Many Car Restraints Designed For Pets Failed Crash Safety Test

How many of us pet owners often drive with our pets in the car? Probably a lot of us. As responsible pet owners, we may even take the time to get our pets safely strapped into carriers or crates in order to make transportation safest in case of unforeseen accidents. However, how many of us actually know which carrier and crate brands are really safe, and which ones are as dangerous as just letting our pet hangout, unstrapped, in the backseat?

Back in 2015, the Center for Pet Safety (CPS) conducted several studies on various popular pet crates and small carrier brands in order to see which ones would best hold up during vehicle collisions. Needless to say, the results were surprising.

The crash-test study was conducted in unison with Subaru of America, and the results showed that there were very few pet products designed for the car that actually held up during testing. For the crash tests, the CPA, which is a non-profit consumer advocacy group, used weighted dog and cat dummies so there were no live animals harmed in the process.

Using eight models of pet carriers, the CPA stimulated front crashes at speeds of 30 mph. In order for these carriers to be deemed safe, the animal was required to be fully contained inside the carrier. Surprisingly, only two of the pet carrier brands successfully held up to the safety criteria set out by CPS. The other carriers were found to detach from their anchoring or did not keep the dummies inside the carriers.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

For information on which of the carriers passed and which ones did not, you can click here. Meanwhile for the results of the pet crates, you can click here.

CPS was also sure to test out pet travel seats, however, none of these products withstood the impact. It was the first time that these products were included in testing.

The CPS published their results in order to make sure pet owners were aware that while many products may keep their pets secured in the car, not many provide the proper protection needed to withstand a crash.

As the safety video says, “many manufacturers claim their products pass crash testing, but without uniform test standards these claims cannot be substantiated.”

Therefore, pet owners are encouraged to do their research while shopping for a car product for their pets – no matter what it is. It is important that pet owners are fully away of the product’s pros and cons in order to know what you’re getting.

Watch the video below: