Question for those who have pets and an automatic closing

[Gardening Grandma]

car door.....

Do you worry about your dog catching its tail in the door?

DH is worried about our dogs getting their tails caught in the cargo door which closes automatically.  The automatic feature can be disabled, but we have not figured out how to open it manually.  Guess it's a question for the dealer.

Any advice?

[dannylion]

The cargo door on my SRX closes automatically, but only if I push the button on the fob or one of three buttons on the car.  It doesn't close all by itself without human intervention.  I'm guessing yours requires some action on your part to tell it to close.  I guess I'd just make sure the dogs are all the way out before pushing the button when they're leaving the car.  As for getting into it, do the dogs move around a lot once they're in the car and put their tails in harm's way as the door is closing?  Maybe they need travel crates or something to keep them safe.  Is there some kind of cargo barrier you can install that would keep them away from the edge of the car?  Maybe the dealer can suggest some sort of accessory to protect the furbabies' tails. 

[Deleted]

I never consider the idea of Charlie's tail getting caught in anything. She has always gotten herself out of the way of stuff like that.

[alabamagal]

UGGH, reminds of the "tail-ectomy" for my beagle.  Her tail got caught in the sliding door on our bathtub when my kids were giving her a bath with another dog.  The end of her tail was so damaged (bone showing) that we had to take her to the vet for a $500 operation to shorten her tail. 

It can happen anywhere.  I would say just be careful.

[Abby Normal]

We don't have an auto closing door, but we do have an SUV with a pull down back door. Our dogs ride in the back end behind a cargo grate to keep them in the back.  They are trained so they have to have permission to get in or out of the car.  When they get it, and I'm ready to close the door I say " watch your tail" and they will turn around and face me as the door closes.  No problems.

[Gardening Grandma]

Aug 15, 2013 13:09:10 GMT -5 Abby Normal said:

We don't have an auto closing door, but we do have an SUV with a pull down back door. Our dogs ride in the back end behind a cargo grate to keep them in the back.  They are trained so they have to have permission to get in or out of the car.  When they get it, and I'm ready to close the door I say " watch your tail" and they will turn around and face me as the door closes.  No problems.

Wow, your pooches are well trained!

I think we've figured out what we'll do. We've lowered the back seats and put in a pet barrier in a location that gives them lots more room.  I can close the door in stages with the fob, so will stick my head in the back door (with treats to hold their attention) while I close it. That way I can see what is going on and stop it if need be.

Once the door is closed, they always just lay down and that's it.