You Seat Belt Your Kids and Not Your Dogs?
You Seat Belt Your Kids and Not Your Dogs?
Hello this is Krista with episode number 104 of the Wag Out Loud podcast. Did you know that a person standing still 300 yards away from a dog is nearly invisible, but your dog can identify you from one mile away if you wave your arms? Pretty awesome!
Hi there dog lovers! We are so grateful to Laura Gillice for sharing some very important safety information today. Laura became addicted to agility with her Golden Retriever and three Australian Shepherds. They traveled all over the country to compete and soon realized how important it was to secure the dogs in crates for their safety and hers. Five years ago, they were vacationing in Yellowstone National Park and a young man fell asleep at the wheel and hit them head on at 45MPH. They were ambulanced and air lifted out, but when the Rangers went to get Jade out of her plastic crate, it shattered and she bolted into the wilderness. She was lost for 44 days.
Laura, we are so thrilled to have you here. Thank you. Thank you.
3:01. Oh, thank you, Krista. Appreciate you letting us talk about crate safety because it's definitely a passion of ours after that horrible car wreck.
3:10 Well, I can't even imagine what you went through. So today you're going to be talking to us about You Seatbelt Your Kids and not Your Pets.? So Laura, why don't we start with your traumatic story.
3:26 Sure, I appreciate that. Well, we were vacationing in Yellowstone. I had been judging up in Billings, Montana, and had a fun gig down in Jackson Hole and had invited David, who had a 15 month old Aussie and my 10 month old Aussie joined us on this trip. And I was passionate about crating the dogs. He had a plastic airline crate. And at the time I wasn't even thinking about it, but was adamant that he crate his dog. And then my puppy Layla was in a wire crate. Jade was in her crate behind the driver's seat and Layla was behind her near the back. I was driving because David had driven all day. And we were in the middle of Yellowstone between North and Canyon village. We just pottied the dogs and put them back in, took off and I'm following a little red car and the red car swerves out of the way and a dodge ram pickup is in our lane coming at us at 45 miles an hour and hit us head on. And David suffered major injuries. They helicoptered him out. And I could hear the dogs barking in the background. They had pulled us out of the cars and we were on the ground and the Rangers are like, Don't worry, we'll take care of the dogs and everything. So I didn't think about it. I got to the hospital to find out David's alive and first thing he asked me is How are the dogs and I said they're fine. Don't worry, the Rangers are going to take care of them. And within about an hour we get a call from the Rangers saying we're so sorry, one of your dogs got away. And what had happened is our cooler hit the plastic crate and shattered it. We didn't realize it. And the Rangers went to get Jade out of the crate, and she bolted in the middle of Yellowstone. And where my puppy was looks like a bowling ball had gone off in the wire crate. Spokes were broken and everything, but it stayed intact. So that's why we're real advocates to crate your dog. It could have been a lot worse if they had been loose in the car. They probably wouldn't have survived. They would have been projectiles, either all the way through the windshield or who knows what. It could have been the worst story.
5:49 you learned the hard way.
5:51 We did. We did.
5:53 And Yellowstone is a park that's over like 2 million acres right and I'm sure home to many predators.?
5:57 Exactly. And Jade was missing for 44 days. It's just amazing that we we got her back from all the people who helped us look for her. Dave and I went up there…he had had surgery on his knee and we're all optimistic we're gonna go get Jade. it's an amazing story and we do have a book out, Bring Jade Home and an illustrated book Loss in Yellowstone. So if you want to hear more about it, it does have a happy ending.
6:43 Well, we love the happy ending! Was Jade hurt at all when you did find her?
6:48 The wreck was on July 23rd. We got her back September 4th. So she would not have survived much longer. She just had one little spot on her mouth. That was pine sap. But If only she could tell us what happened. Yeah, amazing that she showed up where the car had been towed in Canyon village. Eventually it took us over a week to get her because she had turned feral.
7:19 Oh my gosh. Well, Laura, what is the biggest lesson that you learned from this tragic ordeal?
7:26 I think that definitely even if you're going to the grocery store, you should crate your dog. The best position for the crate is to have your dog is in the middle of the car and not in the front seat. And not all the way in the rear in case you’re rear ended. And they they love to ride in the car. They know they're going somewhere fun. Usually, you get your dogs used to the crate in the house before you put it in the car with treats and everything. So you want a crate that is sturdy. There is a Center for Pet Safety. Their testing was done in 2015 that did testing on several crates, so you want to make sure it's comfortable with good ventilation. I put water and fans on the side that's durable, and you should get the correct crate size for your dog, that they're able to stand up, sit down, turn around, but not too large. Because you don't want them bouncing off the side.
8:31 And how do you actually secure a crate in your car?
8:35 I usually have it bungeed down very secure so it won't move. It won't slide around. I have a platform that I secure it down to.
8:51 Were any of the dogs reluctant to get back in the car after the accident?
8:57 Just Jade because of her personality. She was like I'm not getting back in that car. My puppy Layla is pretty bulletproof and she was like, Wow, that was interesting. And she just got right back in. So different personalities, but Jade was definitely hesitant and still is. She still looks at you before she gets in like really do I have to?
9:21 I just can't believe how many dogs I see hanging their heads out of car windows bouncing around and the worst of all, in the driver's lap. That just doesn't make sense. And you know here we are always buckling ourselves in yet., they have A loose dog sitting their lap while driving. I can only imagine really bad things happening.
9:47 Oh, as a kid we had a lhasa apso that sat in my lap and it saw a squirrel out the window. And fortunately my mom was only going 20 miles an hour and that dog was out of my hands in a second. And I look out the window and the dog is rolling on the ground and I was more upset than the dog. But yes, I cringe when I see people with dogs in their lap. I mean, the airbag can kill them, or dogs hanging their head out the window is very frightening.
10:19 Well, and a loose dog can distract the driver. What if they get down by your feet where you know, you've got the brake and gas pedal? And as you said, they can actually be killed by the airbag. You know, if that air bag goes off, and there's a loose dog there in the front seat, it's not gonna end well.
10:43 No. And interesting story, Stephen King, the writer was almost killed, because the other driver was distracted by a misbehaving dog. And he almost died. So they say, you know, 41% accidents are. caused by a dog climbing in an owner's lap. There's several reasons why it's so much safer for you and other drivers to restrain your dogs.
11:10 People always say, Oh, that's not going to happen to me. But I can only imagine a loose dog, you know, you get in the accident, they might become a threat to the emergency workers. I mean, this poor animal is scared to death if it even lives through that accident. And when workers are trying to rescue them, and they're scared and run. Yeah, Jade does have a very happy ending.
11:42 Yeah, we were very fortunate. But you know, you read all the time, people in accidents and dogs missing. They're very scared. they take off and unfortunately I have another agility friend whose dog was killed.
12:04 This statistic really sums it up. in a collision, an unrestrained animal becomes a projectile with the potential to cause enormous harm. And according to the pet advocacy group Bark Buckle Up., A 60 pound dog in a car traveling only 35 miles an hour can turn into a 2700 pound projectile in an accident.
12:35 Nobody no dog, no human could withstand that. That is certain death.
12:44 Okay, well, let's go back to the cages. You obviously have had experience with wire and plastic. So what do you recommend?
12:56 Well, the CPS (center for pet safety) in 2015 did quite a few studies. And the ones that I see for the larger dog are the Vario cage and the impact crate. And the gunner crates are highly recommended. made of good material, they won't crack. They've done tests on rollover, side impact, you know, rear, and they hold together. Those are very good recommendations. For small dogs. There's one called the sleepy pod, which is more of a soft crate that goes in the backseat that's highly recommended. And there's a lot of good custom crates out there too. Rogue is a good one. But again, they're not cheap. But you know, losing your dog is priceless.
13:48 And what are your thoughts on, you know, the harness secured by the seatbelt? Obviously, never ever hook that up to your dog's neck collar. But you've seen the harnesses that have, you know, like their own little seat belt as well. What do you think about those?
14:07 You know, it's, it's better than nothing. I don't know if I would consider those to be the best, depending on the size of the dog to I would want a little bit more security for the dog. But, you know, for smaller dogs, at least it's something to restrain them. So they're, like you said it doesn't take much for a 10 pound dog at 50 miles an hour. The big impact.
14:38 Yeah. And I know I use I've got a 15 pound little terrier, Winston, and I put him in a booster seat with a harness and he's secured in that and a seat belt because he gets carsick. So the best thing for him is to be able to see out the window. And I know it's not ideal, but he's comfortable. And at least he's somewhat secure. Do you have any opinions on those?
15:11 I think it's great to have him at least secured in the car. And he probably loves it. He probably gets used to it and loves looking out the window. Oh, yeah, like you said, he doesn't get carsick. So that's a good thing. But again, never put them in the front seat. the best area for them to be safe is in the Middle of the car. I had, I had a mini van, that I had a dog crated in the back in a wire crate. This was years and years ago, and I got rear ended and Parked at the light. And it wasn't a big impact. But it made me realize that the dog is much safer in the middle of the car.
15:55 And I know some of the cars especially Subarus, they've got that barrier. Do you have any experience with that and crashes?
16:04 No, I don't. I do see a lot of people with a barrier in between. And again, it's better than nothing. But my concern is if you were in a crash, the dog doesn't have any place to go. Right? Now, that would frighten me.
16:19 Well, let's go back,…you were on vacation? What other things do you recommend that we have? For safety travel, when we're traveling with our dog, what comes to mind for you all the things that we should have in case of?
16:38 Well, a very good thing is a put contact information on the side of the crate. In case of emergency. Then having collars and IDs on your dog is helpful. And my my dogs are also trained when they get out of the crate, they do it in a controlled way. I mean, I make my dog sit, before I open the door, I put the collar on her the leash on through the door before they can get out. So they're not just jumping straight out of the crate into the street.
17:13 That's a good idea. And I would imagine even on your phone, you know, we all have pictures of our dogs. But in case of you know, like what happened to you that Jade ran off? At least you have a photo to give emergency workers.
17:30 Right. Right. You know, somebody had to get ahold of her first. She wasn't coming to any stranger at all. She actually came to Layla, my other puppy who she finally realized that she could come running to and feel safe.
17:51 So what you said was that other people, there were sightings of Jade during those 44 days when she was lost. And that's what gave you hope to continue looking.
18:04 Exactly. When we went up there and came home without her, that was the lowest point, I think, in our lives. Because we knew that she was still out there and we were leaving her. And we got a call from Kat Brecon, who works up there who had been looking for and announced to us and she said, Send me your dirty laundry and we recorded David's voice. We got all these volunteers. And signs up everywhere. Everywhere you went Yellowstone, he would see a picture of Jade. And she disappeared for about another two weeks. And then she ended up showing up where the car had been towed. And it was all there but no front end on this car. And there's pictures on our Facebook site and you would just be amazed that we we survived. and we start getting more calls. And David and his daughter Angie and I went up there and it took us about a week. She even ran from David, who didn’t look like himself with his leg in a cast his arm in a cast, you know. you'll cry at the end of story. But it's a happy ending.
19:17 But you're living on to tell the story and to suggest to others to travel differently, which I think is amazing. So that nobody else goes through what you did.
19:32 Exactly. Yeah, if we can just get the word out and save, you know, some heartache that we had gone through. It's worth it. Right?
19:43 Well, again, listeners can check. out the center for pet safety. That is a great place to start. You know they do all the testing of crates so that you can see which ones were crash test rated the best. How are you going to protect your dog? In the car? Laura, where can everybody find out more information about you and the book Bring Jade Home?
20:12 Well, it took us two years to write this book a has a lot about the people that helped us in Yellowstone. And with a little bit of a love story with David and I, we had just started dating, we're still together. Even though like he says, I, I tried to kill him in the car. And now it's, it's a great book. And it's Bring Jade Home. It's on Amazon and far country is our publisher ,who's awesome. And then we recently came out with a children's illustrated book, Jade Lost in Yellowstone that we just won the Maxwell award.. Yeah, it's really well illustrated and written. We're getting mainly five star reviews on both books. So they're available on Amazon. And we have the Bring Jade Home Facebook site. There's a lot of information and pictures on there. And I try and post fairly often to keep everybody updated.
21:20 Well, thank you for sharing this awful story with a silver lining. We really appreciate it. I guess my biggest question is, when does the movie come out?
21:32 We have some screenwriters that are just chomping at the bit to write the screenplay for us. And it definitely needs to be made into a movie. It has all the elements like I said, Love Story. You know, suspense, happy ending. Everybody jokes. Who's going to play David? I'm getting Jennifer Gardner to play me.
22:02 Well when that comes out, you have to keep us posted.
22:06 Great. Well, Laura, thank you so much for taking the time and sharing your story. I hope we changed some minds out there as far as car safety, travel safety, because we all love our dogs and we all want to get there in one piece wherever we're going. So thanks for being on the wag out loud podcast.
22:30 Thank you really appreciate it.
Laura, where can everyone find out more information about you and your book, Bring Jade Home or Jade Lost in Yellowstone (children’s book) ?
FB: @yellowstonedogjade
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