Dogs and pickup trucks. We have all seen dogs in the back of pickup trucks, whether traveling around town or on Highway 101.
They are often unrestrained, frequently pacing side to side, looking around, smiling and wagging their tails.
Yet this is illegal in California for a reason: More than 100,000 dogs each year die riding in the back of trucks.
Dogs enjoy walking around in the truck bed, smelling all the smells floating by, listening to all the new sounds, and watching people or pets walking on leashes in crosswalks or on the sidewalk, as well as bicyclists on the roadway.
It is fun for them but unsafe.
If the pickup truck is in a crash and dogs are unrestrained in the back, they may become flying objects thrown out of the truck bed onto the road, hit by another vehicle or run over by the pickup itself.
In California, it is illegal for people to ride in the back of pickup trucks.
Your unrestrained dog in the back of a pickup may see something it wants to sniff or play with and jump out. When the truck makes an unexpected abrupt turn or stops, your dog can be launched out of the bed.
If you decide to tie your dog in the bed of the truck, tie it in the center of the bed up against the back of the cab, allowing the dog to stand and sit but not on a long enough tether to get to the sides of the bed.
California’s Dog Behind Truck Law — originally introduced in 1987 by then-Assemblyman Jack O’Connell, D-Carpinteria — states, “the animal is cross-tethered to the vehicle, in a manner that will prevent the animal from being thrown, falling or jumping from the vehicle.”
Tying your dog on a loose lead or on the side of the truck bed will not safely prevent your dog from jumping or falling out.
When your dog jumps or falls out, the rope or leash can become tangled around the dog’s neck and strangle it, or wrap around a leg and cause severe enough nerve damage to need an amputation.
Also, if the dog leaps from the truck, it can get dragged along the road.
All these scenarios involve enormous pain and trauma and high mortality.
If your dog must ride in the back of a pickup truck, placing it in a durable, secure crate is a safer alternative. The crate should be well ventilated, large enough for your dog to stand and turn around in and rigidly attached to prevent it from sliding or tipping over.
The law also states, “No person driving a motor vehicle shall transport any animal in the back of the vehicle in a space intended for any load on the vehicle on a highway unless the space is enclosed or has side and tail racks to a height of at least 46 inches extending vertically from the floor, the vehicle has installed means of preventing the animal from being discharged, or the animal is cross-tethered to the vehicle, or is protected by a secured container or cage, in a manner that will prevent the animal from being thrown, falling or jumping from the vehicle.”
This law does not apply to transporting livestock, ranch or farm dogs on rural roads, coming from a livestock auction or working on a ranch or farm.
Another option is to invest in a camper shell for your truck bed. This provides enclosed space for your dog, protecting it from the elements and reducing the risk of injury.
Still, ensure proper ventilation and secure your dog with a harness or crate inside the covered area.
The safest place for your dog is inside the cab of the truck, where it can be properly restrained using a dog seat belt or harness.
In fact, all dogs traveling inside a vehicle of any kind are most secure with a pet car seat or dog seat belt. Dog seat belts prevent your dog from being injured from being thrown around inside a vehicle or ejection in case of a crash.
When a dog becomes a projectile inside a car, it can hurt itself but also hurt the human passengers.
Seat belts should be researched carefully, as ones that are too long or lack elasticity can cause internal organ damage and even whiplash in the event of a sudden stop or accident.
Pet carriers or crates in your car are the best way to keep dogs out of the way and confined while driving. It is not as much fun for your pet but a great option for the animal.
Dogs love to have their heads out the window of a car, relishing all the smells in the wind, but they may be tempted to jump out or injured by another vehicle or other debris.
A dog can get hurt by flying pebbles thrown up by other cars. Dust can get into its eyes.
All it takes is one too-fast turn around a bend for a dog to lose its footing and fall out of the window.
Dogs can also obstruct your view when hanging out the window, increasing the chance of crashing.