Test on Dog Harnesses for Cars Show 100% Failure Rate

[sheshistory]

I thought this was an interesting news item that would be of note to many bulldog owners who use harnesses to restrain their bullies in the car. As it turns out, the harness may be giving dog owners a false sense of security, judging from recent tests on harnesses:

http://miami.cbslocal.com/2013/06/21/tests-on-dog-harnesses-show-100-percent-failure-rate/

The Center for Pet Safety (which is a non-profit) tested some harnesses in accidents, with some horrific results.

Currently, there isn't much of an alternative for pet owners but still some food for thought!

 

[Casper]

Awesome article, and I'd love to know more. Most harnesses attach with a plastic clip, and in the case of severe car accident, it was a no brainer, your pet would break loose. I had such a problem with this as I evaluated many harnesses for Rocky. In the case of a minor accident, or slow collision, like in the city, I feel using something is better than nothing, and I do feel the harness and restraint I have will protect both the boys, In the case of severe accident, or high speed, I think the G-Force of the sudden stop would be enough to traumatize their bodies, break bones, or as they said, even decapitate at times, But in this same sentence, I have to add that I spent 4 years as an Accident Investigator, (AI) which meant, I was dispatched to every severe accident, Fatality, serious unjust accident in the South Eastern Region of LA, and my job required the reconstruction of an accident when no survivors, or no witnesses. In a handful of these accident, I had noted, that the Force of the body, restrained by the safety belt of the vehicle, had killed. Even though partially still restrained, the force of the stop was often enough to slice through the human body. Remember two cars traveling at 45 mph, meeting head on, has all the damage of one vehicle traveling at 90 mph and coming to a sudden stop. Pets in the back seat restrained, in a severe vehicle accident, is much like restraining an infant in a car seat, You may restrain the seat, however how will you stop the enertia of the infant, Still with a 90 mph impact, imagine the G-Force of the child crimping against the harness system within the seat, Will the infant survive. Best case scenario, is to not have an accident, However in the event of having an accident, safety restraints for your pet, will only be as effective as the belt for driver and harness, and Don't kid yourself, Seatbelts are proven to have killed many drivers passengers within the vehicle, However the National Safety Commission has found that its saved more lives than even thought about taking. So many factors are considered when investigating an accident, were only privileged to a summary of the basics, Things like speed, seat belt restraints used or not, Points of impact (POI) The safety rating of your vehicle, for instance, What you impact, whether movable or immovable object. Theres a lot to consider, and thats for humans, Pets are like us, subject to the same rules. I agree that at high speed collisions are a gamble, But a lower speeds, in city driving, I believe I will accept my chances, and it is what it is…. However thats a great article.

 

[AubreysMom]

Wow! So basically, you just really have to hope that you don't wreck with your dog in the car. We got Aubie a seat belt clip from Carolina Pet Pantry. It hooks like a leash to her harness and buckles into the seat belt buckle like a seat belt. I'd really like to know more. Like-- do they have any suggestions to make pet travel safer? Does a certain type work any better than another? Etc. Scary stuff.

 

[AubreysMom]

Awesome article, and I'd love to know more. Most harnesses attach with a plastic clip, and in the case of severe car accident, it was a no brainer, your pet would break loose. I had such a problem with this as I evaluated many harnesses for Rocky. In the case of a minor accident, or slow collision, like in the city, I feel using something is better than nothing, and I do feel the harness and restraint I have will protect both the boys, In the case of severe accident, or high speed, I think the G-Force of the sudden stop would be enough to traumatize their bodies, break bones, or as they said, even decapitate at times, But in this same sentence, I have to add that I spent 4 years as an Accident Investigator, (AI) which meant, I was dispatched to every severe accident, Fatality, serious unjust accident in the South Eastern Region of LA, and my job required the reconstruction of an accident when no survivors, or no witnesses. In a handful of these accident, I had noted, that the Force of the body, restrained by the safety belt of the vehicle, had killed. Even though partially still restrained, the force of the stop was often enough to slice through the human body. Remember two cars traveling at 45 mph, meeting head on, has all the damage of one vehicle traveling at 90 mph and coming to a sudden stop. Pets in the back seat restrained, in a severe vehicle accident, is much like restraining an infant in a car seat, You may restrain the seat, however how will you stop the enertia of the infant, Still with a 90 mph impact, imagine the G-Force of the child crimping against the harness system within the seat, Will the infant survive. Best case scenario, is to not have an accident, However in the event of having an accident, safety restraints for your pet, will only be as effective as the belt for driver and harness, and Don't kid yourself, Seatbelts are proven to have killed many drivers passengers within the vehicle, However the National Safety Commission has found that its saved more lives than even thought about taking. So many factors are considered when investigating an accident, were only privileged to a summary of the basics, Things like speed, seat belt restraints used or not, Points of impact (POI) The safety rating of your vehicle, for instance, What you impact, whether movable or immovable object. Theres a lot to consider, and thats for humans, Pets are like us, subject to the same rules. I agree that at high speed collisions are a gamble, But a lower speeds, in city driving, I believe I will accept my chances, and it is what it is…. However thats a great article.

That's some excellent food for though that helps put the article into perspective. I agree, I'd rather take my chances with them strapped in and just hope if I do wreck, it's at a low speed.

 

[bullmama]

Wow I did not know this, and I have always felt pretty guilty a about not using one. We have a cargo style crate in the back of my minivan (like the crate you would use on an airplane to ship a dog). I have 4 kids so there is no seats left to use one if these seatbelt gadgets, only someone's lap or the floor, which I never felt was safe. This actually makes me feel a ton better about our crate method, as they are probably much safer there!


Sent from my iPhone 5 using Tapatalk

 

[Davidh]

I think the harness is better than nothing. When we go on long trips, we put them in a crate in the back, this way they can move around a little better than they can with the harness on plus it will keep them from flying around if in a accident, and as [MENTION=8699]Casper[/MENTION] said, in a high speed accident, all bets are off anyway. I saw a video on car crashes and the safety of the passengers, with the new cars and the high strength steel they use. The "Smart Car" is so little and the entire side frames are so strong, that in a 45 MPH crash into a stationary object the car survives the crash but it has no room to absorb the energy, like most cars do, that the occupants are killed inside.