Hey Ozbner,
Travelling with dog in the passenger seat. Got told by a police officer he could fine me for 600+ bucks if my dog is not harnessed to a seatbelt. Never knew this.
Went online and found on RMS that
"Animals should be seated or housed in appropriate areas.A driver must not drive with an animal in their lap."
However, My dog was Not in my lap but just in the passenger seat.
What is the right interpretation of the regulations? Cheers
@wordplay: Haha I thought you were being serious - guess jokes don't always come across well in text!
What if the air bag deploys?
Tell her you'll not give her a lift again.
Restrained in front seat?
dogs belong in the back.
their head should also be kept inside the vehicle.
Can I let my dog's head out when she runs in the park? I don't think my local council wants me driving on their grass.
wife sits there so dog can to
the dog sits there so the wife can too
wife should be sitting in the back so she has space to make sandwiches
Next time wind the copper up and put the dog in the drivers seat with a mobile phone by it's ear.
No problem in having a dog in the front passenger seat but for its own safety it needs to be restrained.
What do you think would happen to an unrestrained dog if you had to slam on the brakes or were involved in a serious accident.
I'd imagine the dog would shit itself, then be launched through the windscreen at Tesla rocket velocity before landing in a heap, covered in glass, blood and it's own feces.
Pretty much.
Unfortunately some people don't have the common sense to figure this out.
Unfortunately some people don't have the common sense to figure this out.
Like some friends of ours who used to always drive with their dachshund on the wife's lap (in the passenger seat). Another car crossed on to the wrong side of the road and smashed into them head on - they both survived, but the dog didn't. He was flung out of his owner's arms on impact and smashed into the dashboard, breaking his back.
So much for so-called animal lovers.
@SimbaGirl:The dachshund would have acted as an extra airbag thus protecting the owner. Every cloud has a silver lining.
@lovesabargain77: It was a horrendous thing to happen - problem was, they couldn't have children so lavished all their love and attention on their little dog … but still allowed him to travel with them in a completely unsafe fashion. I don't think they ever got over it.
I've always had big dogs (German Shepherds etc) and there is NO way I'd allow any of my dogs to travel unrestrained in a vehicle - they've always either been behind a fixed cargo barrier or in a harness that attaches to the seatbelt "socket".
Why not just put the seatbelt around the dog?
Wow I'm a genius!! XD
I have seen a 4wd round a roundabout then stop abruptly. The driver hopped out ran back and picked up his dog, got back in and drove away.
Dogs should be restrained for their own safety, and yours.
Forget about the rules. Do it for the safety of your dog. The first thing I thought about was a seatbelt/harness for my dog.
They will go flying if you have to brake suddenly.
In a vain attempt at a witty reply. I just typed into the search bar 'can Dogtanian fly'?
I'm at work, hoping my internet usage isn't being monitored.
For the record Dogtanian just does standard Musketeer type stuff.
You should get a harness, the harness saved my dogs life when he jumped out of the window.
Many of us consider pets to be a member of the family, so getting a proper harness to ensure they can be locked in properly like a seat belt is important.
As someone else pointed out, the one which holds onto their body rather than the neck is the safest.
Dogs should be attached to the towbar, when driving. Just kidding.
My mum did it once, went for a walk with he dog, and tied it to the tow-bar, did a phone-call, and drove home. Luckily is was a very windy road, and the distance was short. The dog was fine, just a bit exhausted.
I'll never forget when my friend and I stopped a driver who had forgotten his dog was tethered to the tow bar. The dog's feet were all worn raw and it was covered in blood from rolling around behind the car, it was shock or something. Other people ran over to have a go at him while he took time looking for a blanket in his boot to avoid getting blood on his upholstery. My friend got really annoyed and sat in the back of his car to hold the dog while they went off to the vet.
Thats horrible, my god it sucks to be a dog sometimes.
I can reassure you our dog was fine. He lived many more happy years.
I read in a google search that harnesses were now mandatory across Australia. I have seen that back of Ute restraint is defined too.
The article itself does not come up when you click on it though.
Perhaps it is embedded in legislation that applies nationally - or external to where people ard looking.
https://www.choice.com.au/transport/cars/accessories/article…
This is an old comparison test. Just shows that you need to be careful which brand.
thanks for the link.. gonna check my system.
yeah the qld transport page says harness isn't mandatory.. but maybe that page is old.
of course, it's commonsense.
i saw a nasty feral derro the other day on a freeway overpass running around after his dog that had escaped out the window. i know someone who had both labs with broken legs when they simultaneously launched themselves out the car window.
and anything unrestrained will be ejected in a rollover.
Road rules are set by the State, not federally. Whatever the law is in your State, that's what applies. It's the same with the mandatory wearing of seatbelts which were introduced gradually across States, with Victoria being the first in 1970.
What you say is correct but not complete.
https://www.ntc.gov.au/roads/rules-compliance/the-australian…
"These are model laws that have no legal effect. They form the basis of Road Rules of each Australian state and territory. For the most part, each state and territory has copied the Rules into their own laws, however, not every provision of the Rules has been copied exactly in each state and territory. Also, there are a number of provisions in the Rules that specifically leave certain matters to state and territory governments to determine."
All the failed ones had plastic buckles that snapped during a simple drop-test that was pretty much the extent of the testing.
A proper restraint is made from metal stronger than the dog's harness. And if the harness isn't correctly fitted, or if the restraint is too long to prevent the dig hitting hard things like windows in a collision…
If the dog is over 16 he/she would be liable for the whole penalty sum.
"The Queensland road rules do not specifically require animals to be restrained while travelling inside the cabin of your car. However it is illegal for you to have a dog on your lap if you’re behind the wheel. This offence carries a fine of $260." https://racqliving.com.au/motoring/queensland-car-laws-may-n…
Driving with animals - Travelling inside a vehicle - "It is an offence to drive with an animal in your lap or to drive when you don't have proper control of your vehicle. We recommend animals travelling inside your vehicle be restrained in some way for the safety and welfare of the animal and the occupants of the vehicle. The road rules do not specifically require an animal to be restrained while travelling inside a vehicle." https://www.qld.gov.au/transport/safety/rules/road/common#an…
It is an offensive to drive without an animal secured.
^ so go buy an animal everyone!
^ NSW the nanny state
My first not at fault accident involved a P plater with a dog seated in the passenger seat. Her excuse was 'sorry the dog jumped on top of me' - Thankfully no one was injured!
I always thought that the dog must be secured. I have mine on a seat belt clip.
Connected to a body harness I assume.
Normally not a problem. Most police don't care. Some just really butthurt.
I have a dog booster seat similar to this (but different brand): https://www.kurgo.com/dog-car-seat/skybox-dog-booster-seat/
Basically it hooks around the back of the seat and on the headrest so the dog's head/eye level can see outside, and inside there's a little hook to connect to the back of a dog harness so they can stay seated comfortably.
I've always found this a strange one. As far as I know you don't have to harness dogs yet children, who are often smaller and lighter than many dogs, have all kinds of strict rules.
I get that losing a child is a much bigger deal, but its more the aspect of a unharnessed dog being a real danger to those in the front in the event of an accident. We have two Golden Retrievers that weigh over 30kg each and them flying through the air at speed could probably kill you (and them) in an accident. I've always found it odd that there aren't more rules around this.
All the NSW law says is:
The legislation, stipulates that motorists must not drive a vehicle with an animal on their lap or preventing them from having proper control of the car.
That's it. It does NOT say they have to be restrained inside a car. The unrestrained thing is all about dogs on the back of utes.
"Animals should be seated or housed in appropriate areas".
You would think NSW laws could be more specific..does this include the front passenger seat/floor space?
It's all about utes. The RSPCA fought that ute problem for a long time.
Not a big fan of the projectile argument, but i'm not sure a dog would do you any favors when it hits you in the face as your car flips in an accident. Also, it hurts the dog.
The last time i had a near accident (enough to raise the hairs on the back of my neck) the driver had a dog running around the car distracting her, completely oblivious to traffic.
Mount the dog inside the car properly.
I think that mounting your dog in the car is probably against the law.
i assume you're trying to be funny. :)
Mount - referring to a proper harness, and attached to a baby seat mount. Not just tying the leash around a headrest
You mean securing.
Even better just don't give pauline hanson a lift anymore
another post for the oznocommonsense.com forum
Once I was driving a manual car with a dog in the front passengers seat. Interestingly the owner sat in the back, advising that the dog would get nervous if he wasn't in the front.
She was right. That dog did get nervous whenever we went around corners. He'd sit pretty still, but push the gearstick into neutral. Every time.
In my opinion, keep your dog harnessed in the back seats. If you have an accident and airbags deploying, it's very likely your dog will die from a broken neck. Have a chest harness and a seatbelt attachment and you'll reduce this factor by a lot. My pug still reaches her front legs to the middle arm rest/glove box thing to say hey and give me kisses when I lean to her. She's my furchild :)
imagine your unrestrained dog in an accident, if you care for your dog you'd strap it in
The best idea is to install dog cage barrier in your car, i installed mine from caddy storage, see the below link they will customised the barrier as per as your car model
https://www.caddystorage.com.au/products/trade-specific-fit-…
Thanks
Holy mother of dead threads Batman…
Only helpful if you own a wagon/SUV/4WD etc… no good for sedans… first thing I thought of was this “barrier”…
Post specifically asks about passenger seat travel for pets. Maybe get one of those big plastic taxi barriers I have seen in some cabs…
@callum9999:
mate you name it, they've fined me for it.
Drink driving, public indecency, using phone while driving, parking tickets, drinking in public, speeding, no rego, unroadworthy car (it was fine), unpaid fines, unsecured load, a bunch more.
they didn't even ggive me a warning and most of the time i was not even doing it.
they do worse and get paid to do it.