Can a dog travel in the footwell of a car? Simple and Effective Tips

How do you travel long distance with a dog?

How to Travel Long Distance With a Dog

  • Ensure you’ve packed everything on your dog travel packing list.
  • If travelling with puppies, wait until their vaccinations are complete.
  • Get them used to shorter road trips first.
  • Use a windscreen shade before getting in the car.
  • Use sunshades for your back windows too.
  • Like many other fruits and vegetables, dogs can have carrots. In fact, every part of this vegetable, from the carrot itself to the leafy green tops are safe for dogs to eat.

    How should you transport your dog in the car?

    There are several safety measures and products which can help you travel with your dog safely in the car. It’s important that you choose a solution that’s suitable and comfortable for your pet, and that the system is properly installed and attached to the vehicle.

  • Crate: Crating your dog will help keep them safe and secure while travelling in the car. Using a crate to transport your pet has the added benefit if they’re already used to this environment from their training.
  • Travel harness: Pet-friendly harnesses come in a variety of sizes and are available from most pet shops. Simply fit them onto your pet and clip into place, making it safe for your pet to sit on the front or back seat, or in the boot.
  • Carrier: A pet carrier is a portable and light alternative to a metal crate and can be easier to pack if you’re staying away from home.
  • Boot gate: If your dog prefers to sit in the boot, it is also recommended to fit a boot gate to prevent them from jumping through to the front of the vehicle. A boot gate also protects your dog and passengers from harm during an accident: your dog will still need to be secured using a harness or crate.
  • Dog harnesses will keep your dog secure and they are well padded for comfort so at the same time this will protect your dog from any sudden braking or maneuvers in the car.

    But it’s not recommended for big dogs if you have a small dog that can fit on your lap and most importantly actually fit in the footwell then yes this will be fine.

    If you have someone, a friend maybe that is traveling with you and can sit in the passenger seat while holding your dog then this should be fine.

    One thing you can try is the classic knotted chewy bone this works great for dogs that can’t keep still when traveling in a car.

    If you traveling on your own and you are driving then again your dog will need to be restrained, the best way to do this is to use a dog harness that has a handle on the back.

    Travelling With Your Pet

    I grew up with dogs who always travelled in the front footwell of the car but now that we are planning to get our own dog I am wondering where is the best/safest place for it to travel. Thanks in advance Smile

    My dog has a seatbelt harness and normally is in a towel on the back seat. If she is really muddy she goes in a travel crate in the boot that folds down when I dont need to use it.

    In a crate fixed in the boot of our estate car, or (less often) behind a dog guard in the boot of our hatchback. I think on a back seat secured with a harness attached to a seatbelt is also ok. Unsecured anywhere in the car is a disaster/accident waiting to happen. Ive treated several dogs injured as passengers in RTAs.

    Old dog is in the boot Puppy is in a crate in the back We have a 7 seated though

    Thanks, I think we will start off with a harness on the back seat and see how we go from there. I have a largish car but we often use the seats in the boot so we need a alternative Smile

    My dog has a clip that attaches to her harness at one end and to the car seat belt at the other. I feel happy that shes safely attached that way. I know an awful lot of people who let their dogs flap around in the car completely unrestrained – one person I know has one on the back seat and one on her lap – terrifies me to think what would happen in an accident.

    Bumbledog has a harness and a dog seatbelt in the back of the car. He used to sit with me in the back until the time he got his head wedged between the seat and where you pull the seatbelt down. My sister was then about to drive round a double bend and the passenger seat started shaking! She was not amused in the least and steps were swiftly taken!!

    We have our dog in a crate in the boot. It has been necessary to use a roof box for getting all the luggage in when travelling on longer trips, especially when we have had buggies for the DDs, but its totally worth it in our opinion. DDog started off a nervous passenger but treats the crate as her own space and is now quite calm in there. Its as natural for us to crate her in the car as it is to put the DC in car seats.

    Well, I was pretty ambivalent about it until someone I know had a terrible accident when their dog jumped out of the footwell without warning. They crashed and spent three months in hospital with internal injuries. My dog wears a dog seatbelt in the back.

    DDog is in a crate in the boot of our car, we had to get a bigger car as she slid about in the boot of our hatchback and the crate didnt fit, she now loves travelling and DS sings songs to her and she will happily sleep on long journeys.

    In the boot if buggy and other stuff isnt in there, otherwise in middle seat on a harness and dog seatbelt in between DCs.

    Has anyone got recommendations for car harnesses which Houdini pup cant wriggle out of in 5 seconds flat? Eve tried two now 🙁 we cant fit a crate in the car easily as we have a 7 seater which doesnt really have a proper boot

    We still use front footwell due to dog being travel sick, too large for a crate in the boot and the position of the carseat in the back.

    In the back of SUV behind the dog grill. But his favourite car is mine in summer sitting in the passenger seat when Ive got the roof down – he doesnt half get some admiring glances!

    That one and that one are the only crash tested ones I know of.

    On back seats with a car hammock at first, but very messy with mud etc. seats were damp, doors etc muddy, hair everywhere, not ideal. Also distracting. Got new car which is an estate and hes in boot now, much better. If you plan to do more than odd visit to vets I would go for the boot every time now.

    Mine sits on the backseat on his blanket with a harness ,he loves the car and is in it several times a week . If its wet/muddy he sits in an old coat that I adapted into a type of dog bag so he drys by the time we get home and the seats dont get wet/muddy.

    In a crate in the boot if we are travelling for more than 15 minutes. Its a big crate but it fits both of them and as our younger dog is often travel sick its good to have the vomit contained. I watched a programme in which police were trying to catch a dog who had escaped after an accident and decided I didnt want to go through that. Our local journeys are all on roads with a speed limit of 30 (and as were in London thats optimistic).

    My Houdini undid his harness by standing on it three times tonight on a seven mile journey to agility! Once ten yards from the house, once three miles from home and lastly on the farm drive as we arrived! Not amused!

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