‘Buckle Up’ Slogan Should Be For Pets, Too

As a mother of five kids, I really appreciate being able to say “Buckle Up, it’s the law.”

That way, I know that when I am driving, I don’t have to be distracted by children who might try to climb in my lap, grab the steering wheel, lean too far out a window, or roam around the car creating other hazards.

When one of my children does get unbuckled - usually the two-year-old who can worm out of almost any child safety seat - I find that I cannot drive attentively because most of my attention is in the rear-view mirror.

If that child chooses to come up to the driver’s seat, my driving ability is even further impaired. When this happens, I realize the wisdom of the car seat law in preventing accidents.

I have often wondered why we have no laws to prevent pets from roaming around the car as I often see them doing when I drive through the Valley.

Just the other day I was picking up my children at Liberty Lake Elementary School and I saw a man drive by with a dog on his lap. Now, anyone who picks up their kids after school knows that there are at least 200 children going all different directions at the same time and any driver needs to be fully focused on what is going on around him to avoid an accident.

Can a driver with a dog climbing on him possibly pay sufficient attention to events outside the car?

Perhaps his dog is more obedient than my two-year-old.

Regardless of how well trained and obedient an animal is, they still cause a potentially dangerous distraction by being allowed to roam around a moving vehicle.

Many Valley drivers like to take their pets along.

I have seen dogs, which obviously weren’t buckled in, moving back and forth between the passenger seat and the driver’s lap, sticking their heads out either window.

I have seen dogs sitting in the back seat with their heads resting on the driver’s shoulder.

How is a driver supposed to check traffic over his shoulder (the way we are taught in driver’s education) if what he sees on turning his head is the nose of his pet?

What happens if the dog spots a cat, or a runner, or a cyclist? Being a runner, I know how some dogs react.

Dogs, like humans, have natural instincts.

One bump of the steering wheel, or the driver and that care is into the other lane, up the sidewalk or into a pedestrian.

We have seat belts and child safety seat laws to protect our children.

They serve the purpose of keeping the children properly secured during an accident, but they also serve the purpose of reducing distractions for the person transporting those children.

Even if I weren’t required by law (and motivated by steep fines) to keep my children in their buckles, I would choose to for their safety, my sanity and the safety of others on the road.

I think pet owners should show the same consideration for others by transporting their animals in a way that does not increase the possibility of traffic accidents.