Our four legged friends are as important to us as our children in most households. So when it comes time to pick out our new ride, how do we select one that will be right for us and for our pets?

Well, in short, you should always talk to your salesperson about all your usage, including how you normally travel with your pet(s). A real sales pro will talk to you about safety for the pet and also about features that different vehicles have that might appeal more to someone who is a pet owner.

This occurred to me to discuss here with you because I was talking with a gentleman earlier in my day who was out walking his large breed dog and told me that he’s coming back in to see me to do a demo drive without his dog to make sure that no fur got shed while we’d be out on a test drive.

I could see how much he loved his dog and he told me what a pain it was to deal with cleaning up the fur all the time in his current vehicles when he and his wife would either one be driving with the dog in their car.

That’s when I brought up the subject of pet friendly car accessories and features of the vehicles I carried that his dog would really get a lot of enjoyment from. I told him that there are some companies that carry dog hammocks of heavy material that attach to the headrests and would keep the fur from getting matted in the carpeting or seats. I also told him that the truck he was checking out had a fully powered rear window that lowered 100% and his dog could safely stick his head out in the wind while driving without worry of being clipped from anything oncoming. No large bugs, branches, or cars getting too close! I told him that many styles of the hammocks even had pocket for toy storage and treats. If he’d had a small breed pet, he could have looked at a safety seat for keeping the curious animals contained inside the cabin safely rather than getting nervous and distracting the driver with all sorts of movement. I could also mention that with the truck option, a dog box in the back would give his canine the fresh air as well and remove the risk of having to clean up dog hair afterwards because the dog would not be in the cabin.

There are several ways to ride safely and enjoyably with our pets. I’m always interested in helping people find ways to enhance their in-vehicle experiences. Please reach out to me if you have any questions or suggestions on this matter. You can connect with me on Facebook by clicking here or you can send me an email at wmccormick@toyota.bertwolfe.com.