Dog trailers - Page 1

As I recent convert to dog trailers I have found I always seem to be having to explain my reasoning behind buying one against some very biased ideas. I understand that they not be as substantial when in a traffic accident as a car but apart from that what raw he differences between a dog in a trailer and one in a cage in the back of a truck cab or van?? I would really appreciate replies Thankyou

in a dog trainer, dogs are in "smooth" boxes and even if they are thrown about, its easier on them.

then just walk away.

The main complaint I have about dog trailers is that you can't see your dogs while traveling and if one is in distress there might be a problem. For me safety isn't an issue, both provide about the same level of protection in the event of a rear end accident.

Thankyou both. I appreciate your answers. I understand the concern about not seeing your dogs but surely the same could be said if using a van/truckcab or even in a cage in the boot especially if there is only the driver in the car. Would I sensible approach be to factor in your drive time extra stops to check welfare??

I am planning to get a cap foor my truck and then the dogs will ride back there in crates (it is my least expensive option for more than one dog).  I won't be right next to them but I should be able to see them. 

That being said, there are people who would not even do this.  They HAVE to have the dog right with them. 

Honestly?  I think the dogs are safer in one of those trailers.  If you are going down the Interstate at speed and you get in an accident you are toast no matter where your dogs ride.  Fact is, the dogs may walk away and you may not. 

Currently I drive a small minivan (Mazda MPV, smallest minivan on the road) and we take three people and four intact male GSDs to Schutzhund training (don't even ask how we get everyone in!) and drive 2.5-3 hours each way.  I'd be very happy with a dog trailer, just can't afford one.  I see pros and cons as far as safety regardless of which option; IMO they kind of cancel each other out. 

I will say I do like being able to see/hear what the dogs are doing. On the way to Schutzhund yesterday, one of my dogs was turning his crate and then let out a howl.  Normally he gets in the van and is asleep before we are pulling away; he's not a fussy or fidgety dog so when he howls I know he *really* has to get out and go.  The second I popped the hatch and unlatched the crate he flew out and went to potty.  If we had been using a trailer I would have arrive at Schutzhund in 90 degree heat and humidity with a dog covered in runny stool because I would have never known he needed to stop :(  The week before, we had to stop on the way back because one of the dogs somehow got ahold of a small tennis ball, swallowed it, and then threw it up on the way home so we pulled over to get rid of the toy and wipe off the kennel.  We have no idea where/when he got that toy but he was trying to eat it *again* when we stopped, lol.  Of course dogs can still get sick inside a vehicle with you watching but then at least you can quickly pull over and deal with it before the dog has to sit in it for hours.  It's not that I baby my dogs and have to have them with me, but where we live the weather can be very extreme (90/100 humid, or negative and icy winds) and I do feel better knowing the dogs are in the same climate as me.  I know the trailers are specially built for temperature control but not to the extent of the interior of a vehicle. 

All that said if someone gave me a dog trailer I'd probably use it and maybe make a habit of stopping on my way to Schutzhund to check on the dogs.

We've used our trailer to take our dogs from Texas to Colorado and back in the heat of summer several years in a row. Its an 18 hour drive we plan our trips when we're on the road during the coolest part of the day/night.... we add jugs of frozen water in each box so they can lay against something cool. We also have water buckets in each box.

We stop every 2 to 3 hours for potty breaks.. by the time we get to where we're going the dog are ready to play and run......and we're ready to rest...

Our dogs are always excited and happy to see the trailer.....they know they're going somewhere. They are very happy to jump in, once 3 adult dogs jumped into one box.......amazing that they all fit....it was a struggle to pull 2 out.

We bought the trailer as part of our emergency plan.....being in a costal area, we felt the need to be able to pack up and leave incase of another huricane. Now we use it all the time.

If you're traveling with 3 or more dogs, there are not a lot of options over a trailer. You can get 5, 6 large dogs in a Sprinter, 9 if you stack crates but that's a stretch considering you have other equipment to take with you. Most mushers I know always use trailers. You rarely see trailers at AKC shows mainly because they look "commercial" and they  have to be more concerned about appearances due to the constant presence and harassment by PETA et al.  AKC Handlers with multiple dogs generally use ac'd retro-fitted motorhomes.  The AR extremists would have a field day about a bunch of dogs inside "small boxes" regardless of how much ventilation they have. So far I haven't seen or heard of AR loonies boycotting any SV shows or trials, maybe I missed that? If not, we should all hope that they don't put them on their radar screen.

If you get seriously rear ended with a dog trailer, you are most likely going to end up with some dead dogs, those at the rear will be especially vulnerable. IMO dogs generally have a better chance of survival in a Sprinter or other such heavy duty van if housed in heavy duty crates but then again those at the rear are most vulnerable. If you have to use the bed of a pick-up or an SUV like mine, a rear end collison is going to result in some dead dogs too. I have a Trailblazer, have to put the crate in the back and have had concerns many times about some jerk tailgaiting me. If there would have been a wreck, my dog would have been killed or seriously injured. So I make it a rule to pull off the road and let the moron pass.

As long as one stops every few hours to check dogs in a trailer, they should be just as safe as they are inside a van IMO. I just like to be able to see my dog at all times, but that doesn't mean she's safer inside my Blazer than she would be inside a trailer. She's not, but I feel better.

I agree 100% with Sitsamom, we who live in hurricane alley need a contingency plan to evac our dogs and ourselves. I only have one dog these days, so it's a lot easier to pack up the motorhome and leave within half an hour or less. Not so easy with multple dogs; a dog trailer would be ideal I think.





 

I have a WT metall and have owned an older jones trailer.  I always use a camera in the trailer- in the jones I had a wired camera (since the top of the partitions were mesh I only needed one), and in the wt metall I use a couple of uniden indoor security cameras that work on batteries. I'd like to eventually have them wired, but for  now the wireless works fine. I can see and hear the dogs. You use the audio more than the video, but it's nice to have it if you hear something and want to see what's going on. I can hear how noisy it is or isn't, and how light it is (the side vents let in a lot of light, and when bright sunlight shines directly on the side of the trailer it's almost translucent.
I saw a photo of a rear-ended trailer in germany- although the back of the trailer didn't look damaged much, the tongue was bent almost in half and it looked like the axle was bent, but the box itself was intact. It wasn't wt metall, but I couldn't tell what brand it was. 
I'd like to see photos of how the wt metall ones are built, the k9 trailers website has a series of photos of one being built.  My jones was very solid and well insulated, but the stalls were kind of small and the inside finish was rough- unfinished edges to the expanded aluminum mesh, etc. It looked like a little airstream trailer.
This time I needed something lighter in weight, so I could take dogs no matter what car I had. I tow it with an aztek and an hhr, both seem to tow fine. I prefer the aztek, because the hhr is unibody and although I'm not exceeding the tow capacity, I just like the idea of the hitch actually being attached to a frame rather than sheet metal. But in a pinch, I can tow with either one.

also, one of the things I always hear is that my dogs will be gassed in the trailer by carbon monoxide.  I put a battery operated carbon monoxide detector from my house in the dog trailer. It has a digital readout as well as the audible alarm, so I aimed the camera at the readout, and put the detector in the front compartment, on the side that the exhaust pipe is on in my aztek.  The trip was about an hour and a half, no alarm and no change in the readout.  On the way back, I put it in one of the back compartments, same result.  Not sure if that's a valid test, but it seems like if it accumulated in there I would have seen some change in the readout.
I didn't have the exhaust fan on, so it was just whatever ventilation came through the vent grills (top half of each door, two round ones on the sides of the trailer- wt metall campeon)