Taking summer road trips with Luna is one of my favorite things to do. This summer we have already taken a week long trip down through Virginia and over to Nashville, Tennessee. Then we spent the long July Fourth weekend at a little cabin in the woods about five hours away from home in Southern Virginia. We’ll probably also go on a camping trip soon and maybe even another vacation around Labor Day.
Between all of our big trips, we also make trips to visit my parents, the dog park, pet stores, hiking trails, pet friendly wineries, and more. No matter where we are headed, we spend a lot of time in the car.
With all this time spent in the car, I want to make sure that we are all safe. I’ve thankfully never been in accident, but I don’t know that it won’t ever happen. I can’t control what everyone else on the road does or predict every unknown circumstance. Instead, I try to be prepared for the worst.
I always wear my seatbelt and I drive with caution. But what about Luna? Regular seatbelts aren’t designed to restrain dogs and keep them safe. But if Luna isn’t restrained she paces back and forth through out the whole car and could potentially CAUSE an accident.
My biggest fear in the event of a crash is that Luna would get loose or even thrown from the car, panic, and run away. The LAST thing I want to happen after a car crash is lose my best friend. I knew I had to find a restraint system for Luna, but it had to be safe and comfortable. That’s were Sleepypod comes in.
Sleepypod Takes Pet Safety Seriously
Sleepypod prides themselves on making the safest pet products, so I was really excited to learn more about them while at the Global Pet Expo in March. They even let us give two of their harnesses a spin to see which one we liked best. Luna also has been using one of the Sleepypod Yummy Travel Bowls, which we wrote about a few weeks ago. You can see that review here.
Sleepypod really knows how important our pets are, so they make safety their top priority in all their products. Sleepypod makes a variety of pet travel products including car harnesses for dogs and carriers for smaller pets. Both the harnesses and the carriers are equipped with Sleepypod’s carefully designed Pet Passenger Restraint System (PPRS). This system secures pets and restricts any harmful movements that may have resulted from a sudden stop or frontal crash.
I really believe Sleepypod when they say their harnesses are safe because they have created safety test program, which includes crash testing. I don’t know any other pet company that crash tests their pet travel products! All their crash tests are performed at the standard set for child safety restraints and performed at accredited testing and research locations. They even have crash test dogs, Max and Duke! Max 1 is 12 lbs and Max 2 is 6 lbs, while Duke resembles a German Shepherd and weighs 75 lbs.
One thing that surprised me is that Sleepypod has a Crash Replacement Program. Because Sleepypod believes in their product so much and because safety is so important to them, they offer a free replacement for any Sleepypod customer whose harness or carrier was damaged in an accident. Additionally, they also offer up to a 30% discount for non Sleepypod harnesses and carriers!
We have been using Sleepypod’s harnesses for over two months now and again thankfully with no crashes, so I can’t directly speak to the harness’s performance during an accident. However, Sleepypod has heard back from multiple customers whose pets walked away injury free thanks to a Sleepypod Clickit Harness.
Sleepypod Clickit Sport vs. Clickit Utility
Currently Sleepypod offers two different car harnesses for dogs. The original harness, the Clickit Utility, was released in 2012. The Clickit Sport came out in late 2013, so it is a bit newer. We were able to try out both harnesses to see the differences. Luna is in the Clickit Utility in Jet Black on the left side of the photo below and in the Clickit Sport in Strawberry Red on the right side.
Both harness have sizes suitable for dogs weighing up to 75 lbs, but the sizing guides are different for each, so be sure to look at the right one. They can also act as a walking harness. Although, the Clickit Sport is a bit easier to use as a walking harness and maybe be a bit more comfortable for your dog. I love that it is versatile in this way, so that I can harness Luna up in our apartment and walk her down to the car without having to switch harnesses. Even though I use our Clickit Sport as a walking harness all the time in this way, I don’t usually use it if we are planning to walk for a long time.
In general, the Clickit Utility is a bit more complicated to use and is more restrictive for your dog than the Clickit Sport. The Utility uses both the baby seat LATCH/ISO fix anchor system in your car and the regular car seatbelt to secure your dog. All cars manufactured and sold in the USA are required to have this system, but double check before you buy! The Clickit Utility was put through the FMVSS-213 30 mph crash test that is used to test child safety restraints. Clickit Utility Harnesses are available for sale on Sleepypod’s website and cost from $89.99 – $99.99.
Just like the Clickit Utility, the Clickit Sport utilizes the PPRS. Unlike the Utility, the sport also uses Sleepypod’s new Infinity Loop System, which helps distribute and reduce force. Instead of using the car anchor system, this harness only uses the regular seatbelt, which makes it super easy to get setup. Sleepypod has also crash tested the Clickit Sport and it has earned a five star rating from the Center for Pet Safety! The Clickit Sport is available from $74.99 – $79.99 also on Sleepypod’s website.
Luna is able to lie down or sit, but not wander about the car with either harness on. She has a little bit more movement freedom in the Clickit Sport over the Clickit Utility.
Both harnesses come in fun colors like Strawberry Red, Orange Dream, and of course, Jet Black with reflective trim. The Clickit Sport also comes in Robin Egg Blue.
If you just need a general car harness and want it to be more versatile, I would suggest the the Clickit Sport. However, if you drive on a lot of rough roads or if your dog gets particularly anxious or moves too much in the car, I would suggest the Clickit Utility. For the most part, we use our Clickit Sport all the time, but we use the Clickit Utility if we are on winding roads or if Luna is acting particularly stressed about the ride.
These harnesses are definitely a bit of a splurge, but in my mind anything that will help keep your pet safe is priceless.
Disclaimer: Sleepypod provided a Clickit Sport and Clickit Utility free to review. I received no compensation or additional benefits for mentioning the products in this post. The opinions and ideas in this post are my own and are uninfluenced by any other person or business.
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