The Manitoba Driver, from Manitoba Public Insurance About 380 words Piling into the family vehicle for a road trip is a certain sign of summer, but safety experts remind drivers to make sure smaller passengers – both the two- and four-legged variety – are travelling safely. Every year in Manitoba, pets and their owners are injured because the animal was not properly restrained in a vehicle, says Clif Eden, Manager of Road Safety with Manitoba Public Insurance. “Unrestrained pets can also be a major distraction to drivers and can cause vehicle collisions,” says Eden. “In a crash, pets become flying objects and can cause serious injury to themselves and others.” Pet owners were reminded about safety earlier this month with ‘Be Kind to Animals Week,’ an internationally recognized event. Manitoba Public Insurance and the Winnipeg Humane Society staged a safety demonstration, showing the proper ways to transport a pet while in the vehicle. Dogs riding in the back of pickup trucks are particularly at risk for injury, says Bill McDonald, executive director of the Winnipeg Humane Society. “You should keep your dog in a secured pet carrier in the back of your truck bed. All too often dogs are injured by sudden stops or turns and being shuffled about.” Many pets – particularly cats – can become very nervous when travelling within the close confines of a vehicle. A frightened animal makes driving doubly difficult, says Eden. A driver’s focus should be on driving, not on how well their pet is managing while in the car. Pet owners are encouraged to be proactive and place their animals in a travel carrier while driving. In addition to pets, people should be equally focused on the safety of their human cargo. Parents should properly secure their children within the passenger area. Young children should be buckled into a properly fitting car seat, while older children, depending on weight and height, should be placed in a booster seat or secured with a seatbelt. Parents can go to www.mpi.mb.ca/roadsafety/car seats if they want to read more about properly fitting car seats and booster seats. It’s also the law in Manitoba to use a seatbelt. Failure to do so can result in a $247 ticket and two demerit points on a person’s driver’s licence. It only takes a few seconds to properly secure both human and animal passengers. --30-- © 2008 Manitoba Public Insurance |