Take a look at the picture of the dog on the left. Her name is Prada, and the good news is she lived. The owner, obviously not a very intelligent person, put the dog in the back of her pick up truck and was transporting her to the animals shelter to be killed. Lets get the reason the owner wanted to dog killed out of the way first: its because the dog had a skin condition. This skin condition, commonly called mange, is very curable. Of course it would be easier just to kill the dog because that is cheaper. SEAACA in Downey CA was the shelter where Prada would have met the needle, but in fact she is being treated, and I assume will find a great home because of the publicity this case has caused. However, I’d like to address some safety issues here. Having spent some time living in the south, its a common site to see a dog in the back of a pickup truck. I see it commonly here in LA as well, and there are few things that get under my skin as much as this, so I thought this would be a great opportunity to write about it.
DOGS DO NOT BELONG IN THE BACK OF A PICKUP TRUCK. If you live on a farm and run your truck from one end of your property to another its one thing and I can understand it, but not if you’re driving on the freeway. Tying the dog up back there will result in the picture you see above, not tethering the dog will allow them to sail out and get run over by all the cars behind you.
If you want to take your dog with you, here are a couple of tips:
1. do not put your dog in the back of the pickup truck (tethered or untethered – that means tied up or not tied up).
2. do not let your dog sit on your lap while you are driving. It will be crushed by the steering wheel or air bag in the event of an accident.
3. do not let your dog hand its head out of the window, it can be decapitated in an accident.
4. a dog that leans out of the window, will fall out or jump out if it sees something outside it wants to get to.
5. do not let your dog sit on the center console when you are driving. The dog will become a projectile in the event of an accident.
The best and safest way to transport a dog is in a crate. If this is not an option, then the dog should be in the back seat, laying down. Some people suggest a harness and seat belting the harness to the cars seat belts. I would urge you to consider carefully transporting your dog. Its like a 2 year old loose in the back of your car. The best solution is to constrain them, its safe and its smart.
Ironically enough the woman who almost murdered Prada was totally un-aware of the agonizing hell that the dog was enduring on her leisurely drive to the shelter… maybe she was on her cell phone, texting or something. In CA it is against the law to transport an animal in open truck beds. I assume it is also the law in several other states. I don’t see this law being vigilantly enforced, so I urge you to enforce it yourself. Be smart and be kind to your animals. They do not have the capacity to fend for themselves.
