Transporting fur baby.......and regular baby

peteb2

Moving on from my last controversial thread, I need to find a set of wheels to accomodate the dog, the forthcoming baby and the necessary equipment.

What are other people using? Ideally I would have gone for a Volvo V50 estate as you can get a T-shaped guard so you can split the boot space. But finances don't permit so am thinking of a max of €3,500. Would be thinking of a 2002 X-trail or Honda CRV in the hope of squeezing a crate in the back along with the buggy, etc. But not sure whether the boot is wide enough.

Roxie is a medium sized lab x. Any thoughts oh wise pet people?

tk123

Well you don't need an actual crate for starters - you can use a guard and harness and not lose any boot space. I have a halfords mesh one which I find brilliant because it attaches to the head rests so I can still use the load cover/blind thing when he's not in the back. I have an suv/jeep but my dad has a v50 - it came with the fold down dog guard so pretty handy - it folds up against the ceiling/roof when not in use.
Here's my set up with the 2 boys (the retriever is mine and setter is my friend's) after running amok on Sunday morning :pac:

Whispered

The name of your pic is very telling TK123

tk123

Whispered wrote: »

The name of your pic is very telling TK123

LisaO

+1 for Volvo V50. Lots of boot space & Volvo dog guard is excellent.

How about Skoda Octavia Estate if you like the idea of an estate car?

Always surprised that estate cars are not more popular in Ireland - they often offer more spacious and versatile load area than jeeps/SUVs.

peteb2

Budget tends not to allow the skoda or the v50!

Without the crate where would I put the buggy???

tk123

peteb2 wrote: »

Budget tends not to allow the skoda or the v50!

Without the crate where would I put the buggy???

I was at a training thing a few months ago and somebody had 2 guards - one running across the back seat and the second one was going from the back door to the seat like a T if that makes sense - so the boot was split into a small area at the side and a bigger area for the dog

peteb2

Makes perfect sense and that's my ideal setup but they only make them for newer estates like Volvo v50 or focus estate after 2005 both out of my budget

DBB

I borrowed my bro's 2004 Corolla hatchback at the weekend. In it, I fit his three children, two of whom are on booster/child seats, his Cavalier, my Westie, my Spaniel x, and my 40kg GSD! And there was still room for a passenger up front
The boot space in the Corolla hatch is exceptional, and you can fold one or both back seats down to give a huge space at the back if required, for dog and buggy, with child on the not folded-down seat.
I drive a van at the min, but plan to buy another Corolla hatch early next year as I reckon it'll nicely double up as a van and a car.
It'd also have a lower running cost than a jeep or estate, cheaper tyres, fuel efficiency etc.
Gotta love the mad dog people who buy their car with the dog(s) as part of the planning process

borderlinemeath

I have a citroen C5 1.6hdi and the boot is enormous! Loads of room for dog & buggy in the boot & infant carrier in the back. Very economical as well, I get about 700 miles from a full tank of diesel.

Depending on your buggy you might only be putting the frame in the boot at the start if you're going to click a maxi cosi type car seat into the frame so try all permutations of your chosen pram in the boot.

carleigh

My dad has a Focus estate that he bought when we got our late dog, and I cant recommend them enough. We got the built in cage which apparently can be taken out, but ours wouldnt budge recently when my dad tried to take it out to clean! There are plenty of older ones around, my dads is a 99 and its still going strong from new.

iguana

We got a Ford Focus Estate (2001 - €800) and a car boot crate for just under €50. The crate takes up about half the boot space and leaves lots of room for our pram, which is a big off-roader and still has room for the carrycot attachment and a few bag/other bits and pieces.


I took this pic the day the crate arrived, my boys were actually a lot happier in it than they look, they just got a bit depressed that I stood around taking their picture instead of taking them for their long overdue walk. A few days after that we drove from Dublin to Swansea with them in it and they were comfortable and and relaxed for the whole journey. So if it fits two springers, it should be big enough for one lab.

This is the crate I got; http://www.dogcagesdirect.ie/car-dog-crate-dcg01-b.html

peteb2

Are you sure it was the one you linked to? It seems more pyramid type shaped.

JustAThought

I had the loan ( crash - hire) of one of the " new" ford focus this year for two weeks and was blown away by the booth size. Fido LOVED it - it was ginormous!!!! My crate was lost in it & no compromise on style on the back seats.

I'd looked at the older Model ford focus to buy a few years back & nearly bought one ( went for Nissan hatchback instead which fits dog, cello & I & was a cooler colour!) . I'd really recommend them .

I wouldn't recommend a harness - dog, wet, mud,washing the back seats, smell of wet dog off clothes everytime someone then sits on the seats, general extra work & ponginess.

I was at the national country fair in Borris (!) a while back & there was a guy there selling v good value " crates" which he could make up to suite any car & could configure for your needs - single or twin crates, stacked or side by side ( small dogs/jeep etc); double doors & divide in single crate ; double large crate, side crate with " shelf" for handbags/shopping/ babykit etc

Well worth checking the
Kut - maybe the website or Facebook would have a lust/link fir exhibitors. They were a father & son team & not the nor
Al huge prices you'd see charged fir a custom Made one down at the kennel club events.

JustAThought

peteb2 wrote: »

Are you sure it was the one you linked to? It seems more pyramid type shaped.

I bought a square crate & it didn't fit by about a centimetre- sloping back window pyramid ones are worth a look!! I had to drive with my back seats down for years!!!!

iguana

peteb2 wrote: »

Are you sure it was the one you linked to? It seems more pyramid type shaped.

Yup, mine slopes at the front and back. It wouldn't fit otherwise as it needs to slope to fit in by the seats and for the door to close down.