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Change the World
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MAKING A DIFFERENCE
P's Vision:
"One day, buckling up dogs in certified seatbelts will be the norm. There won't be such thing as a non-certified seatbelt. There's just buckled up, safe and protected.
Feels like a dream, doesn't it? To think about changing the world. Does your one little action really make a difference? Yes and yes. A world where all dogs are safe in the car feels exciting and enormous to make happen, but it's the little things that add up to make it come true! Without any action, nothing changes.
Change starts with you. What do you want?
Do you want to be able to walk into a store for a dog seatbelt, whether it's a harness, crate, carrier, kennel, car seat, or booster seat, and have confidence that it'll keep your dog safe? Do you want more products to get certified, and for the ones that have failed Center for Pet Safety's crash testing to leave the shelves? Do you care about the safety and well-being of all dogs?
(Of course...)
Then you have more power than you realize. After all, aren't the pet stores stocked with things that people buy? If people stop buying them, or not enough sales comes in, the product just fades away. No point in having them on the shelves if they don't sell.
This is where education comes into play. Dog parents, new and old, need to know about certified seatbelts, so they don't buy the non-certified products. Instead, they'll get something that'll keep their dog safe! And that helps the certified brands gain traction. Spreading awareness is key!
People are talking about dog seatbelt safety these days. It's becoming more popular, as news stories about dogs in crashes increase. Advertisements for tethers have surfaced. More articles are hitting the internet about dog seatbelts...except the talk isn't quite clear on the safety aspect. It's more about restraining, rather than protecting.
Which means, now is the time to steer the conversation (that's already happening, yay!) towards certified seatbelts. Will you please help?
Here's 10 easy things you can do today, to start turning all of this into reality.
1) Only buy certified.
If you're in the market for a dog seatbelt, don't even look elsewhere. Get your seatbelt here! If it's not on the certified list, don't buy it.
www.dogsridecertified.com
2) If you're using a non-certified seatbelt, send it back.
Seriously, send that non-certified seatbelt back to the company, with a letter asking them to get their product certified by Center for Pet Safety, and why it matters to you. If everyone started doing that, what a message that would send!
3) Ask pet stores to only sell certified brands (and don't buy what they have if it isn't certified)!
Pet stores keep in stock what sells. If enough people request something, they'll stock it. And if something doesn't sell, it won't last long on the shelves. Some store owners have mentioned that they used to have Sleepypod, but it didn't sell so they replaced it with a cheaper option. Quality over quantity please!
4) Write to the certified brands and thank them.
Let the certified brands know how much you appreciate their hard work and care to keep your dog safe. Brands have to re-certify, and your letter of appreciation will inspire them to keep going and get future products certified too!
5) Support places that sell exclusively certified products.
You shouldn't have to worry about if your dog seatbelt is certified or not. You should be able to go to a store or site and know that everything is safe. You should be able to trust them to only bring you quality products. Where do you find such a place? Oh hi! Right here at Dogs Ride Certified!
6) If you see someone using a non-certified seatbelt, tell them about certified seatbelts.
Because people need to know about the safest way to transport their dogs!
7) Tell your veterinarian, dog trainer, doggie daycare provider, dog walker, dog sitter, etc, all about certified seatbelts.
Urge them to either carry the certified products in stock, or send their clients to Dogs Ride Certified to get buckled up! If they transport dogs, encourage them to buckle up their clients' dogs in certified seatbelts, because that's best practice.
8) Volunteer at a dog rescue and encourage new dog families to take their dog home buckled up in a certified seatbelt.
Start the union off right! If the family sets the expectation of being buckled up in a certified seatbelt from the very beginning of their time together, that's going to be the way the dog travels in the long run.
9) Help rescues transport dogs safely.
Dog rescues do a lot of transporting. But it's not ideal for them to buckle up one dog at a time or even use Gunner or Lucky Kennels in their big vans when they have so many dogs to move at once (we need a better solution for them one day). Unfortunately dog rescue vans in car crashes have been making the news lately. Help the rescues out - if you have a certified seatbelt and can make a drive with them, that's another dog protected in the car. If interested, check out Doobert to get connected with a rescue that needs help!
10) Use your certified seatbelt on every ride.
A certified seatbelt only works if you use it! Don't forget to buckle up your pup, whether it's a 30 second drive or an 8 hour trip. Every second matters. It's not something you have to do - it's the way of life. Let's make it a habit.
Easy steps, right? And momentum has actually already begun.
This past summer 2021, signs emerged in the DC-MarylandVirginia (DMV) area that progress is happening.
A few examples include:
A Gunner Kennel was spotted in the back of a pick up truck, with the certified tie downs and all, off of busy I-95.
A vet tech mentioned that she often sees dogs come into the vet hospital in Sleepypod carriers or harnesses.
A vet shared that she tells all her clients about certified seatbelts and has a Gunner Kennel for her own dog.
Dog parents are reaching out to replace their non-certified products with certified ones, so their dog can be protected in the car. It's such great news. Now let's keep it going!
If you started taking action today to buckle up your own dog and spread awareness to others, can you imagine what dog seatbelt safety would look like in a few weeks? A few months? A year?
Whether you're a dog parent, a dog rescue, a dog training center, a dog walker, a dog daycare, or just a dog lover who believes in dog seatbelt safety, you can help.
And if you want to take it a step further and volunteer with Dogs Ride Certified, email info@dogsridecertified.com!
You might not see the results right away. But little actions, they truly add up. You can be a part of the change. Will you? Will you change the world?
Together, absolutely, yes we can!
