Front seat dog options?

[3wd67rg]

That being said, I found this. Have you thought to turning the front seat around? That would make it a safer ride for your dog. We have a 1988 325 Classic Moho and both driver and passenger seats can be spun and locked into any position, I do this when the sun has become too much for me.

If you find something the same height as your seat, this car seat below may be used sideways with the addition of extra strapping. It already has straps to hook into your dogs harness, and one large strap designed to go around the back of the front seat, but if you use it sideways you will need an additional strap(s). This is an Amazon recommended item. You don’t mention what breed(s) your dog is, I think this size is somewhere between medium and large. My Kelpie is 53 lbs and I believe he would fit it. If this is too small, well, maybe it can be an idea for the building of a bigger and better one. Maybe buy a very deep suitcase, 14 inches, make a pad for it, and ask someone with a professional sewing machine to sew straps on it that will keep it strongly secured to the seat.

Turbo has been in a seatbelt ever since he was a puppy, because it wasn’t any different from being on a leash, he didn’t think twice about it. A harness is safer with a seatbelt because in a very bad accident, the dog can be thrown and in a collar, the neck snapped. This does NOT guarantee an instant death as some people believe, but it IS an agony of pain. A harness is also more comfortable for dogs than a collar when it comes to Any Leash. Collars are good for tags only. There are all kinds of harnesses to choose from, I use Petsmart, there is also Petco, these two stores allow you to bring your dog in and will let you try them on so you get the right size and one your dog likes.

A4Pet Pet Lookout Booster Car Seat/Raised Pet Bed At Home https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KXJBGZU..._g5gOBb2A9NGYN

[InterBlog]

Originally Posted by 3wd67rg

I think your best plan would be to turn in the Sprinter for another Van that that doesn’t have a harsh ride in the back, and I’m not joking. All our dogs deserve to be Safe and comfortable. A 40 to 45 hour drive isn’t safe for either of you, I pray you sleep and take breaks. Your story is worrisome.

Vans (i.e., trucks) ALL have harsh rides in the back. Some have air suspension to help with it, but some of the data make it clear that air suspension is not a miracle cure. There's nothing to trade up to, van-wise. This is the state of the art.

We've done our 6,000-mile, 80-hour Houston to Nova Scotia round trip 4 times now, once in my Sienna minivan and 3 times in our Airstream Interstate. It's a very challenging trip, but it seems to get easier each time (vehicle break-downs notwithstanding). Our single-day travel record was 904 miles, that being last month with the strategy of outrunning Tropical Storm Gordon as we were en route back to Houston.

Part of this discussion is cultural. Canada is a realm of sparse population with a large (per capita) number of people who choose a long-distance voyaging vacation lifestyle. When we go to Nova Scotia, we routinely see camper vans from places like British Columbia (a 120-hour, 8,000-mile round trip). It's no accident that most of the large B manufacturers are of Canadian origin (including Leisure Travel Vans, Roadtrek, Safari Condo, and Pleasure Way).

[InterBlog]

Originally Posted by 3wd67rg

That being said, I found this. Have you thought to turning the front seat around? ...

I've thought of that and may get to the point of trying something like it. My concern is that the sides of that particular model are too high. It is probably designed like that intentionally to provide some measure of physical protection for the dog, but we live in the deep south where it would be too warm. I try to avoid the heat, but we have to drive out of here to get to the areas where we want to visit. The hottest temp I've driven through is 103 degrees (last year), despite all my efforts to avoid those conditions. Even with the cab air conditioning, the van gets very hot in those conditions. The dog has to be able to stretch out to cool off.

Our passenger seat does swivel. If I don't manage to develop a forward-facing solution, that will be my next effort - to investigate what might be possible with rear-facing.

[Lily&Me]

Originally Posted by 3wd67rg

I think your best plan would be to turn in the Sprinter for another Van that that doesn’t have a harsh ride in the back, and I’m not joking. All our dogs deserve to be Safe and comfortable. A 40 to 45 hour drive isn’t safe for either of you, I pray you sleep and take breaks. Your story is worrisome.

In defense of these beloved rigs...

While riding in the back of our older Interstates is a bit rough, how bad the experience for human or beast depends on the individual.

Four grandkids have traveled across country in ours, me tending to them and sitting with them some, and it was the first home with us that Lily knew.

We’ve all tolerated it well...Doug always said “it’s a truck”.

She has never had a problem with nausea, and while preferring the passenger seat in our widow years, she spells herself from the front seat by getting drinks of water and spending some time on the couch in the back.

We also try to stick with 5-6 hour days, whenever possible...better for us both.

Just sayin...

Maggie

[klattu]

Remove the seat

[Lotus54]

I just had a haywire thought.
The T1N seat bases come right off. Get a used one- take off the cover/foam- weld on extensions to make it the length you want, then make a new foam/cover the desired shape.
When you need the seat for a person, the pop off the dog base and pop on the human base.

Might work pretty well (of course, a bit of a storage problem for the unused base)

Mark

[InterBlog]

Originally Posted by Lotus54

I just had a haywire thought.
The T1N seat bases come right off. Get a used one- take off the cover/foam- weld on extensions to make it the length you want, then make a new foam/cover the desired shape.
When you need the seat for a person, the pop off the dog base and pop on the human base.

Might work pretty well (of course, a bit of a storage problem for the unused base)

Mark

*THAT* gets an A+ for originality.

As ideas go, it's not that far-fetched. In fact, I've thought about buying a seat because I want a second arm rest for the passenger seat, and people will not part that out. One has to buy the entire seat to get the arm rest, because they can't sell the seat without one. Or, I could buy an OEM armrest alone from residual stock, but I'd pay about the same as for a whole used seat.

Taking the idea further, ignore the issue of the seat BASE for a moment.

The passenger seat CUSHION also comes right off, irrespective of what the rest of the seat is capable of doing, in order to access the original battery compartment beneath. But we no longer have a battery in there because we moved it during our lithium conversion. It's possible I could just remove the cushion part and affix a dog platform to that area. The cushion by itself would be a piece of cake to store in the van until the hubster came along.

Hmmm....

[Lotus54]

When I said seat base, I meant the cushion- which has a metal base.


I got new armrests for mine (so I have them on both sides). Yeah, a used one would have been cheaper- if I could find one. Too late now.

Thanks

Mark

[InterBlog]

Well, crap, she said.

I got my inflatable cube from Amazon. I'm loving the aspect ratio - this idea really has wheels (pun intended).

I am NOT liking the cheapness of its construction. I don't see it standing up to use in my application. It's designed for 3-year-olds who want to take naps on planes for an hour or two. It's not designed for a 50 pound dog who will use it for weeks at a time.

Sooooo... if not that, then what?

Possibly a small diameter exercise ball? They are rugged and designed for the full weight of a human. I mean the good quality kinds of balls that are used in medical applications (physical therapy). They come in multiple diameters now. Something like that could take a beating from a heavy object like a platform placed on top of it. Maybe I could find one that can be made to conform to the footwell.

Meanwhile, off topic, but my day's amusement DID come from Amazon - just not in the form of an inflatable cube as anticipated.

It hit 97 degrees here yesterday - so hot that Amazon, of its own accord, shipped my husband's almost-sugar-free chocolate on its own ice pack. FEDEX dropped this weird package off at our front door and I was like, "Wait - what???!!" I've never seen this before. No doubt prompted by the locals complaining of totally ruined chocolate that was left outside for five whole minutes.

Meanwhile as we continue to descend those lower rungs of hell, Instagram is like, "Yay - fall camping! The leaves are starting to change color!"

Just shoot me - it was 97 degrees here yesterday, so hot that Amazon can't even deliver chocolate in the expected fashion.

[Hittenstiehl]

How about a look at

PetDeck seat extender

Or

DogShell Extender Pet Seat Pads

Sorry no link.

[Boxster1971]

Yikes - photos of chocolate bars in a thread about dogs. Not a good mix.

[InterBlog]

On the Orvis website that I saw, there’s only solid foam. Pinterest suggests that they used to make inflatable versions.

[Hittenstiehl]

Maybe

[Hittenstiehl]

Seems like your inguinuity could build a platform over something like this.

[InterBlog]

Originally Posted by Hittenstiehl

Maybe...

Yes - if I can't realize success through another method.

The inflatable idea appeals to me in part because it would provide some shock absorption, which that device would not.

[InterBlog]

Today's prototype is an ode to the K.I.S.S. principle.

It's an off-the-shelf crate pad with a plywood underlayer. The plywood was cut with a tang that inserts between the seat back and the seat base (tilt the seat forward, insert the tang, rotate seat back for a snug grip). The crate pad is longer than the plywood but that's by design, because the tongue of the pad protects the dash from being scratched by the leading edge of the plywood.

The hands-down best solution for stabilizing the plywood cantilever is the 55 cm exercise ball. Partially inflate the ball, fit it in the footwell, and finish inflating with it in the space so that conforms to the shape. It is a far better option than the inflatable footrest, which I also tried. The exercise ball also helps to sandwich the leading edge of the crate pad against the dash to keep it from slipping around.

I still need to sand and paint the plywood with multiple coats of oil-based enamel. Gray, to match every other van addition.

When LB_3 is with us, the exercise ball deflates for stowage, and the plywood fits behind the driver's seat. Crate pad goes on the floor.

So far, she loves it. It does not wobble and she jumps onto it with confidence. The only reason she looks a bit concerned in the bottom photo is that it was taken at our storage facility, which is adjacent to an outdoor shooting range (we nicknamed it Fallujah). She hates the sound of gunfire.

Unexpected bonus: this apparatus makes the cab noticeably quieter. Big ball occupying the footwell and a layer of memory foam in the crate pad.

[Lily&Me]

That should work.

You could put something akin to a beanbag on the underside of the doggie sleeping platform you’ve built there, might make it more secure and stable...might also protect the seat some from the plywood.

Maggie

[bigjohn1942]

I have a 2006 AI and several small dogs, so this my not help as much, but I built a box between the front seats to contain a larger AGM house battery that has a rectangular dog bed on top, so there is plenty of room for several riders. All but one seem to want to sit up front with me. I also keep a set of dog stairs behind the box to allow free movement to the rear where there is a spill proof water bowl
I do have one that really doesn't like to see things moving by at highway speeds, and at first he would go down on the floor behind my legs!! Now THAT is an unsafe position. I have gotten him to go in the back and keep all the blinds closed so during the day he is content to stay on a couch or bed. Sometimes at night he will come up front
I did have another, now deceased, who from a pup would get car sick in a heartbeat, and she would always ride in back as well
I also often have stuff stored on the floor in front of the passenger seat, and with something soft on top of that it extends the area for dogs.
With the box in between seats, it means I need to get out and come in the side door, but a small price to pay for the pack to enjoy the long distance ride.
It sometimes can be a challenge when I want to get some rest in a campground or rest stop though. My wiener dog gets under a blanket before I can even get in the bed, and there are always several more that want to snuggle. Others are content to stay on the other bed and there is always one whos is the self appointed guard all night up front.
And you thought you had a problem with only one! Try travel with seven!!

[rmkrum]

Ah, and there was a time I thought traveling with 5 smallish dogs in a 22 footer Airstream International was "interesting".

My theory is that dogs view Airstreams as being big silver doghouses, or an extension of their den space at home. The only time we had a tough time was walk time at the end of the day--tried to take them outside, in pack pecking order, and it could be a scramble.

Then we figured out that one person inside could pass dogs in and out the plastic slider on the screen door to keep the situation under control without having to open the screen door. Passers-by usually got a chuckle as our biggest dog (the alpha male) barely fit, but he actually seemed to like the experience.

Of course, all these pups are rescues, and total lap magnets. They would all instantly be in our bed if we let them, of course.

[InterBlog]

We have an extended family member with 5 dogs who used to travel in their RV. Those 5 dogs collectively weighed less than our one dog. I'm not kidding.

Muy grande!! Our dog is both a rescue dog and a therapy dog. Right now we are volunteering as adjuncts to support hospital medical staff who, in turn, are helping small children with cognitive developmental delays to improve their motor skills (putting a dog in that mix helps motivate the kids). And they, in turn, are helping me to improve my Spanish (I live in Houston where Spanish is de rigueur but I'm from Canada originally, so my second language is French).