Blog the Change for Animals: Be Smart Ride Safe® & Bark-Buckle Up for National Animal Protection & Safety Month.

Harley sits in the back and is always buckled up.

Buckle Up! It's the Paw! That's what our new car magnet says! When it comes to our pet's safety, we can't be too careful when traveling in a vehicle. That's why today, in honor of Blog the Change for Animals in conjunction with National Animal Protection & Safety Month, I'd like to once again talk about a very important subject: safe pet travel. Whether you use a crate or a seat belt, please remember to buckle-up your furkids before you turn that ignition key.

According to Be Smart Ride Safe®:

* A 60-pound pet can causes a 2,700 pound projectile, even when moving at only 35mph

* Statistics show pet travel has increased 300% since 2005

* Unrestrained pets in vehicles can delay emergency workers' access to human occupants

* Pets escaping a vehicle post-accident can pose many dangers, including catching the loose pet

* Injured pets may bite rescue workers or others who are trying to help

* Pets may escape through a window or open door and cause a second accident

* Driver distraction is common when unrestrained pets are rambunctious inside a vehicle

Statistics don’t lie.

When you have a pet in your lap, in the front seat or roaming freely around the car it is very likely you will break these simple three rules. There are three main types of distraction:

• Visual — taking your eyes off the road
• Manual — taking your hands off the wheel
• Cognitive — taking your mind off what you’re doing 

Just as with children, air bags can also hurt your pet if deployed. To avoid injury, it's a good idea to restrain your pets in the back seat of your car.

Please visit the Bark-Buckle Up Facebook page (2019 update: website is no longer active) for more information and join us today in ensuring your pet's and your own safety by taking The Pledge to "Be Smart Ride Safe®" today. And always remember that when you buckling up your family and yourself, buckle up your furkids as well. The life saved could be your own or your pet's. 

You can check with their Facebook page to see if they still offer a FREE Pet Safety Kit, including a pet ID card (with your pet's photo & vital information) to carry in your glovebox, and a car window cling to alert first responders that there is a furkid aboard. We were thrilled to get ours!

In the meantime, enjoy this spectacular Fall time of year that is arriving in many areas. Go for some leisurely car rides, Autumn leaf peeping, and hiking with your pets, but please remember...drive safely and always buckle-up! Here's a video with some additional safety tips from Christina, the Pet Safety Lady (and founder of Bark-Buckle-Up!):

Also, be sure to stop over to My Brown Newfie's page today and leave a comment on their Blog the Change entry. For each comment, Iams will donate 10 bowls of food to shelter dogs in need as part of their Home for the Holidays program. So head on over, comment, and feed some needy dogs!