'Hard to watch': Horrifying moment dog falls from moving car
A dog has been filmed tumbling from the window of a moving car.
Video uploaded to Facebook by Dash Cam Owners Australia shows the dog falling from the window of a Toyota Yaris and onto a road in Victoria on Thursday.
The video shows the car driving around the roundabout with the dog sticking its head out of the back window.
But the dog falls and rolls as the car turns.
The little dog, still on its lead, gets back up and runs onto the footpath.
The driver and a passenger pull over to check the dog’s okay. The pooch, seemingly fine, runs towards them.
It’s not clear if the dog was injured.
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Victoria’s road rules don’t require animals to be restrained in vehicles, but it is encouraged for their safety.
In NSW, it’s an offence which can carry a $5500 fine if the animal gets injured and/or six months behind bars.
RSPCA urges owners to keep their dogs safe in cars
Mhairi Roberts, Policy and Advocacy Manager at RSPCA Victoria, told Yahoo News Australia while it’s “wonderful” to see people including pets in their everyday lives, they should ensure their animals feel “safe and comfortable during car travel”.
“Restraining a dog in a car may provide several benefits to both the dog, the occupant of the car, and other road users,” Ms Roberts said.
“When your pet is secure, they are less likely to cause distractions to the driver, escape from a car window or injure themselves, or other passengers in a vehicle during a road collision.
“Vehicle restraints for dogs are widely available; these should have passed safety tests and attach securely to a properly fitted dog harness, and to the vehicle as directed by the manufacturer (usually by attaching to existing seat belts, or via buckles that clip directly into the seat belt).”
Viewers upset for ‘poor dog’
On Facebook, people were horrified by the video of “the poor dog”.
“This makes me anxious,” one woman wrote.
Another woman wrote that people “shouldn’t own a dog” if they “can’t secure it”.
“This was hard to watch,” one man wrote.
“I hope the dog is OK, and the humans have learnt their lesson.”
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