Would your dogs live in the boot?

[Ravenwood]

If my car boot is open - the dogs are inside

I honestly think they would lie in it all day long. I am tempted to put their bed in there and sell the kennel

I know that my spaniel is in there because he is terrified that I might go somewhere exciting without him

 

[GinaB]

Oh totally

When I open the boot to let the labs in, they jump in without even letting me take out the rubbish out of it!

Tina especially loves it

 

[popsicle]

I have to lift my lazy lab into the boot to take him anywhere and he's only 2 years old. He did however sleep in the boot for 4 nights when we went camping and never made a sound, so he can't hate it that much.

 

[sea_view]

My pooch is the same - she defo worries she might miss out!

 

[kirstyhen]

No, the outside world is far too exciting for Otto, if he stayed in the boot he might miss something!!

He knows not to jump out until he's told, but it's not because he wants to stay in there.

He is a bit of an odd dog, sometimes he will jump in without giving me a chance to open the dog box, so he ends up perched on the grill, and sometimes he doesn't even register the boot being open.

No chance of us going anywhere and forgetting him, the mere suggestion of shoes going on and Otto is at the front door waiting

Ravenwood - Your dogs wouldn't be too happy on the RSPCA's view on travelling dogs in the boot..
[ QUOTE ]

Can I transport a dog in a car boot? Is there any legislation governing this?

We would certainly not recommend transporting a dog in this way.
There must be a justifiable reason for anyone to transport a dog in the boot of a car, for example en-route to a vet for treatment.

If using a hatchback car the boot panel can be removed to allow the dog to be supervised during transport.

A dog should not be left in the boot of a car overnight.

If the dog is caused to suffer as a result of being transported in boot of a saloon car, then an offence is committed contrary to the Animal Welfare Act 2006. Plus, the Welfare of Animals (Transport) Order 1997 makes it an offence to transport any animal in a way which causes or is likely to cause injury or unnecessary suffering to that animal.


[/ QUOTE ]

 

[Ravenwood]

I am really LOL'ing

Where is the dog supposed to go if not in the boot?

Surely the safest way of transporting a dog is in a cage in the boot - in fact I know it is, to prevent it killing the front seat passengers in an accident!

My car is an estate - not sure why I felt I had to point that out!!

 

[CAYLA]

My dogs rush to the car, and literally all pile in

as they assosiate it with walks, as we always take them to the fields in the doggy van, but they do the same in my 4x4 if the back door is open, my rotti will happily lie in there all day even though the door is open waiting to go for a ride in the car

Ok now im admitting my irrisponsibility

I actually forgot to slide the doggy van door shut the other day and my whippey boy was quite happily standing peering out of the door but made no attempt to jump out, but his expression was pretty worrying

"OH said are u going to close that door" jsut as we where pulling away

 

[kirstyhen]

I know!
I could understand if you wanted to travel your dogs the boot of a Saloon car, but not in a normal boot

I would much rather my dog in the boot than sat on any of the seats, even if restrained with a harness!
Otto hated travelling in the car until we got the dog box, it makes him much more secure and now all he does is sleep.

 

[GinaB]

I wedge two labs (and believe me, one of them is a bit girl!) into a Clio

I do take off the parcel shelf though

 

[kirstyhen]

Ah, but we all know your cruel

Otto doesn't fully appreciate the size difference between the Focus and C-RV, he had the same tiny Dog Box in both

 

[GinaB]

I know, my labs hate me

It's all the work I make them do

Ah poor boy, actually if I could afford it and had a bigger car I'd get a dog box

In the Disco they have lots of room, but we have installed a guard.

 

[kirstyhen]

My Mum's Trooper has a Dog Guard (She does have 6 to fit in!) Otto can't believe how much room he has AND he gets to look out the window!!

If we get another dog we'll have to get a guard fitted, but the dog box is just so fab for containing all his grubbiness

 

[Puppy]

I'm amazed that the RSPCA aren't campaigning to band dog guards then!

Puppy always used to travel in the boot of my car. I'm not sure how else she would have comfortably got in or out of my fiesta otherwise...

 

[Spudlet]

Henry used to wait in the boot of my car while I was at work, we would go for a walk before, at lunchtime and afterwards and he had a kong and water and he comfy bed. He was always fine - it's a hatchback and he had loads of room - and this was in winter so he didn't overheat although it was parked under a shady bush. He travels on the backseat now anyway but was fine in the boot, although I'm told that in cars without a guard he relocates to the seat once you get moving

It wasn't ideal but it didn't harm him! I suppose the RSPCA will be hunting me down now to save my abused dog... in which case they'll have quite a few others to take from my workplace as well.

Typical RSPCA - a dog in a saloon car boot is not a good idea but an estate or hatchback with a crate or guard sounds fine to me!

 

[MurphysMinder]

With the exception of Evie all my dogs would happily sit in the back of the car all day if I left the tailgate up. I have even had one that jumped onto the engine once mistaking the lifted bonnet for the tailgate

Evie is not quite so keen, she seems happy enough once in the car and has never been travel sick but always needs a bit of persuading to get in. When I first started going to Germany to shows some of the exhibitors used to travel their dogs in the boots of saloon cars. They used to remove a panel out of the back seat so the dogs could see through (and presumably breathe!).
The last thing I want to do is defend the RSPCA but I do wonder if in that quote they are referring to car boots as in saloon cars rather than the back of estates, otherwise they are talking nonsense. We used to go on a doggy holiday/agility competition to Jersey every year, and for a week the dogs slept every night in the back of a van, kitted out with cages, they were happy as larry.

 

[Happy Horse]

Gillie happily travels in the boot although he is not allowed to try and jump in yet as we are protecting his legs. Having said that, whenever the boot is open he goes and hides under the bush - we are not sure why!

 

[Charmaine18]

Leah's weird - every time you open the car she leaps in like she's really excited, but as soon as we actually start moving she gets all worried and pants and drools all the way there. I think it must be because she knows the car means we're going somewhere exciting, but she really doesn't like the actual journey. She's always very eager to jump out at the other end!

 

[CorvusCorax]

D used to jump into any car if the door was left open

Quite a few motorists in our old village got quite a shock.

 

[competitiondiva]

Boot, cab well any door to the car or van that's open!! Even when I'm cleaning it out my dog has to be sat in it just incase I were to go without her!!!

 

[TarrSteps]

I think the RSPCA is mainly talking about people putting dogs into the boot of a saloon car - or what I would call the trunk - not the luggage section of a hatchback, estate or 4x4.

And before you say who would do that, I've seen it. Once, I saw someone take their dog out of the boot at a horse show and another time we were driving behind a car, wondering why the truck was tied slightly open, only to see a snout appear at the gap!!!! What is wrong with some people??

 

[PucciNPoni]

My friend has a border collie that loves car boots so much that if she's walking her she's got to keep an eye out for STRANGE car boots left open cos her dog jumps straight in.

My only concern about travelling dogs in a boot only came from a recent story that I heard from clients of mine. They had two lovely ageing cockers that always rode in the boot loose - neither crated nor tied in any way. Somehow during a long drive the hatchback opened and one of dogs rolled out, and hit the deck at 70mph. It rolled under a guard rail and down an embankment, knocked unconcious. The owners were shouting on the dog, it was dark and couldn't find him. Then as they were searching the bushes they saw him a bit further along and watched in horror as he staggered out of the growth, and straight in to an oncoming car, killed. It was a freak accident and I'm sure hasnt' happened very often. But it makes me wonder about dogs riding loose in the car at all, and if the car door/hatch to be struck by another vehicle and door opened, would the dog escape in to traffic? Two of my dogs tend to ride on the back seat on short journeys and the pup goes in a crate, but I really must think about crating them all...

 

[Ravenwood]

Oh how awful - those poor people (and poor dog)

I think we can all tell horror stories about however a dog is travelled, such as the one hung up and strangled itself on a dog guard, the dog that flew through the windscreen in an accident etc etc.

Personally I am pretty convinced that a crate/cage in the boot is the safest option - but then again we all get a bit lacksidasical, myself included, and my dogs travel loose in the boot out of the shooting season.