CARS.COM — Ah, the smell of freedom, the dream of the open road ahead and the sun-blessed bliss of a windows-down driving experience. Oh, sorry, did you think we were talking about you? We were referring to your furry four-legged friend over there accompanying you. That’s right: Saturday is National Dog Day, and we’re here to celebrate — safely.
It’s estimated that some 46 million U.S. households are home to an estimated 78 million dogs, and nearly 60 percent of us report driving with our dog in a vehicle at least once a month. That’s a lot of canines crowding a lot of cars across the country, which has the potential to cause a lot of chaos — both in the automobile and out.
How best to minimize the risk?
From car crates to dog harnesses to best practices while you drive, we’ve got you covered. Check out our roundup of all things pet safety from the past year below — and be sure to check out our gallery above of some of our dogs with owners based at the Cars.com mothership in Chicago.
Patrick Masterson is Chief Copy Editor at Cars.com. He joined the automotive industry in 2016 as a lifelong car enthusiast and has achieved the rare feat of applying his journalism and media arts degrees as a writer, fact-checker, proofreader and editor his entire professional career. He lives by an in-house version of the AP stylebook and knows where semicolons can go.