Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Our 3rd Year Celebration of Life


Today I, the mommy, am borrowing the blog to share a story.



The story begins on March 16 2007, it was a late in the afternoon on Friday and I needed to run to the bank to deposit a check into my account. Since I and Mollie were the only ones going (Bobo was with his Doggy Nanny) she could ride in her new carseat (Outward Hound Pet Lookout Booster seat).

So I drug it out of the closet and installed it in the front passenger seat of my car. I put Mollie in her hot pink harness and clipped her in to the carseat. Less than two miles from home, as I headed into a sharp curve, a green van came into my lane and hit my car (a 1995 Chevy Caprice) head on.

When the crash happened I passed out and when I woke up Mollie, still attached to her carseat, was climbing out trying to get to me. I unhooked her and slid her in the back seat. Once the fire dept. arrived a volunteer fire fighter came to my car and asked me for my name, a relatives phone number and if I was alright. She said that she would call animal control to pick up the dog but I pleaded with her not to and I cried as I thought of Mollie going to the Humane Society with injuries and sitting in a cold kennel. When she saw how much Mollie ment to me the volunteer told me that she would take her home and have a relative come get her that evening. I was so greatful that she had done that for me and later that evening my grandfather picked her up and brought her home. The next morning my mom took Mollie to the vets office to have her checked out. She had one scratch and a badly bruised shoulder from the impact of the air bag. Five days later after I was realeased from the hospital we were reunited and she sat in my lap squeeking with happiness that I had returned. We camped out on the couch for a week as we healed from what had happened that Friday afternoon.




After the crash her outward hound carseat was unuseable and after seeing what could happen even when a carseat was used I knew the safest place for the dogs was in the back seat. So about 2 weeks later we went to Petsmart and purchased a new one. We got a booster seat that installed in the back seat using the cars seat belt. For a few months it worked but eventually the liftable seat broke and was no long able to be used.






After that I decided to use the carseat hooks in my new car to loop a leash through to use as a seatbelt. Then attach them to Mollie and Bobo's harness. I decided to use this method because all the other commercial seatbelts for dogs had large clips that were extremely heavy.





On the way back from our Nashville trip this year my mom and I started talking about getting a booster set for the dogs....I know fine time to think of it now...after we just hit 8 dog stores...but...Hopefully before the Yard Sale season we can find a nice booster seat for both dogs that fits our budget. Any suggestions are welcome.



Remember to keep the furkids safe when traveling!

-Katie

17 comments:

  1. I agree that it is important to keep our furry kids in a booster seat. For years I have never used one, but finally realized how important it is to have for the boys.

    I would highly recommend checking out the booster seats from Fido Rido - www.fidorido.com

    I just got one a couple of weeks ago and love it.

    Cindy (Yoda & Brutus's Mom)

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  2. What a scary story but we are so glad it had a happy ending. We don't get to go in the car very often but we do have to be in the back seat. We don't have seatbelts because there are so many baby/kid carseats in the minivan. We don't really need boosters because we are pretty good sized but Mom knows it would be best if we could be in seatbelts too.

    Woos - Phantom, Thunder, and Ciara

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  3. Oh my... what a terrible thing you both had to go through; we're so happy that it all turned out ok.

    I know you're lookign for a booster seat but I just purchased the following harness for Nellie & Calvert which can be used with your seat belts; they fit into a small so I'm guessing extra small for your babies.

    http://www.gear4dogs.com/co-pilot-3-in-1-vest-harness-on-sale

    I've purchased with this company many times before so if you're not satisfied you can always return the items.

    Good luck and drive safely.

    Belly rubs to the kids

    Claudia

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  4. Very very good information. Sorry about you having the wreck and am glad all turned out well.

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  5. Such a scary thing. So glad everything turned out alright.

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  6. What a story - so glad it has a happening ending - well, never really an ending, it's an ongoing story of a furry baby in a happy home.

    Now I know ...

    And I hope you get lots of suggestions and find the best one.
    Happy St. Patty's Day to you and your family!

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  7. That is a very important story. Need to keep our friends safe in the car.

    Slobbers,
    Mango

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  8. Oh-oh! Sure that was very scary!
    Glad to know you two were fine after that!
    I use an harness too that is attached to the seat belt.
    Take care
    Kisses and hugs
    Lorenza

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  9. Thanks fur sharing that skhary day -

    I'm sure it brought bakhk lots of memories -

    Hugz&Khysses,
    Khyra & Khousin Merdie

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  10. So glad that you all had a happy ending. We need to convince Moms to get us car seats too!

    Woofs and Kisses!

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  11. I'm sorry I don't have any suggestions other than to suggest to my M to print this post out as a reminder that she needs to get us strapped in the car. What a story! I can't believe Molly was so minimally injured. Thank you for sharing
    Twinkie

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  12. That is a very scary story. But we're glad you shared with everyone. Mom has NEVER lets us ride in the front seat because she's afraid if the airbag exploded we'd get hurt. We have the entire back seat filled with our booster seats now because Betty's big old butt needs her own seat. The parents said it's the best money they ever spent.

    Love,
    Stella, Gunther and Betty

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  13. What an amazing story, we are so glad you are both here to tell it. We keep the kiddlets in their crate when traveling...

    xo martine & the kiddlets

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  14. What a scary story! We are so glad you are both okay and here to tell it!

    Love ya lots,
    Maggie and Mitch

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  15. I am so happy everyone was ok! Yes, we must keep our friends safe -- that's OUR job!

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  16. What a great post to remind everyone that their furkids do need car protection, just like everyone else! This is the second story I've heard about car accidents and how the furkids came out fine because of car seats. I must make it a point to get one for Chewy & Lilibell.

    Thank you for sharing this story and I'm so glad that both of you made it out of that accident okay!

    Nadine

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  17. As you most likely already know, I am a HUGE advocate of canine car safety. About a year ago I started doing A LOT of research into canine car safety and came up with a combo of safety products that would work best for the Munchkins. I got the Snoozer Lookout Seat. It is a foam, comfy seat, lined with sherpa that props them up enough to see out of the windows. In conjunction with that I got some safety harnesses specifically made for the car. They are comfy but strong and attach through a safety strap to the seatbelt that anchors the Lookout Seat.
    And I'm not sure if you remember, but we were in a pretty bad car accident back in October. The Munchkins were with us but, thanks to the carseat and safety harness, I was the only one injured. They were a little shaken up but otherwise totally fine. It was at that moment when my husband realized that the $100 we spent on the carseat and $60 we spent on the harnesses was totally worth it. Before that he questioned my decision but not anymore. I know that they both would have been seriously injured or would have died in that accident had it not been for the safety measures I had taken. Oh and both the harnesses and carseat were and still are completely intact after the accident.
    Hearing about your accident brought back unpleasant memories and some frightening thoughts about our accident. I am so glad that you and Molly both came through it okay. And I applaud you for continuing to search out the best safety measures you can implement for Mollie and Bobo.
    Both the harnesses and the car seat we use can be found online. Here is a link to the post (with pictures) I did about it back in June: http://scmunchkins.blogspot.com/2009/06/snoozer-lookout-car-seat.html. If you need any help please don't hesitate to email me. I'd be more than happy to help!

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